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French TV Shows ‘Sambre,’ ‘Bardot,’ ‘Marie-Antoinette’ Are Top Non-English Language Exports in 2024
True crime, biodramas and format sales bolster French TV exports.
Per a study published on Monday ahead of the Unifrance Rendez-Vous in Paris, 73% of first-runs of foreign works on international TV channels came from France. Directed by Oscar-winner Jean-Xavier de Lestrade (whose seminal 2004 miniseries “The Staircase” might as well have invented the modern true crime genre), “Sambre: Anatomy of a Crime” broke records in primetime when it aired on public broadcaster France 2 last winter, scoring more than 4 million viewers per episode and earning an average market share of 19%. As the U.S remained a more reliable source for catalogue sales than for pre-buys and financing, the American market stayed ripe for remakes and format sales, as indicated by recent launch of ABC/Hulu’s “ High Potential.” Meanwhile, across the board popular bio-series like “Bardot” and “Marie-Antoinette” both proved that the past is never dead — especially when each broadcast could take primetime viewers in six countries and nine free-to-air channels to Versailles and St. Tropez.
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