ITV confirms its chosen companies for Amplify: The Regions scheme

ITV confirms its chosen companies for Amplify: The Regions scheme

ITV today confirms the five companies that have been matched with one of the broadcaster’s commissioners and given funding to pitch to a brief, as part of its initiative Amplify: The Regions. 

Amplify: The Regions is a brand new development initiative being piloted by ITV in the nations and regions.

Five companies have now been chosen: Afro-Mic Productions, Blazing Griffin, Bowled Over, Drummer TV and Hello Deer. 

ITV Entertainment Commissioning Editor Louise Major, Nicola Lloyd, Factual Entertainment Commissioning Editor and Callum Dziedzic, Assistant Commissioner, Drama & Comedy have been matched with the chosen production companies. 

The five companies will receive a brief. As part of the initiative, each chosen company will be given £5,000 to develop any potential ideas. 

If the ideas are greenlit, the next step will be to go through the standard ITV commissioning process. If ideas are not right for ITV, then the production companies are free to pitch their ideas to others.

The aim of the pilot is to further strengthen and accelerate ITV’s relationships with the regional independent production community and to get great stories from the UK onto ITV’s platforms. 

This comes as Amplify: The Companies (which Amplify: The Regions is a spin-off of) is working with ten companies that are led or owned by People of Colour and/or Deaf, Disabled and/or Neurodivergent people that have been matched with genre commissioners and are being funded through The Diversity Development Fund.

Meet the Amplify: The Regions companies: 

AFRO-MIC PRODUCTIONS 

ITV Commissioner match: Louise Major, Entertainment Commissioning Editor 

Emma-Rosa Dias founded Afro-Mic Productions in 2014 and it’s now one of the UK's fastest growing Indies based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. Afro-Mic produces high quality unscripted content for audiences around the globe. 2023 saw Afro-Mic win ‘Small Indie of The Year’ at the Edinburgh Television Awards, with the judges commenting: “Love and respect goes to the company which pioneered inclusivity in a region not known for its diversity.” 

Emma-Rosa has over twenty years television industry experience starting off in front of the camera as a contestant on one of the UK’s first reality shows, Shipwrecked back in 1999. 

Afro-Mic states that it has a strong diverse and regional connection and prides itself on creating exciting and dynamic content with broad appeal. The development team is led by executives with experience of developing some of the biggest factual and entertainment brands on TV. The ambition for scale and high-end production values means that the company delivers work which is bold, original and future-facing.

Emma-Rosa Dias, Managing Director, Afro-Mic Productions, said: “We at Afro-Mic Productions are delighted to be part of Amplify: The Regions, working with the fantastic ITV Entertainment Commissioning team. This opportunity allows us to build on our recent Small Indie of The Year win and take the next step in our ambition of producing the next generation of big, hit entertainment formats.” 

BLAZING GRIFFIN 

ITV Commissioner match: Callum Dziedzic, Assistant Commissioner, Drama & Comedy

Blazing Griffin is a BAFTA-winning Glasgow-based digital entertainment company which specialises in storytelling across a wide range of platforms and mediums with a specific focus on video game development, film and TV production and high-end post production services.

Lizzie Gray at Blazing Griffin said: “We are thrilled to be partnering with ITV as part of Amplify: The Regions. We are big fans of ITV drama and this generous connection and support comes at a crucial time for the growth of Blazing Griffin. We can’t wait to get started.”

BOWLED OVER 

ITV Commissioner match: Louise Major, Entertainment Commissioning Editor 

Based in Brighton, Bowled Over are a small diverse indie whose directors started their careers at ITV many moons ago. 

The company is run by Heidi Gomes with co-director and husband Alan, working with a wonderful team, including collaborating with in-house post-production team, Ponder, Create.

Last year Bowled Over won the Radio Times readers award at the Sandford St Martin Awards for its documentary, Good Grief with the Reverend Richard Coles and has a new 20-part daytime series, which follows life on the rivers and canals of Britain.

Heidi Gomes, Creative Director, Bowled Over, said: “Together with our great team, we are delighted and really grateful for the recognition and opportunity to work with Louise, and the Entertainment Commissioning dept, on a brief for primetime. We can’t wait to get started!”

DRUMMER TV

ITV Commissioner match: Louise Major, Entertainment Commissioning Editor 

Drummer TV is a double BAFTA and multi-award-winning production company based in Bristol. The company makes content that the team are absolutely passionate about and covers multiple genres all through a playful and diverse perspective. Its shows include long-running Fact Ent series for children, popular Factual mini-series on broad, difficult subjects, hard-hitting single documentaries with dynamic talent bringing fresh perspectives, and the world’s first game show in British Sign Language. 

Rachel Drummond-Hay, Company Director, Drummer TV said: "We are absolutely thrilled to be part of ITV’s Amplify: The Region’s Scheme. We have big ambitions for 2024 and can’t wait to get stuck into developing the next generation of ITV’s most loved hit shows.” 

HELLO DEER 

ITV Commissioner match: Nicola Lloyd, Factual Entertainment Commissioning Editor

Welsh indie Hello Deer Studios are an award winning and Bafta Cymru nominated production company based in Wales, making premium scripted and unscripted film & TV for a global audience. The company was founded by filmmaker and TV producer Jasper Warry, and ex-DRG SVP International Sales Joel Atley. They were recently joined by Gavin Henderson as Head Of Unscripted, who is leading their ambitious Fact Ent and Reality push. Gavin has previously held senior roles at Endemol, the BBC and Plimsoll, and overseen a diverse slate of shows from Big Breakfast to Big Brother, Artschool and Autumnwatch.

Gavin Henderson, Head Of Unscripted, said: “We’re thrilled to be part of the Amplify: The Regions initiative. It’s an amazing opportunity to work with ITV and to deliver their next big series from Wales.”

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