Québécois Family Drama ‘Last Summers of the Raspberries’ Scores Berlinale/Series Mania Double

French hip-hop series Le Monde de Demain has scooped the Grand Prize at the Series Mania International Competition.

Amazon Studios Europe Boss Georgia Brown has revealed how the streamer “completely turned storymaking on its head” for upcoming hybrid grime/drill musical Jungle. 

Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentPriya Dogra, president of WarnerMedia Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia (excluding China), took the stage on Thursday to deliver a keynote speech at the Series Mania TV fest in Lille, France, and the message was clear: the U.S. conglomerate is ramping up production in Europe.“Our industry is becoming more global,” said Dogra.

WarnerMedia EMEA & Asia President Priya Dogra has talked up the U.S. media giant’s plan to “ramp up investment in local creative communities across Europe,” with 40 shows in the pipeline for 2023.

The head of France Télévisions Delphine Ernotte Cunci has said she “wouldn’t personally have applied censorship” to Russian news networks.

Major networks are “beginning to see the light” by commissioning entertaining content from Africa, according to EbonyLife Founder Mo Abudu, as the heads of production houses in some of the world’s biggest growing content markets spotlighted the challenge of attracting new talent.

Manori Ravindran International EditorParamount is the latest studio to plant its flag in the ground at French TV drama festival Series Mania, where international CEO Raffaele Annecchino broke down the company’s international distribution and SVOD strategy.In a keynote moderated by Variety’s Italy and West Asia correspondent Nick Vivarelli, Annecchino detailed plans to focus internationally on premium SVOD service Paramount Plus and FAST offering Pluto TV, which has more than 64 million monthly users. Also in the mix to “compete with our ecosystem,” according to Annecchino, is Paramount’s JV with Comcast, SkyShowtime, which is launching in 20 European markets where Paramount Plus won’t be available.By the end of 2022, both Paramount Plus and SkyShowtime will be in more than 60 markets in Europe.

Paramount International boss Raffaele Annecchino has talked up the streamer for “launching quicker than others” in key European markets, as he unveiled a tied-up with global Lupin and Narcos production house Gaumont and set titles from France, Argentina and Germany.

Marta Balaga The conditions are set for an increase in scripted adaptations, argued Tim Westcott of research organization Omdia at Series Mania.According to the research opening the “With Local Content Going Global, What’s the Future of Scripted Formats?” session on Wednesday, the U.S. has been the biggest and “most enthusiastic” buyer of scripted remakes between 2010 and 2022, with South Korea, Turkey and France also following suit.

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentVery few The Mediapro Studio shows, indeed very few Spanish series in general, have lit a fire on the open market like “The Head,” an Antarctic-set thriller which lifts off as a murder mystery to constantly evolve into other realms. Starring Álvaro Morte, “Money Heist’s” Professor and Japanese pop idol Tomohisa Yamashita, written by Alex and David Pastor (“Hogar,” “Carriers”) and directed by Jorge Dorado (“The Department of Time,” “The Pier”), “The Head” broke viewership records on co-financiers Hulu Japan and HBO Asia and sold to over 90 countries including HBO in the U.S. The Mediapro Studio retained IP. “Sales opened doors to new markets and clients with whom we hadn’t worked before,” said Laura Fernández Espeso, CEO of The Mediapro Studio.

Anna Marie de la Fuente At a time when journalists are under attack in many parts of the world and the odious term “fake news” has become part of the global lexicon, Spain’s Mediacrest presents the topical drama series “Fake” at a key event in France-based Series Mania, the invitation-only Spain Pitching Breakfast, on Thursday.Leading the charge is industry vet-producer Gustavo Ferrada (“Klaus,” “Nobody Knows Anybody”), Mediacrest’s executive director of fiction, who joined the fast-rising Spanish production company in January.“Fake” is one of five selected projects from leading Spanish production companies seeking European partners, comprising Fedent España, Friki Films, Onza, Vertice 360 and Mediacrest. Created in-house by Mediacrest’s deputy head of fiction, Carlos Molinero and senior scriptwriter Nicolás Romero, the Strasbourg-based series of six 52-minute episodes follows a high-powered couple as their once idyllic relationship turns toxic.

ruled in favor of the request of Bob Saget's family to seal sensitive photos taken of the late actor after his death, more than 40 images have been released of Saget's hotel room at the Ritz-Carlton. The images include the nightstand and headboard in Saget's room, where trauma could have occurred, as well as bathroom and shower images.Saget was found dead on Jan. 9 at the age of 65 inside his Orlando, Florida, hotel room.

Naman Ramachandran “Is bigger generally better?” was one of the hot button topics being debated at a Series Mania panel on Wednesday and the answer in general was there is always room for growth in a rapidly expanding market, albeit with some caveats. Weighing in on the topic were the heads of Europe-based companies, each of which operate several labels across territories.

Photos have emerged of police guarding a home after a 17-month-old was mauled to death by a dog in her own home in Merseyside.

EXCLUSIVE: Suraj Sharma (Life of Pi) has signed on to star alongside Sharmila Tagore, Manoj Bajpayee and Kaveri Seth in the film Gulmohar for Chalkboard Entertainment, Autonomous Works and Fox Star Studios, which is currently in production in New Delhi.

EXCLUSIVE: BBC Studios has started drumming up interest internationally for The Birth of Daniel F Harris, the latest young adult drama from End of the F***ing World producer Clerkenwell Films.

Series Mania has combined with European content powerhouse Beta Group on an initiative to encourage filmmakers to move into TV.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentSeries Mania Forum, the festival’s industry sidebar, is joining forces with Jan Mojto’s Beta Group to launch Seriesmakers, a creative initiative to support feature film directors venturing into scripted drama.Seriesmakers will select 10 projects which will participate in a tailor-made training program focused on the development of a full pitch deck. Mentored by renowned directors, showrunners, writers and producers, each team will deliver a series bible.Those eligible for Seriesmakers include directors who have have their first or second feature film play in the official selection of A-category film festival.A special jury will award two projects during Series Mania Forum in 2023.