France’s UGC Series Develops Thriving Drama Strategy With Stakes in Headline Pictures, Itineraire & More Outfits (EXCLUSIVE)

variety.com:

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentUGC, the long-running French film studio whose biggest hits include “Amelie Poulain,” has successful branched into TV series by acquiring stakes in a flurry of talent-driven production companies such as Itineraire Productions (“HPI”) and Headline Pictures (“Call My Agent!’s” British remake) in the U.K.Opting for a different approach to Gaumont’s or large media groups like Mediawan, the company has been building its label UGC Series as a coalition of independently-ran production companies under the leadership of Laurence Lenica, a veteran UGC executive, and Franck Calderon, a well-known writer, producer and former boss of TF1 Productions.So far, UGC Series comprises six banners.

Along with Headline Pictures and Itineraire Productions, these include Henri Debeurne’s Next Episode whose credits take in “Christmas Flow” for Netflix and “J’ai tué mon mari” for NBCU and TF1; UGC Fiction, which Calderon is leading with Karine Evrard and Sophie Exbrayat, and which has delivered the ratings hit ”Jacqueline Sauvage, It was Him or Me”, and most recently “La Traque” for TF1.

The other banners are Aura Productions, newly-launched by Sarah Aknine and Aurélien Molas, and Nabi Productions which is led by Clément Birnbaum and Joachim Nahum.

Through this strategy, UGC has diversified its activities while avoiding the costs of launching companies from scratch. “All these companies are driven by passionate creatives and producers, and they have forged their own identity and complementary editorial lines,” said Lenica, who has worked closely with UGC’s managing director Brigitte Maccioni for over two decades.