Diversity & Inclusion at MIPCOM

BACK IN CANNES IN 2021 TO CELEBRATE 5TH ANNIVERSARY YEAR

Celebrating their 5th anniversary this year, MIPCOM Diversify TV Excellence Awards have become a prominent fixture in the annual calendar and a highlight of MIPCOM Week, dedicated to championing and promoting diversity and inclusion in all its forms across the international television industry. The star-studded awards ceremony was hosted by actor and writer Salif Cissé!

DISCOVER THE WINNERS >>

|  LGBTQIA+ Scripted

Production company: RED Production Company for Channel 4 and HBO Max in association with All3Media International

Distributor: All3Media International

Original Broadcaster: Channel 4, UK

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: It's 1981, the start of a new decade and Ritchie, Roscoe and Colin begin a new life in London. Strangers at first, these young gay lads, and their best friend Jill, find themselves thrown together, and soon share each other's adventures. But a new virus is on the rise, and soon their lives will be tested in ways they never imagined. As the decade passes, and they grow up in the shadow of AIDS, they're determined to live and love more fiercely than ever.

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Password: Diversity_It'sASin_trailer

|  LGBTQIA+ Unscripted

Production company: VICE Studios
 
 Distributor: OutTV and Fuse Media

Original Broadcaster: OutTV and Fuse Media - co-licenses/co-premiered

Country of origin: CANADA

Short Synopsis: SHINE TRUE is a 8 x 30 minute documentary series celebrating the trans and gender non-conforming community by helping them overcome dysphoria and anxiety, and getting them to a place where they can freely and finally present the way they feel.

|  Disability Scripted

Production company: Caminando

Distributor: Newen Connect

Original Broadcaster: TF1

Country of origin: FRANCE

Short Synopsis: We follow Laura, our young heroine with Down's Syndrome, as she starts a new and perilous stage in her life three years after graduating from high school. Laura is determined to spread her wings and leave the family nest, launching into adulthood.

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|  Disability Unscripted

Production company: Drummer TV

Distributor: BSLBT

Original Broadcaster: Film 4

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: Six members of the Deaf community recall the fear that gripped Britain during the Covid-19 crisis, and give us an insight into how the pandemic and lockdown affected their lives.

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This year sees the return of the Variety Creative Change Award which made its debut in 2020, recognising an individual who uses their platform in the arts to create inclusive stories. This year’s recipient is Academy Award nominated actor, writer, producer, and musician, Riz Ahmed. Themes of inclusion and representation run throughout Riz's work as a creator and activist, from his roles in projects such as SOUND OF METAL, THE NIGHT OF, and MOGUL MOWGLI, to his essay in Nikesh Shukla's “The Good Immigrant,” his 2017 address to Parliament on diversity in the creative industries, and his appointment to the Mayor of London's 2021 Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm.

Riz Ahmed will be honoured in Cannes, during the 5th edition of the MIPCOM Diversify TV Excellence Awards Ceremony. 

Bunmi Akintonwa, CEO, Little Black Book Company Int.; Sahar Baghery, Head of Business Development, Amazon Prime Video  

David Cornwall, Managing Director, Scorpion Television; Mark Garner, EVP Global Content Sales & Business Development, A+E Networks; Sallyann Keizer, Managing Director, Sixth Sense Media

David Levine, Chief Content Officer, Moonbug Entertainment; Nick Smith, EVP Formats, All3Media International

Mounia Aram, CEO, Mounia Aram Company; Bruna Capozzoli, Advisor & Content Creator; Wincie Knight, Senior Director, Global Inclusion Strategies, ViacomCBS Networks International (VCNI), EMEA

Shabnam Rezaei, Co-Founder & President, Big Bad Boo Studios; Deborah Williams, CEO, The Creative Diversity Network (CDN); Patrick Connolly, International Entertainment Executive

Cédric Petitpas, Head of Family Partnerships, YouTube UK & Ireland; André Renaud, SVP Global Format Sales, BBC Studios; Sam Renke, Actress, Presenter, Speaker, Writer and Disability Rights Campaigner

Tshepo Moche, Writer & Director, Marche Medi; Adam Pearson, Disability Rights Campaigner, Actor & Presenter; Bouchra Rejani, Founder & CEO, WeMake

Category Sponsor: Disability 

Production company: Big Bad Boo Studios 

 

Distributor: Big Bad Boo Studios 

Original Broadcaster: TVO

Country of origin: CANADA

Short Synopsis: The show follows Lili, Sam, Amala and Luc as they explore their small neighborhood at "16 Hudson" and show us what friendship is all about. Holiday specials celebrate Chinese New Year, Diwali, and Persian New Year through the eyes of these kids. 

