CAN’T STOP media, the boutique distributor based in London, announces that its successful interview format “The A-Talks” has received fresh commissions for local adaptations in 2 additional countries as Israel’s KESHET 12 and Slovakia’s TV JOJ are the latest broadcasters to commit to the format. Successful runs in Norway and Sweden have also triggered renewals for second series with NRK and SVT respectively, while Mediacorp in Singapore is extending series 1.
In Israel, leading commercial network Keshet 12 and Tedy Productions are recording 4 episodes in January and February which will air in primetime later this Spring. In Slovakia, TV JOJ is planning to shoot 6 to 8 episodes in March, for a premiere set for the second half of the year.
This comes on the heels of renewals for second series in Sweden for SVT 1 and Norway for NRK1. In Norway, the decision was even taken before series 1 had launched. It proved to be the right decision as the first 2 episodes which aired have so far already passed the 1 million viewers’ mark (in a country of 5.5 million people). In parallel, Mediacorp’s CNA in Singapore is extended series 1 order from 4 to 9 episodes.
Each adaptation features some of the countries’ most famous personalities, including A-List comedians, singers and musicians, writers, sport athletes and leading political figures, to be interviewed by a group of autistic non-professional journalists. In all countries, the group of reporters is built from scratch, with the support of health organizations and NGO’s, all working closely to help people on the spectrum manage their condition. Celebrities will face the grilling of a lifetime as no subject is out of bounds, no question is off the table. In “The A-Talks”, anything can happen.
This brings a total of 13 international adaptations for the French format created by Quad+TEN and Kiosco.TV and initiated by popular movie directors, Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano (“The Intouchables”) for France 2.
The format is running into its 3rd season in France and has already been renewed in Australia, Denmark and Poland, respectively by the ABC, DR1 and WarnerBrosDiscovery’s TVN, and picked up by ITV1 in the UK, following a one-off special on BBC1. Series 1 has just started in The Netherlands on NPO1 with the first episode ranking # 1 in the slot and scoring 25.3% of market share (+22% vs. the channel’s average) with 1.1 million live viewers.
Damien Porte, cofounder at CAN’T STOP media, states: “Currently in production in 13 countries, local series have aired in 10 of them and have already been renewed in 9. Only top formats experience such a high level of satisfaction from broadcasters and we’re delighted to achieve such a success ratio with a format having such a positive impact on society.”
Ilanit Siman Tov Hirsch, Head of Programs and Acquisition at Keshet, tells: “As a central and leading TV channel in the Israeli culture and social arena, we are always in quest for global and wide formats. We found “The A Talks” as a promising format that we have chosen to embrace and develop for our local market.”
Marcel Grega, CEO JOJ Group, says: “Unconventional, yet heart-warming and meaningful. We like to experiment with formats and we are excited to bring this unique show to life and share the much-needed positive and heartfelt conversations it offers with our audience.”
