BBC Studios boosts formats teams across Benelux, Iberia & Lat Am

The 1% Club (UK)

BBC Studios has appointed Fiona Wassenberg as head of BBC Studios Benelux Production and Isabel Durán as format sales director for Iberia and Latin America.

The appointments, which were announced at MIPCOM today, were made as part of BBC Studios efforts to grow its business in these markets and seek opportunities to develop new IP for international audiences.

Based in Amsterdam, Wassenberg is responsible for BBC Studios’ formats and production business across Benelux. She will work closely with BBC Studios’ unscripted format partners in the market, Fremantle, as well as commissioners and producers in the region.

Prior to joining BBC Studios, Wassenberg spent nearly 16 years at the Dutch public broadcaster, Omroep MAX, most recently as commissioning editor and content acquisitions, with editorial responsibility for Omroep MAX’s content across NPO1, NPO2 and ZAPP including local versions of Four In a Bed, Four Rooms, and The Great Bake Off.

Durán, meanwhile, takes on responsibility for securing both unscripted and scripted format sales across Spain, Portugal and Spanish-speaking Latin America. The role builds on recent commissions of The 1% Club with Atresmedia in Spain, The Great Bake Off in Argentina, Colombia, Mexico and Uruguay, Dancing With The Stars in Costa Rica, and scripted comedy Uncle across the US Hispanic market and Latin America.

Isabel has more than 20 years of experience in development, production and as director of content. As executive producer she has worked on series such as Married at First Sight for Antena 3 and El líder de la Manada with César Millán for Cuatro.

As director of content for Eyeworks (now Warner), she was responsible for two primetime TV shows for La Sexta and Cuatro networks, Mujeres Ricas and Perdidos en la tribu. As director of development for Atresmedia Studios and Buendia Estudios, she developed game show format, Before You Hit The Floor.

Commenting on the new appointments, André Renaud, SVP, global format sales, said: “I’m delighted to have both Fiona and Isabel joining BBC Studios as we continue to grow our expertise in key markets around the world. Both Fiona and Isabel bring a wealth of experience in their regions, and I am confident that this will build to strong partnerships across Europe and Latin America in the months to come.

“These appointments represent our commitment and ambition to work closely to find stories and shows that can be adapted worldwide, building on BBC Studios’ 100 years of expertise that we continue to support and share around the world.”