HBO Max Courts European Drama Producers: ‘We Don’t Like Complicated, But We Do Like Complex’
variety.comManori Ravindran International EditorIn one of its first major overtures to the European drama community since expanding across the continent, HBO Max commissioners used a rare Series Mania presentation to lay out their strategies and wish lists for the platform.The team was speaking as part of a panel on Wednesday that drew a queue of at least 500 people who were snaked around the Lille Grand Palais in hopes of getting in.
HBO Max is, for many a drama producer in town, the ideal partner in Europe given its existing track record as HBO Europe. (The business later revealed plans to invest $1 million into the Series Mania Institute, a training program for European TV professionals, over the next three years.)Antony Root, executive VP and head of original production for WarnerMedia EMEA, presented the streamer’s four pillars for local originals: Local first; broad appeal; distinctive storytelling; and a diverse slate.
The task at hand, he said, is to drive subscriber acquisitions and “get people in who might not otherwise subscribe to the HBO channel, by having a broader slate.”“We still want shows that are bold; not re-trends of other shows.
We’re always looking for shows that can move a genre forwards,” Root said, noting that building out a slate of unscripted programs such as Romania’s “One True Singer,” revealed by Variety last week, is a priority alongside drama.A diverse slate — meaning diversity in price points — was stressed by the executive, who said the platform “can’t make everything at high drama prices.”HBO Max is currently streaming in 21 European countries with Central and Eastern Europe, Portugal and the Netherlands joining the Nordics, Spain and Andorra.
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