MIPCOM: LA-based formats specialist The Gurin Company is to represent unscripted programming from Ukrainian indie Film.UA Group in the US and other international territories.
Under the deal, announced on day one of Mipcom here in Cannes, The Gurin Company will select Film.UA formats and readymade properties that have international potential and provide development, distribution and coproduction services to enable each project to realise its full commercial and creative potential outside of Ukraine.
The partners will also work together to originate and develop new properties for the US, Ukrainian and international markets.
The two companies are launching two new formats at Mipcom this week: The History of Criminalistics and The Insiders Project.
The History of Criminalistics is a multi-part docu-drama that brings viewers inside criminalistic discoveries from the past two centuries. Innovative methods embraced by criminologists will be explored through visual effects and dramatic recreations.
The Insiders Project, meanwhile, showcases typically unseen and abandoned sites, from an obsolete nuclear reactor to uninhabited mansions.
Also new from the partnership is factual series Rebuilding Ukraine Together (8×45’), a Film.UA home-renovation pilot that was filmed before the war but never aired. The series follows the structure of a classic makeover format in that it starts with a challenge and ends with a resolution.
Phil Gurin, president and CEO of The Gurin Company, said: “While predominantly known for their scripted output, Ukrainian storytelling expertise is well known, highly regarded and deserves to be known far beyond its borders.
“Even more, their cinema-quality special effects and CGI, all done locally in Ukraine, can stand against any of the big global studios, and we can’t wait to bring that level of production to our productions in other territories.”
Kateryna Vyshnevska, head of development and coproductions at Film.UA, added: “Phil Gurin and The Gurin Company have been great friends of ours for quite a few years, and we are glad to extend our collaboration to our new slate of factual and docudrama projects.
“We are especially pleased that the cooperation encompasses projects touching upon the subject of war in Ukraine but also pure entertainment, from crime docu-drama to extreme urban explorations. The Ukrainian AV industry is comprised of talented people who have been, are and will continue creating great content with a viewer in mind. We are not defined by the war only, and this co-development deal is a great testament to that.”
