Over the last few years, Lebanon has seen a boom in independent television production. Not because of the proliferation of pan-Arab stations – only around 10 broadcasters buy independent productions on a regular basis – but because broadcasters have finally realized that shows produced in-house generally have all the appeal and quality of a high-school drama project scripted and shot by a bunch of 14-year-olds with a Handycam.
Independent production houses such as Iprod, Element, Endemol Middle East, Periscoop and Imagic are benefiting from this long-awaited revelation. The number of producers devoting themselves to TV shows is on the rise and companies that used to focus on other projects are now attracted to this potential gold mine.
Paul Sabbagh, managing director of Lebanese production house Signature, says that although his company currently concentrates mainly on the production of television commercials, it plans to expand its TV show production so that – within the next few years – 50 percent of its output and revenues are generated by TV shows. “We will either buy formats or create new ones,” says Sabbagh. “Content is the future.”
SYNDICATING SHOWS. This is a philosophy that Rony Jazzar, co-founder of production house Imagic, wholeheartedly agrees with. Imagic – launched in 2004 – started the reality TV trend in Lebanon with its coverage of the first Miss Lebanon beauty pageant, Jazzar claims. Today the company produces 10 series a year, with business rising by 30 to 40 percent annually.
Each series is sold by episode, with concept-buying fees ranging from $5,000 to $10,000 and execution fees from $30,000 to $40,000, rising to $300,000 for, say, a music show with a large set, tricky lighting and complex direction.
“In 2007, we had the biggest share of the market,” says Jazzar. Imagic’s prospects are even better for 2008 as last spring it became part of the Sparks network, an international alliance of 17 production houses, including Red Square (the largest Russian production house), Optimistic in India, and Elephant et Cie in France. Each handles one country or territory and Imagic now represents 22 countries in the MENA region.
Two of its new shows that are due to launch in 2008 were obtained through Sparks: Check or Bet, a new show for Abu Dhabi TV, comes from Argentina, and another was created in Poland. But Imagic is concentrating on exports too. Various countries in Europe and South America are interested in two of its formats: Mission Fashion and Head Hunter, according to Jazzar.
Another independent production house, LCI Entertainment, established in Jan. 2007, also plans to use its contact network to sell a currently under-production series about the Arab world to Western countries. “This series is one of our priorities,” says Beirut manager Wadih Safieddine. “Through our offices in North America, we have excellent positioning.”
And if your company isn’t fortunate enough to enjoy the kind of organized support offered by an international network, there are alternatives: The age-old formula of pestering your friends, for one. French-Lebanese producer and TV host Peri Cochin, for example, used her numerous contacts in French television to sell famous Middle Eastern formats such as Chako Mako and Adam and Hawa on behalf of her production house Periscoop.
“I personally know most of the format owners,” says Cochin. “It certainly helped me convince them to sell the rights for the shows.”
Whether through international recognition or superlative networking, independent TV production is enjoying huge success in difficult times in Lebanon.
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