EXCLUSIVE: Following October’s unveiling of an Anthony Joshua special, Snapchat-owner Snap has kicked off a UK commissioning drive, holding a briefing with producers earlier this month.
Deadline understands Snap execs led a virtual session with factual and entertainment producers in the UK in early November, as the UK becomes only the second non-U.S. nation to produce Snap Originals locally, alongside India. UK indie Barcroft Studios (now Future Studios) has produced Snap shows in the past but they have all been global in perspective.
The briefing came just a couple of weeks after Snap unveiled its debut UK original, A Fighting Chance with Anthony Joshua, a show centered on the British professional boxer’s mission to give the younger generation of his community in Watford the mentor he never had. Airing next year, the show is produced by Joshua’s SBX Studios.
A Fighting Chance, which was revealed alongside U.S. offerings with Stephen Curry and Addison Rae, is reflective of what Snap is looking for from UK producers, according to those who were at the briefing.
Snap wants to work with established talent such as Joshua who have a meaningful story to tell and is especially keen for youth-skewing ideas in areas such as climate change, mental health and LGBTQ+ issues.
The U.S. firm also stressed its commitment to diversity and inclusion. Last year, more than 50% of Snap Originals featured leads or hosts that were BIPOC or LGBTQ+, a stat that it expects to better this year.
Since pushing into original content around five years ago, Snap has commissioned more than 130 originals from around 65 producers. Snap owns Snapchat, Bitmoji and a number of other tech products and services.
