From pursuing treaty co-production deals to securing the distribution rights to a curated slate of projects from third-party studios, Serial Maven Studios, led by CEO Solange Attwood, is exploring new models for development, financing, production, distribution, and monetization.
Attwood founded Serial Maven Studios two and a half years ago after a long run at Blue Ant Media. A year later, she merged the distribution entity with the Canadian indie production firm Cantina Media, creating a dedicated non-scripted entity that would run across the value chain.
She joined ScreenMDM Talks’ Real Talk strand ahead of heading to Sunny Side of the Doc to share insights into market trends today and how she’s approaching the sector’s challenges and opportunities.
“Our entire industry has always had change at the forefront,” Attwood says in the vodcast, which you can watch on YouTube or Spotify, or continue reading below. “Of course, things are different now than they used to be. But that is a common feature of the media industry. It is constantly evolving, it’s constantly adapting. There are different business models, new technology, and new ways of telling stories. The media industry that we’re in is much more selective these days.”
Attwood and her team at Serial Maven are firmly focused on building a business for today and the future, she says. And building a sustainable future requires partnerships, with the company recently unveiling two treaty co-productions with the U.K. and a range of third-party distribution agreements.
“You have to remain agile, and you have to be collaborative. And underneath all of it, you have to have damn good stories!”
The company is developing relationships with a range of producers, helping to structure presales to get shows off the ground. “We work with a lot of independent, really excellent independent producers who get to 50%, maybe even 70% finance in their show, and they need that extra bump to get them to get fully greenlit. We’re taking those to market as a distributor, collaborating with people, and soliciting those presales.”
Since launch, the company has assembled a catalog of some 500 hours, Attwood says. She credits strong relationships with the creative community in helping Serial Maven Studios to get to where it is today.
“We’re looking for incredible producers who have a great track record delivering hit shows, access, uniqueness in terms of storytelling— whether it’s talent or it’s never been done before—across a very broad, diverse range of genres.”
It’s paramount to look across the entire chain of opportunities for windowing shows. “You do have to take a pretty bespoke approach, but all your monetization efforts are valuable. We’re working with a fantastic producer called Impossible Factual. And we’ve been representing a couple of their shows, some new, but some catalog programs. One of their catalog programs went viral. And the amount of return that that producer is going to make on that particular series is fantastic. Seeing where the monetization is happening in real time is important.”
YouTube is a distribution opportunity, a marketing platform, and a source for potential new IP, Attwood explains. “We’re engaged with a lot of partners who are publishing direct to YouTube, and some are doing an absolutely amazing job on monetization. You have to be doing everything, and you have to be everywhere.”
As an indie, Attwood says that being clear about your priorities is paramount so you’re not overextending yourself. And notes that there are plenty of advantages to being a small operator in this landscape. “You can be agile, nimble, and fastidious around how much investment you’re putting into various activities. Speed as a strategy is pretty important these days.”
Furthering Serial Maven’s business in Europe is a key priority for Sunny Side. “We’re there as a prospective co-producer,” she says. “We’re there to acquire new programming to continue to scale our distribution business. And we’re also selling our programs. So we’re there with all of our presale opportunities, co-production opportunities, completed content opportunities, and licensing opportunities.”
