I have been researching to come up with ideas for the final major project and have looked at what people are looking to commission to get an idea for what people want to make and see.
Channel 4 had a huge list of things they are looking for and here are a few that took my interest.
DOCUMENTARIES
What are your commissioning priorities?
We are looking for single films in the Cutting Edge strand, Documentary Series, half-hour films from new directors in the First Cut strand, and international feature docs which we showcase in the True Stories strand on More4.
What are you not interested in?
There are some ideas that clearly don't fit with our stated purpose of reflecting Contemporary Britain, and won't work for our C4 output.
What is the biggest creative challenge your team or genre faces?
Finding the really big ambitious ideas that will re-write the rules in the new post Big Brother world, and will break through to become major events in the schedule.
We are always looking for great new presenters.
So what are you looking for?
We want incredible stories from a range of ideas and styles - news related and access driven, quirky and eccentric, observational, concept driven or simply off the wall - we do not want films that tick boxes or deliver essays on identity politics. We are looking for fabulous, larger than life characters in surprising situations or worlds we haven't seen before.
DRAMA
What are your commissioning priorities?
Our priority is to deliver high quality drama which entertains, challenges and informs audiences and which fulfils the Channel 4 remit.
What are the tariff prices for programmes you currently commission?
These vary according to the project, we don't commission to slots either in terms of price of schedule.
What is the biggest creative challenge your team or genre faces?
Fulfilling the Channel 4 remit in an innovative and original way
What advice would you give to new talent companies keen to connect with your team?
Please do think about the Channel 4 brand and audience before you pitch, please keep proposals to 2 pages and don't send taster tapes, we prefer to appraise the projects on the merits of the proposal.
ENTERTAINMENT
What are your commissioning priorities?
Reality and Event Shows
our priority is to find a big entertainment reality show for 2012. We're looking for high concept formats or gameshows that are a departure from Big Brother, stripped across one week or two. Shows with scale and a Channel 4 twist.
Friday night
in the Autumn we are launching a number of new shows on Friday nights, taking the viewer from 8pm through to 11pm.
8pm is a slot that has recently opened up for us and we're looking for game shows or quiz shows with a broad family appeal.
Million Pound Drop is cutting through at 9pm and in June we're launching a new show; The King Of.... with Claudia Winkleman.
And at 10pm we want the entertainment Holy Grail- a big Friday night entertainment show, that's driven by big name talent, possibly live. We're looking for shows that have a top-line concept that runs throughout. The model we're using is Derren Brown's The Events - a pre-recorded or live studio event with polished, high-end VTs that tell a story.
New Talent
Bringing new talent to the channel continues to be a big priority for us. 11 o'clock has opened up and we've got money now to spend on ideas that help to grow new talent. Stand Up For The Week has done this for us and we are looking for otjer weekly formats and archive shows.
Mid week at 10pm
We're looking for formats to play mid week - they might be game shows, entertainment reality formats, panel shows or hidden camera shows.
FILM4
What are your commissioning priorities?
Film4 develops and co-finances feature length films for theatrical release in cinemas. Although ultimately we are looking for films that will eventually play on both Channel 4 and Film4, (the digital channel), we do not develop films specifically for televised broadcast.
We look for range across our subject matter and budgets, though these will tend to be contemporary stories, rather than period pieces and will usually be made with British led talent or with British content.
Film4 is looking for material with a distinctive voice that aims to push the boundaries within a given film genre.
Q: What are you not interested in?
As a general rule, we do not develop films for family audiences, nor do we look to develop period pieces.
For any queries relating to completed films, you will need to contact the Acquisitions department within the channel who deal with licensing finished films for televised broadcast.
Currently we do not have an open submission system for short films. However, we do make a number of short films each year for which we either target talent or we make in connection to a feature project. Please continue to check our website for up to date information.
T4 & MUSIC
What are your commissioning priorities?
Primarily cost effective programme ideas and formats which feel fresh and new, yet offer an alternative from what we already have on offer. Our shows are targeted at the 16-34 audience so need to be broad in appeal, as well as reflecting our audience's interests.
What are you not interested in?
Magazine formats or film shows within T4 are not really what we're pursuing as we already offer much of this kind of content within T4 links. We're also very well served for live music performance (both within T4 and late night Music on 4). What we'd like is new and alternate ways of capturing contemporary music and celebrity - other than just live performance. We've also recently commissioned a number of formats around unsigned bands so we aren't currently looking to pursue anything in this particular area.
COMEDY
For C4 we're looking for returnable sitcom scripts for 10pm slots - something with a defining and distinctive setting or conceptual hook to it that would mark it our from anything traditional of conventional in a mainstream sense. We want ideas and setting that haven't been tackled or covered before.
For E4 we're looking for performer/writer led ideas from more emerging talent as well as grabby clip or prank show ideas that would repeat well.
Sending in teaser tapes or you-tube links or inviting us to read-throughs or showcases is always a welcome relief from wading through tons of script.
What are you not interested in?
Anything we already have or exists elsewhere. Please don't just send in loose treatments and one page proposals. In order to fully gauge the writer's voice, humour, originality and ability we'd need to see a script.
Please note we no longer accept scripts from individuals. You must either go through an agent or production company.
Please DO NOT submit proposals to the COMEDY department using the online submission system.
There seems to be a lot of scope here for docs and drama, and if we wanted a challenge; the music genre.
No comments:
Post a Comment