SUNNYSIDE: Broadcasters in Germany and France, including ZDF, RTL, Mediawan and France Télévisions, have acquired programmes from London-based factual distributor TVF International, the company has announced at Sunnyside of the Doc in France.

In Germany, ZDFinfo has picked up China’s Dragon Emperor (2×45’), from US-based Smithsonian Network and EBS in South Korea, and science series Infinity (3×60’), which investigates some of science’s most significant unanswered questions, while RTL has acquired World War II history doc Prosecuting Evil (1×83’).

Also in Germany, Deutsche Welle acquired Mediacorp’s investigative specials Lombok’s Poisoned Gold (1×48’), about the dangerous human and environmental effects of gold mining in Indonesia, as well as Inside the Exotic Butterfly Trade (1×48’) and From North Korea With Love (1×60’), which follows a wave of celebrity defectors from North to South Korea.

A+E Networks in Germany, meanwhile, has picked up the BBC’s long-running archaeology programme Digging for Britain (12×59’) for The History Channel, in addition to World War I aviation series Wings of the Great War (5×48’) from Gullwing Productions, which uses rare archive to explore the story of the Great War’s Macedonian front.

In France, Mediawan has bought aviation mystery doc MH370: A Decade On (1×48’) from Singaporean prodco Mediacorp, and science and technology doc AI & You (1×52’) from Ireland’s RTÉ.

Mediawan has also picked up wildlife shows Bear: Koala Hero (1×48’), which follows a koala-saving rescue dog who works in burnt-out bushland in Australia, and Saving the Wild (4×52’), filmed on the frontlines of Africa’s fight to save its last wild animals.

Public broadcaster France Télévisions has acquired a package of the From Above aerial travelogues, including Portugal From Above (1×52’), Japanese Islands From Above (1×52’), Oman From Above (1×52’) and Finland From Above (1×52’).

Also in France, Histoire TV has bought history shows Jesus’ Female Disciples: The New Evidence (1×47’), which reveals the forgotten history of women during the birth of Christianity. The Histoire TV package also includes Mediacorp’s The Asian Century (4×48’), which chronicles the recent history of the world’s largest continent, and Fake News: A True Story (1×60’), made for the BBC by Wingspan Productions, which looks back at the last 200 years of fake news.

Meanwhile, Museum TV has picked up Pierce Brosnan-narrated cinematic arts biography Jack B Yeats: The Man Who Painted Ireland (1×50’) from RTÉ.

Lastly, French-speaking Swiss pubcaster RTS has acquired BBC biopic Basquiat: Rage to Riches (1×52’), which profiles artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, and City TV’s investigative doc Make Me Pretty: Illegal Home Surgery (1×44’), which goes inside the dark underworld of illegal cosmetic surgery.

“TVF’s diverse range of titles has allowed us to collaborate with a variety of slots in France and Germany. We have seen particular success with premium history titles that offer new perspectives, as well as topical current affairs documentaries with unique access and balanced perspectives,” said TVF dealmakers Hannah Cesarani, senior sales and acquisitions executive, and sales manager Daniyal Bari in a joint statement.