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Password: bigbad101

Production company: BBC Children's In-House Productions for CBeebies in collaboration with A Productions

Distributor: CBeebies

Original Broadcaster: CBeebies and BBC iPlayer

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: JoJo & Gran Gran is an animated series about an almost five year-old girl and her fun and wise grandmother.  They live close by to one another in a bustling London neighbourhood and Gran Gran always has something fun planned for when JoJo comes to visit.  JoJo adores Gran Gran and the time they spend together. Gran Gran is very proud of her Saint Lucian heritage and is always happy when she has an opportunity to teach JoJo about the country's culture.  

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Password: bbcawards123!

Production company: Wild Canary Animation / Technicolor India
 

Distributor: Disney

Original Broadcaster: Disney Junior

Country of origin: UNITED STATES

Short Synopsis: In "The Eid Mystery," MIra, the royal detective, must help her friend Sadia search for a lost Eidi envelope - and along the way Mira learns how to celebrate the joyful Muslim holiday of Eid al-Fitr.

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Production company: Sinking Ship Entertainment

Distributor: Sinking Ship Entertainment 

Original Broadcaster: Youtube Originals

Country of origin: CANADA

Short Synopsis: Lockdown is an up-to-the-minute mystery series that reflects the current state of the world. Shot entirely by the cast via webcam and smartphones during COVID-19, it is the story of a friend group affected by the pandemic and the racial reckoning in the wake of George Floyd's death in 2020. 

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Production company: Zone3

Distributor: Newen Connect

Original Broadcaster: TOU.TV

Country of origin: CANADA   

Short Synopsis: Adapted from the Dutch format BRUGKLAS, L'EFFET SECONDAIRE is about life in high school and the many plans, doubts, and intense emotions that are part of the experience. It's also about the impact of changing friendships, unexpected rivalries, first loves... In the corridors of school like on the road of life, there's plenty of fun, confrontation, and intimidation...the real world with all its ups and downs docu-reality style, capturing the most memorable hyper-spontaneous moments of it all.

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Production company: Fresh Start Media production

Distributor: Sky News & Sky Kids 

Original Broadcaster: Sky News & Sky Kids 

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: The idea behind FYI : For Your Info - a weekly news show presented by children and for children - is to give kids a platfrom on which to to speak out and be heard. In this spin off series to mark the 30th anniversary of the of the UN Convention of ther Rights of the Child, FYI presenters meet children across the UK and the globe who are sadly fighting for thier most basic rights. 

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Production company: VICE Studios
 

Distributor: VICE Distribution 

Original Broadcaster: VICE TV
 

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: VICE VERSA: The Neglected Pandemic, 40 Years of HIV & AIDS, is a comprehensive look at what it is to be HIV positive in the United States in 2021, narrated by Emmy-nominated television personality, New York Times best-selling author and activist Jonathan Van Ness. The two-hour documentary, produced by VICE Studios, debuted on June 2, 202 and marked the 40th anniversary of HIV/AIDS in the USA.

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Production company: VICE Studios
 

Distributor: OutTV and Fuse Media

Original Broadcaster: OutTV and Fuse Media - co-licenses/co-premiered

Country of origin: CANADA

Short Synopsis: SHINE TRUE is a 8 x 30 minute documentary series celebrating the trans and gender non-conforming community by helping them overcome dysphoria and anxiety, and getting them to a place where they can freely and finally present the way they feel.

Production company: Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Distributor: ABC Commercial

Original Broadcaster: Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Country of origin: AUSTRALIA

Short Synopsis: Funny, moving, life changing - The unique series that explores and embraces our differences. Featuring participants from all walks of life, this episode features 9 empowered women who talk about it's like to be a lesbian - the fascination to fetishisation of what they do in the bedroom, and what it's like when your world isn't centered around men.

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Production company: RED Production Company for Channel 4 and HBO Max in association with All3Media International

Distributor: All3Media International

Original Broadcaster: Channel 4, UK

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: It's 1981, the start of a new decade and Ritchie, Roscoe and Colin begin a new life in London. Strangers at first, these young gay lads, and their best friend Jill, find themselves thrown together, and soon share each other's adventures. But a new virus is on the rise, and soon their lives will be tested in ways they never imagined. As the decade passes, and they grow up in the shadow of AIDS, they're determined to live and love more fiercely than ever.

View Trailer

Password: Diversity_It'sASin_trailer

Production company: Autonomouse

 

Distributor: The Yellow Affair

Original Broadcaster: Hulu

Country of origin: NEW ZEALAND

Short Synopsis: After skipping town a decade ago, transgender activist Caz Davis returns to the remote, politically divided dairy community of Rūrangi, hoping to reconnect with his estranged father, who hasn't heard from him since before Caz transitioned.

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Production company: Camille Zonca

 

Distributor: beteve / Camille Zonca

Original Broadcaster: beteve

Country of origin: SPAIN

Short Synopsis: Andrea is a trans boy who has no other choice but to stay at his grandmother's during the lockdown. The woman seems to be a mischievous and mysterious lady whom he hardly knows anything. Locked up at home, away from social judgments on his gender identity, and safe from his complicated love affairs, Andrea will make important decisions about his transit and what his body - and his heart - really needs.

