Adam Benzine
DOC report paints bleak view for Canadian documentary
FILM / TVCanadian documentary production is facing its steepest decline in volume in almost a decade, according to a report from The Documentary Organization of Canada.
Doc/Fest ’13: “Act of Killing,” “Uganda” land gongs
FILMJoshua Oppenheimer’s The Act of Killing (pictured) continued its run of festival award wins by picking up the Special Jury Prize in Sheffield, while Roger Ross Williams’ God Loves Uganda took the Youth Jury Award.
Doc/Fest ’13: BBC promises to protect blue-chip wildlife series
TVThe BBC has promised it will continue to produce and air big-budget, blue-chip natural history series such as Frozen Planet (pictured), Life, Africa and Planet Earth, following a UK report suggesting that its multimillion dollar coproduction partnership with Discovery is coming to an end.
Doc/Fest ’13: HBO Europe seeking “emotional” docs
TVHBO Europe’s exec producer of documentaries Hanka Kastelicová told delegates at Sheffield Doc/Fest she wants pitches for emotional stories, deriding many docs that air in Central and Eastern Europe as being “too journalistic.”
MTG buys DRG, Novemberfilm
TVEuropean broadcaster Modern Times Group (MTG) has taken over two indies, acquiring UK-based distributor DRG in a £15 million (US$23.5 million) deal, and buying Norwegian indie Novemberfilm for an undisclosed sum. (Pictured: DRG-distributed Catch Phrase)
Realscreen West 2013: The complete wrap
TVRealscreen recaps all the key news and views from its fifth annual West Coast conference, which took place over two sold-out days in Santa Monica last week.
A+E Networks UK hires Wiley for Poland
TVA+E Networks UK has opened a Warsaw office and hired former Viacom exec Izabella Wiley for the newly created role of general manager for Poland.
Critics’ Choice wins for “Push Girls,” “Duck Dynasty”
TVSundance Channel’s Push Girls (pictured) and A&E’s Duck Dynasty tied for the Best Reality Series prize at the third annual Critics’ Choice Television Awards.
ITV orders “Gino’s Italian Escape”
TVUK broadcaster ITV has commissioned Gino’s Italian Escape, a six-part primetime series presented by chef Gino D’Acampo.
RSW ’13: Amping up unscripted with H2, Esquire, more
TVExecs from H2, Destination America, Disney Channel and the soon-to-launch Esquire Network discussed their commissioning needs and target demos during the ‘Amping Up Unscripted’ session at Realscreen West.


