Looking to tap into international formats, Telepictures Productions and veteran European producer Ludo Poppe, the founder of Kanakna Productions, have entered into a production agreement to create programming.
Under the new banner, Kanakna USA, the two companies will work together to co-develop properties for both the U.S. and international television marketplaces.
Founded in 1993, Kanakna has produced local versions of Temptation Island, Extreme Makeover, The Bachelor and Survivor. It has also produced numerous original formats, including Peking Express, which was produced for the German, French, and Dutch television markets.
ICM, which represents Poppe and his company, brokered this deal with Hilary Estey McLoughlin, executive VP and gneral manager of Telepictures.
Telepictures' primary focus is the development and production of programming for the first-run syndication marketplace, specializing in reality and reality-based series. But in recent years, the company has expanded its activities to also include network and cable, branching into all dayparts.