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Production company: Kalel Productions

Distributor: NBCUniversal Formats

Original Broadcaster: Channel 4

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: Black millionaire investor Eric Collins offers his unrivalled business expertise AND hundreds of thousands of pounds of his own money to small, struggling, and largely underrepresented British businesses, to help turn their fortunes around and save jobs in the process. Will he make a profit or lose all his money?

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Production company: HBO Documentary Films, Velvet Film

Distributor: Sky Documentaries

Original Broadcaster: Sky Documentaries

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: Raoul Peck delivers an incisive examination of Western colonialism and the impact of white supremacist ideology on today's world.

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Production company: ROCHE PRODUCTIONS
 

Distributor: ARTE Distribution

Original Broadcaster: ARTE France

Country of origin: FRANCE

Short Synopsis: A portrait of the first Black female writer who won the Noble Prize in 2019, became a figurehead of African-American literature and gave a voice to the unheard. She, who Barack Obama remembered as « a national treasure » the day after she died, has considerably marked the History of the United States through her commitments and the literary and cultural revolution she has initiated.

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Production company: Working Title Television, which is a part of NBCUniversal International Studios

Distributor: NBCUniversal Global Distribution

Original Broadcaster: Channel 4/Peacock (US)

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: "We Are Lady Parts" is an anarchic and irreverent comedy following a Muslim female punk band - called Lady Parts - who are on a mission to find a lead guitarist and maybe, just maybe, get a proper gig.

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Production company: Tony Ayres Productions, Kevin & Co. and Flat3

Distributor: NBCUniversal Global Distribution

Original Broadcaster: TVNZ

Country of origin: UNITED STATES

Short Synopsis: Eight years ago, a viral plague swept through humanity, decimating all of the world's men. Women have inherited the earth, but unless they can find a way to rid their own bodies of the virus to produce boy babies, the human race will be extinct within two lifetimes.

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Production company: Big Deal Films Ltd

Distributor: BBC

Original Broadcaster: BBC iPlayer

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: Kwabena is an aspiring filmmaker trapped in his recruitment job. When he is given the opportunity he's always dreamed of, is he brave enough to chase it?

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Production company: KBS

Distributor: KBS Media

Original Broadcaster: KBS

Country of origin: KOREA

Short Synopsis: Two special young people, Park Ji-ho, a bodybuilder, and Lim Cho-rok, a school counselor, open their hearts before the Camera. Both have Tourette's syndrome that involves abrupt repetition of unspecified actions (motor ticks) or strange sounds (phonic ticks). For those who suffer from this syndrome, it is an intimidating task to perform daily missions, for example, being on public transportation. The treatment or cure for this syndrome has not been discovered yet. Ji-ho and Cho-rok don't want to give up. They want to share their stories with the world and to be accepted as who they are.

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Production company: Rockerdale Studios

Distributor: N/A

Original Broadcaster: Channel 4

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: Rosie Jones smashes stereotypes in this playful travel show, by becoming tour guide to disabled people. For each tailor-made accessible break she hears the needs of a disabled individual: like a wheelchair user wanting a barge trip, or an amputee wanting a tall man with a big bum. The comedian, who has Cerebral Palsy, wants everyone to enjoy the UK. As she experiences ghost tours, gliding and gay bars she's joined by comics like James Acaster, who don't always love her ideas. Axethrowing anyone?

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Production company: Drummer TV

Distributor: BSLBT

Original Broadcaster: Film 4

Country of origin: UNITED KINGDOM

Short Synopsis: Six members of the Deaf community recall the fear that gripped Britain during the Covid-19 crisis, and give us an insight into how the pandemic and lockdown affected their lives.

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Production company: Caminando
 

Distributor: Newen Connect

Original Broadcaster: TF1
 

Country of origin: FRANCE

Short Synopsis: We follow Laura, our young heroine with Down's Syndrome, as she starts a new and perilous stage in her life three years after graduating from high school. Laura is determined to spread her wings and leave the family nest, launching into adulthood.

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Production company: MarVista Entertainment, Neshama Entertainment, Vroom

Distributor: MarVista Entertainment

Original Broadcaster: Lifetime
 

Country of origin: CANADA

Short Synopsis: A struggling romance novelist heads to her favorite bed & breakfast for Christmas to cure her writer's block and finds her own fairytale romance in the process.

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Production company: Encore Television inc.
 

Distributor: Encore Television-Distribution inc.

Original Broadcaster: Société Radio-Canada | Tou.tv Extra

Country of origin: CANADA

Short Synopsis: Leon Forest is a visually impaired 16-year-old who lives outside

Montreal. He is completely blind in one eye, but he can see exactly six degrees (out of a normal

180 degrees) in his other eye. Raised and homeschooled by his single mother, Leon's

insulated world falls apart when she suddenly dies. Leon moves to the city to

live with his biological father, Francis, his wife and their four children. Leon is grieving the

loss of his mother, but also making many new and exciting discoveries.

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