Kevin Macdonald Helming Klitschko Doc For Sky; Richard Farmbrough Indie; BBC Studios SVT Deal – Global Briefs

Kevin Macdonald Helming Klitschko Doc For Sky

Oscar-winner Kevin Macdonald is helming a Vitali Klitschko documentary feature for Sky. Produced by Docsville Studios and Sky Studios, Klitschko: The Fight of his Life (working title) will gain access to the former heavyweight boxing world champion along with his brother Wladimir, who together dominated the sport for more than a decade. Now the longest serving Mayor of Kyiv, the feature-length doc charts Vitali’s journey from the ring to political office, ultimately leading the defence of the capital when it was attacked by Russian forces in February 2022. Macdonald, who won an Oscar for One Day in September, recently struck deals with Plan B and Banijay. The Klitschko feature is on a slate preceding Sky’s Up next event in London tonight that also includes Ibiza Narcos, a follow-up to Liverpool and Dublin Narcos, along with Black Widow, which follows the decade-long police investigation into one of Britain’s most dangerous female murderers.

British Indie Vet Richard Farmbrough Sets Up Shop

British indie vet Richard Farmbrough has launched an indie and landed its first commission, a Gareth Malone show for the BBC. Somersault Studio has opened with exec producer Rodd and Reef founder Farmbrough at the helm. Farmbrough launched and ran Reef for 15 years and exited the company after its sale to Zinc Media. “It is immensely exciting to be back in the production game with the multi-talented Owen Rodd, this time with a remit to create factual content for a truly broad range of customers,” he said. Somersault’s debut commission is a Gareth Malone-staged performance of Bach’s St John Passion with the help of untrained singers on the 300th anniversary of its first performance. Putting his own twist on the performance, BBC regular Malone (The Choir: Military Wives, Boys Don’t Sing) has invited people from all walks of life to apply. His only requirement was that they had a good voice but either very little or no experience singing in a classical choir. 

BBC Studios & SVT Strike “Largest Factual Agreement To Date”

BBC Studios and Sweden’s SVT have struck a factual programing deal for a range of David Attenborough shows and others. BBC Studios has licensed nearly 300 hours of content to SVT, which it said marks the “largest factual content agreement to date” between the pair. Programing includes Life Below Zero, Mammals, Attenborough and the Jurassic Sea Monster, Julius Caesar: The Making of a Dictator, Secrets & Spies: A Nuclear Game, and Amanda and Alan’s Italian Job. “In this ever changing world of on-demand viewing it is important to have a partner we can trust,” said Mikael Österby, Head of Factual Acquisitions at SVT.