Fremantle UK folds Boundless into Naked
Grand Designs label Boundless will disappear, with its roster of shows now sitting under Naked Television within Fremantle UK.
Naked’s managing director Fatima Salaria, the former Channel 4 commissioner, will take over the slate, which also includes The Apprentice. Boundless managing director Neil Smith has left the business.
Founded by Simon Andrae, who is now Fremantle UK chief executive, the Naked brand has a long-established foothold in the US.
The decision to maintain the Naked brand in favour of Boundless is understood to be due to its resonance in the US.
Twofour shuts Boomerang
Twofour’s Welsh label Boomerang, the indie behind Dave show Big Zuu’s Big Eats, is to close, with its slate of shows shifting to the parent company and fellow ITV Studios label Boom Group.
Boomerang director of programmes Sam Grace has been named Boom creative director, reporting into managing director Nia Thomas. Head of production Will Edwards has stood down.
Twofour will now focus its nations and regions operations at its Plymouth headquarters and Cardiff-based Boom will oversee productions in Cardiff.
Bear Grylls producers set up shop
Mark Westcott and Duncan Gaudin, best known for collaborations with adventurer Bear Grylls have launched their own indie, Marshal Bishop Productions.
Chief executive Westcott and chief creative officer Gaudin will focus on creating returnable factual series, high-end factual and factual entertainment.
The duo have produced Grylls shows such as ITV’s Bear Grylls: Mission Survive, Discovery’s Man Vs Wild, Channel 4’s The Island and NBC’s Running Wild with Bear Grylls.
The company is looking for production partners on developments including precinct-based reality, survival, endurance and adventure formats and location-based challenge game shows.
Zinc Media shifts focus with fact ent label launch
Zinc Media is resting two of its indie labels and replacing them dedicated popular factual and factual entertainment indie Red Sauce.
With a remit for “distinctive and playful” mainstream shows, Red Sauce is headed by former BBC commissioning editor Tom Edwards, who brought shows such as Eat Well For Less, House That 100K Built and Hugh’s War on Waste to the screen.
With Red Sauce now taking forward recommissions of popular factual IP residing in both Blakeway North and fellow Zinc label Reef, Zinc said these two brands would be kept “in our locker” but not fully closed.
Zinc will now operate five production labels: Red Sauce, Blakeway, Films of Record, Brook Lapping and Tern Television.
The group's revenues fell by 50% in the first half of 2020, pushing it into the red with £780,000 in losses but expects its new structure to turn this around by the end of 2020.
Diverse companies set up shop
Two BAME-led indies have joined the competitive fray this week with a mission to broaden the voices heard in drama and unscripted television.
Coventry-based Portopia Productions wants to seek out existing and emerging talent from under-represented communities to build a slate of “entertaining and thought-provoking storytelling” in scripted shows, documentaries and factual entertainment formats.
The team includes writers Kit der Waal and Dean O’Loughlin, who have worked with Denis Kelly on upcoming Sky Atlantic/HBO drama The Third Day, plus Sophie Morgan, a former Virgin Media commissioning editor who ordered Briain’s Next Top Model, Ibiza and Jade and has held head of development roles at September Films, World of Wonder and Cineflix.
Meanwhile, The End of the F***ing World producer Dominic Buchanan and Silvertown Films producer Bennett McGhee have launched Home Team, which will concentrate on high-end TV and film drama and documentaries from BAME and female film-makers.
Rock Oyster team relocates following MBO
Cookery and travel show indie Rock Oyster Media is to move from London to Plymouth following a management buyout by founder David Nottage and head of development Charlotte Davis.
The duo set up the indie in 2019, backed by financier and producer Goldfinch, which will remain a ‘key strategic partner’ offering ‘significant interest’ in current shows in development and support on future projects.
Head of TV Eric Woollard-White has now left the indie after two years.
Rock Oyster has produced 50 hours of shows for ITV, including vegan format Living on the Veg and programmes featuring Nadia Sawalha and Ainsley Harriet.
Bandicoot producer joins forces with his brother
Miles Angell, a former development producer at The Masked Singer indie Bandicoot, has launched a youth-skewing indie with his brother Tom.
Angell Brothers will focus on primetime shows that appeal to the 16-34 year old demographic.
Miles was formerly a senior development producer for Bandicoot, where he developed BBC Scotland show Test Drive. He has also worked for STV Studios and Gobstopper Television.
Tom joins from fashion house Loewe, while Hoopla Animation chief executive Andy Chambers is a non-executive director.
Red founder to launch ITV Studios label
Nicola Shindler, the founder of Last Tango in Halifax producer Red Production Company, is to set up a new label within ITV Studios.
As with Red, the as-yet unnamed company will be based in Manchester and will focus premium UK and international drama.
Shindler founded Red in 1998 and hit the ground running with Channel 4’s Queer as Folk and has been creator Russell T Davies’ go-to indie since on the likes of BBC1’s Years and Years and upcoming C4 series Boys.
Other hits include BBC1’s Happy Valley, ITV’s Scott and Bailey, Sky’s The Five and Netflix’s The Stranger.
In 2018, Shindler became chief executive of Red owner StudioCanal UK, subsequently becoming chief creative officer in March this year. Her career was celebrated with a special Bafta award last year for her 'outstanding contribution to the television industry'.
Shindler’s label will sit alongside indies such as The Graham Norton Show producer So Television, factual indie The Garden and scripted outfits Big Talk and Mammoth Screen in ITV Studios’ portfolio.
Spirit Media restructures and rebrands
Peter Cowley and Matt Campion have rebranded and restructured digital indie Spirit Media as Spirit Studios.
The new-look outfit will now comprise TV and digital originals and podcasting arms, a branded content studio and a platforms and distribution unit.
The restructure follows the indie’s departure from previous backer Kew Media, after the latter went into administration earlier this year.
The TV and digital originals studio will be located in Brighton, led by creative director Campion. Its first project is a recommission of ITV2’s The Stand Up Sketch Show.