Edinburgh TV Festival has unveiled Channel 4 strategy boss Kiran Nataraja as its 2023 Advisory Chair. Nataraja, who is the broadcaster’s Director of Content Strategy and Planning, will oversee panel sessions and keynotes for the annual festival that has been extended to four days this year. It will run from August 22 to 25 and theme is The Passion and The Power of TV. Nataraja joined the Gogglebox broadcaster in 2011 and has since worked her way up to running the planning and scheduling teams while shaping commissioning strategy across the Channel 4 portfolio, including VoD player All4. “For as long as I can remember, I’ve been obsessed with TV,” said Nataraja. “I was endlessly fascinated by different worlds and voices on screen. I’m honored to take on this role so we can explore the passion and responsibility we all share for creating powerful shows that can bring positive change to a viewer.” Edinburgh Executive Chair Fatima Salaria called her an “influential … [Read more...] about Edinburgh TV Festival Unveils 2023 Advisory Chair
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Fremantle In Talks To Merge ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ Producer Thames With Talkback Once Again
EXCLUSIVE: Fremantle is planning to once again merge Britain’s Got Talent producer Thames with Talkback under a restructure that will be unveiled in the coming months. Deadline understands plans are being drawn up to consolidate Fremantle’s UK entertainment labels, with the coming together of the two stalwart British production houses a strong possibility. The Apprentice producer Naked, which was merged with Fremantle stablemate Boundless in 2020, could also be brought within the newly-merged entity. If rubberstamped, Deadline understands a label boss will be hired to oversee the new Talkback Thames shingle and a redundancy process will likely take place. We revealed late last month that Thames MD Amelia Brown is exiting after two decades to set up her own production company, while Naked MD Fatima Salaria is also departing shortly . If the plans are pushed through, the move will be the third time Thames has been combined with Talkback. They were first … [Read more...] about Fremantle In Talks To Merge ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ Producer Thames With Talkback Once Again
‘Rebirth Island’: Cold War Spy Thriller From ‘Balaban’ Director Wraps Production, Heads To EFM
EXCLUSIVE: Writer-director Aysulu Onaran ( Balaban ) has wrapped principal photography on her latest feature film, Rebirth Island . The film is a historical spy thriller based on true events from the Cold War. Executive producers on the pic are Rose Ganguzza ( Fatima ) and Adilet Yessimov ( Balaban ). The film was shot on location in Kazakhstan. Onaran will present the project to buyers at EFM . The film’s synopsis reads: It’s summer 1992, a month before the collapse of the Soviet empire. A military scientist, Colonel Dautov, serves at the top-secret laboratory on Rebirth Island. The Colonel’s beliefs and military oath are challenged when he rescues an imprisoned woman from the laboratory and helps a CIA agent to find the secret burial ground of 200 tons of the bioweapon Anthrax-836 to avert the biological apocalypse. Dulyga Akmolda, Vlad Bukatkin, Malika Baygubenova, Olga Landina, and Alexey Shemes star in the film. Additional credits include Director of … [Read more...] about ‘Rebirth Island’: Cold War Spy Thriller From ‘Balaban’ Director Wraps Production, Heads To EFM