Here’s some good news for the UK unscripted community: Netflix‘s British arm is set to commission “shitloads” of “audacious ideas.”
That was the message this morning from Syeda Irtizaali, the streamer’s new Director of Unscripted Series for the UK, who was speaking at Deadline’s Reality TV Summit UK after joining from the BBC earlier this year.
Irtizaali, notable as the commissioner of the BBC’s version of The Traitors in the UK, set out her stall by saying she is planning to announce a series of “audacious” originals in coming months.
Asked if Netflix would increase its unscripted originals volume, she responded with a smile, saying, “We want shitloads of stuff.”
“What’s brilliant about Netflix is there are no boundaries, so if it’s a good idea we will make,” added Irtizaali. “If I believe it’s going to bring a big audience then we will make it.”
Later in the session, she returned to the slate, saying: “We’ve been very busy in three months [I’ve been here]. There is some really, big, exciting and audacious stuff coming – but I want more.”
Irtizaali’s comments will offer some comfort for the troubled UK’s unscripted community. The Traitors has been among the largest breakout shows of perhaps the last decade, but many production companies have gone to the wall the volume of orders from broadcasters and streamers have fallen.
“It is the best of times and the worst of times for unscripted and television at large,” said Irtizaali. “The huge volume of content in the squeezed middle no longer exists. It’s now either really big or for fandom at the other end, but the opportunity is really great. There’s such a desire to unscripted shows on television.”
She is responding by opening her doors to the production community, quipping, “I might not commission your idea, but I will see you.”
Elsewhere in the chat, Irtizaali addressed duty of care on Netflix reality show Love is Blind, following a Deadline story in which two contestants shared concerns of welfare. “In that particular incidence, we feel confident that when issues where flagged, the right protocols were followed and everything was followed exactly as it should be.”
More broadly, she added: “As a whole the industry has to live by people over production and process. You’ve got to always communicate well with contributors, at all times. In my experience, I’ve worked the teams take that responsibility really seriously.
“The world is changing really quickly, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t evolve. You have to keep adapting. Duty of care and welfare protocols don’t just stay the same.”
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