Locally produced comedy drama attracts the highest ratings and the largest audiences worldwide. This was one of the key market trends revealed in a session called “Comedy’s Place in the International TV Market’ at the recent Entertainment Master Class module on comedy and sitcom in Cape Town.
According to Caroline Torrance, director of investment at BBC Worldwide, besides the popularity of local comedy drama, other key trends show that US style production, pace and season length is the most desirable to buyers, and comedies featuring mainstream, dysfunctional families and unusual lives appeal to international audiences.
“While sketch and stand-up comedy tends to be confined to local markets, animated comedy has the potential to transcend geographical and cultural boundaries really well,’ said Torrance.
However, she emphasised that these trends are not set in stone. “For every one of these trends there’s an exception. For example Come Fly With Me is a British comedy sketch format that has sold to the Netherlands.’
She believes one of the most appealing factors in the international market is repeatability.
In a different session titled “What’s new, what’s hot in comedy’, managing director of independent UK consultancy K7 Media, Keri Lewis Brown, agreed that comedy repeats incredibly well.
“If you can find a brilliant sitcom you can give up and go home, the money will be rolling in forever,’ said Brown, noting that there were two repeats in the top 10 comedy shows in the UK in the week before the module was presented.
Torrance added that universal themes and a relatable key central character also add to international appeal.
“The holy grail of comedy is physical or silent comedy, for example Rowan Atkinson’s Mr Bean. There are no language barriers and this resulted in sales to 200 territories. The Mr Bean Facebook page has 2.5 million friends, of which 82% is under the age of 24. This shows how universal it is, and to how broad an audience it appeals.’
Although US comedy dominates the market, Torrance noted that other countries are also producing comedy that sells. Germany’s Lady Cracker has sold to five countries; Berlin Berlin sold to 17 countries; and Schiller Street was sold to Fox for adaptation in the US, and also sold to the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and 10 other territories.
Torrance said when evaluating the appeal of a comedy or sitcom, they ask a number of questions, including if the idea appeals to a broad audience and if it has returning series potential and volume potential (to go to at least 10 episodes).
“We also look at brand building potential, for example DVDs, gaming and publishing spin-offs and look at whether the series has a show runner or writers with longevity attached,’ explained Torrance.
The top selling BBC sitcom titles are My Family, Coupling, The Vicar of Dibley, Gavin & Stacey and Fawlty Towers.
However, while some of the sitcoms still making money for the BBC can be considered classics, the BBC is also moving with the times and selling their shows in new ways.
“The download-to-own market is becoming incredibly important to us and we are starting to make significant amounts of money from it,’ said Torrance.
BBC Worldwide is a commercial, wholly owned subsidiary of the BBC and sells programmes, including Top Gear and Doctor Who, around the world on behalf of its rights owners.
SCREENAFRICA Print Magazine – November 2011 (view here)
By Linda krige
