Following a delay in the hopes of doing an in-person upfront, SBS has confirmed its plans for the year with its 2022 Upfront.
Mediaweek spoke with SBS acting director of television and online content, Chris Irvine, about the big slate of announcements made by the public broadcaster.
See more: SBS Upfront: Public broadcaster confirms raft of major announcements
Drama
SBS has commissioned six new dramas, with one being the first-ever co-commission with NITV and also four digital originals. Irvine said that these are all exciting projects to be rolling out this year.
“True Colours is the first ever NITV and SBS co-commissioned primetime drama series. It’s a gripping murder mystery set in the Northern Territory. Against the backdrop of the Aboriginal art scene. The show is seamlessly multilingual, the dialogue weaves between English and first the local First Nations language of Arrernte, which is a language I don’t think Australians have ever heard in a primetime drama before. It kind of weaves into worlds that are quintessentially Australian, perhaps worlds that you haven’t seen before on TV.
“Safe Home is the first show we’ve had come from the inimitable Imogen Banks, the powerhouse creative behind Offspring and Puberty Blues. It’s an adaptation of a stage play, written by Anna Barnes called Lethal Indifference which is a cleverly woven thriller about family violence. It’s full of twists and turns, that keep surprising you. At its heart, it explores the idea that anyone regardless of race, gender, age, can be a victim or indeed a perpetrator of the crime and violence.”
The four digital originals include dark comedy A Beginner’s Guide to Grief which will examine death, grief and identity and Nightbloomers which is an anthology horror series from the Korean diaspora. It also includes Latecomers which sees two strangers with cerebral palsy are determined to explore their relationships with sex and each other after watching their carers hook up at a bar, and Appetite where a food delivery rider dies on the streets of Sydney, and an unlikely trio of fellow riders are entangled in a mystery to uncover the truth. Irvine said that there is no metric of success for the digital properties but it is about building up emerging talent with diverse backgrounds.
“It’s about launching the careers of a new generation of diverse and First Nations storytellers and giving underrepresented voices, a platform for success. And they’ve all delivered just that. This year, we’re announcing four and each of them brings something kind of fresh and original to SBS. ”
Documentaries and Factual
At the SBS Upfront, the broadcaster also announced several new documentaries and factual programs, led by the Australian version of Alone. Irvine said that the international versions of Alone have been a smash hit on SBS on Demand.
“Alone is a juggernaut for SBS on Demand which currently houses seven seasons of the US format. And there are also local adaptations from Sweden, Norway and Denmark. Alone without hyperbole is the most successful factual show ever on our platform and is second only to The Handmaid’s Tale in terms of overall performance. ITV Australia is going to adapt the format for an Australian version, and it’s a tremendously complicated show to make. But the format’s relatively simple. You drop 10 People with survival training in a remote wilderness with a minimal cache of supplies and ask them to fend for themselves for as long as they can.”
Alone
International Distribution
Another highlight of the SBS Upfront was the announcement of the extension of the international distribution deal between SBS and Studio Canal. Irvine said that this was a vital deal for both SBS and SBS on Demand.
“StudioCanal is a longtime supplier of amazing content for SBS. We have enormous affection for StudioCanal and its output. This deal bolsters that relationship for the next few years. We’re really excited about Django which is going to be the first big-ticket item coming out of that deal later this year. But there are loads more coming.”
New Channel: SBS WorldWatch
The SBS Upfront also saw the announcement that SBS will expand its multiplatform multilingual services in 2022, with the launch of the new free-to-air television channel, SBS WorldWatch, from May 23. Irvine said that this was a national expansion, and allowed more predictability to SBS viewers.
“World news has always been part of our DNA. It is something that our audience knows us for and that World Watch offering will continue to serve our multilingual audience as it always has, and offer some more predictability in terms of when those news bulletins are going to be available. It will be home to SBS’ new Arabic and Mandarin language news programmes which have already premiered on SBS on Demand this month.”
SBS Food
During the SBS Upfront, several new and returning commissions were announced for SBS Food, including another 200 episodes of The Cook Up with Adam Liaw. This follows an initial order of 200 last year, bringing the series to 400 episodes total, when asked about this Irvine said there was no reason to not lodge another big order.
“Why wouldn’t we. The Cook Up is absolutely coming back. It launched with 200 episodes last year, and it’s coming back with a similar order. It’s become an absolute success on SBS food.”
Adam Liaw
SBS Commissioning Equity and Inclusion Guidelines
SBS has also announced the SBS Commissioning Equity and Inclusion Guidelines, which Irvine said will underpin the broadcasters continuing commitment to diversity.
“Our originals portfolio has always been a diverse array of voices across the network because diversity is in our DNA. We are launching some equity and inclusion guidelines which are going to underpin our commitment to seeing the screen sector better represent the audience it serves. We’re holding ourselves to account to ensure we’re delivering on that commitment by introducing targets across all of our conditions shows over the next three years.”
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Top Image: Cast of A Beginner’s Guide to Grief will