Art is a format. The challenging story of an (Italian) talent show

“Master of Photography” (Sky, 2016-) is a talent show about photography which was totally conceived in Italy and co-produced by Sky UK, Sky Italia and Sky Deutschland. Its production was a successful challenge and, at the same time, under many aspects an example of the contemporary complexity and issues in global television markets. In contrast with the traditional difficulty for Italian television to create international programs to be exported abroad, “Master of Photography” is an Italian original format. The main topic of the program was a relevant issue: static pictures are a very delicate subject to be translated into the audiovisual language of television. To make them appealing for an international audience without weakening their artistic value was a challenge which involved aesthetic considerations and technical troubles. Due to the international character of the show, casting was also a difficult task, both for the detection of the competitors and of the three “judges”. The international dimension of the format was also an issue as far as the different cultural local habits were concerned. In order to satisfy the needs of the three local units involved in the co-production of the show, it was necessary to comply with the habits of their local audiences, whose differences deeply influenced the final version of the format. In contrast with the initial negative forecasts, the program scored good results. The first season - aired in simulcast by Sky in five European countries - was a success and it paved the way to a second season, which is now in production and is due to premiere on May 2017. Starting from a summary of the creative and productive steps of “Master of Photography”, this presentation will focus on its original and distinctive features, with the aim of stressing the conceptual and technical challenges which lead to a non-stereotyped idea of global television, notably the future opportunities for development and innovation in Italian television.