News round-up: Apple TV+ extends ‘Tehran’; Quintus deals in France; SBS, ZDF take PBS Trump doc; FILMPIXS launch

Tehran

Apple TV+ returns to Tehran

Apple TV+ has ordered a second season of Israeli drama Tehran.

The espionage thriller, from Moshe Zonder and Omri Shenhar, debuted on Israeli network Kan 11 and then globally on Apple TV+ following a deal with distributor CIneflix Rights.

The show tells the story of a Mossad agent who goes deep undercover on a dangerous mission in Tehran that places her and everyone around her in jeopardy. It was created by Zonder, Dana Eden and Maor Kohn, and directed by Daniel Syrkin. Shenhar serves as writer alongside Zonder. Syrkin and Shenhar are also co-creators.

The executive producers are Dana Eden and Shula Spiegel for Donna and Shula Productions, Alon Aranya for Paper Plane Productions, Julien Leroux for Paper Entertainment, Peter Emerson for Cineflix Studios, Moshe Zonder, Omri Shenhar, Daniel Syrkin and Eldad Koblenz for Kan 11.

Quintus deals in France

Quintus Studios has expanded its offering on VOD channels Free Documentary and FD Real by acquiring a range of French documentaries.

Extreme Trades, which explores those working at sea, has been produced by France TV Studio and will be made available via both services.

Shows added solely to Free Documentary include: Masters Of Engineering, which is sold by Lucky You and has been co-produced by France Télévisions and 2P2L; and Exceptional Transportation and The Challenge of Bridge Maintenance, both produced by Interscoop.

Trump’s American Carnage

SBS, ZDF & DirecTV add PBS Trump doc

Broadcasters around the world including ZDF Info in Germany, VRT in Belgium and SBS in Australia have picked up a new doc about former US president Donald Trump.

Trump’s American Carnage is a Frontline production with Kirk Documentary Group and has been directed by Michael Kirk. It tracks the chaotic end of Trump’s presidency and asks how American democracy reached such a moment of crisis and who is responsible.

Distributor PBS International has also licensed the show to SRC (Canada), RTS (Switzerland), RTP (Portugal), RTÉ (Ireland), RTBF (Belgium), EBS (South Korea), DR (Denmark), DIRECTV (Latin America), B1 (Romania), and PBS America (UK).

“Our film identifies how, for years, the country’s political leaders missed, ignored and discounted clear warnings of the violence and chaos that was to come,” says Kirk (America’s Great Divide: From Obama to Trump).

Short-form and feature doc SVOD launch from film fest organisers

Indie film festival organisers HF Productions are set to launch FILMPIXS, a new global short film and documentary SVOD platform next month.

The streamer, which is due to go live on 17 February, will focus primarily on short films, while also carrying a selection of international feature documentaries showcasing “global, impactful narratives as a force for change.”

The FILMPIXS line-up will include content from film festivals such as Cannes, Toronto, Venice and Sundance, as well as international short film festival award winners. Highlights at launch will include the Czech animated short Dcera (Daughter) from Daria Kascheeva, about a woman trying to reconnect with her estranged father; El Escritor De Un País Sin Liberías (The Writer from a Country Without Bookstores) by Marc Serena, a documentary which follows a man from Equatorial Guinea, who goes on a hunger strike to protest against the Teodoro Obiang dictatorship; and Jan Vejnar’s Figurant.

HF Productions’ Henrik Friis and Benn Wiebe, who are the curators behind FILMPIXS, commented: “Having worked with film festivals and partners in 20+ countries to date, HF Productions’ mission is clear: to support filmmakers and to get their stories seen and heard. FILMPIXS is the continuation of this idea – to provide a platform for short films in particular, which so often get lost after their initial run on the film festival circuit.”

The service will be available via its own website, filmpixs.com, as well as via the FILMPIXS App, available on iOS, Android, and other formats. FILMPIXS subscribers will be offered a monthly fixed price or an annual subscription, with the first two months free. A seven-day free trial will also be available.