First Look Media’s Streaming Service Topic Strikes Deals With BBC Studios & Keshet Ahead Of Launch

EXCLUSIVE: First Look Media’s streaming service Topic has gone shopping ahead of its launch, striking deals with BBC Studios and Keshet International.

The U.S. streaming service has picked up a slew of titles, including a number of exclusives, from BBC Studios and Keshet International.

From BBC Studios, the streamer has picked up BBC Three comedy Enterprice and cop thriller Moses Jones, while from Keshet International, it has taken titles including dystopian drama Autonomies, Commandments and dark comedy Stockholm (pictured).

The shows will part of Topic’s launch, which kicks off today.

Stockholm, which is being adapted for a U.S. remake, follows four friends who attempt to help their friend win the Nobel Prize in Economics even after he is found dead. They try to keep him “alive” for five days to help him win the prize but their quest to keep Avishai’s death a secret quickly turns into an overwhelmingly complicated challenge. Produced by Artza Productions, it is based on Noa Yedlin’s novel.

Autonomies is a four-part series, produced by United Studios of Israel for cable platform HOT, that focuses on the issues of identity, religion, politics and personal freedom and is set in an alternate reality of near-future Israel, a nation torn and divided by a wall,

Commandments, which has aired 16 episodes across two seasons is a character-driven drama focusing on the dilemmas of personal and religious identity of young men joining the Israeli army. It is produced by Abot Hameiri Barkai for Keshet 12, Commandments.

“Keshet has incredible dramas and comedies that we’re looking forward to sharing with our North American audiencs when we launch”, said Ryan Chanatry, GM of Topic.

Keren Shahar, KI’s COO and President of Distribution, said, “As the market becomes more language agnostic and new platforms like Topic launch, it’s an exciting time to be a distributor of quality foreign language shows.”

From BBC Studios, Topic has picked up exclusive rights to Enterprice and Moses Jones as well as a non-exclusive rights to a raft of shows such as The Office UK, Intruders, Not Safe For Work, Getting High For God and How Gay is Pakistan?. It will also air Louis Theroux documentaries Choosing Death and Take My Baby.

Enterprice, which launched on BBC Three last year, was created by and stars Kayode Ewumi with Trieve Blackwood-Cambridge, Thea Gajic, Roger Griffiths, and Tanya Moodie co-starring. The comedy follows Kazim and Jeremiah, two young entrepreneurs rolling out their home delivery service, Speedi-Kazz. Kazim has the energy and confidence, and Jeremiah has the brains. But their differences can leave them at loggerheads. As the boys attempt to run their business, they get distracted by life’s big questions. Who has better flow, Biggie or 2Pac? Is there such a thing as a black vegan? Can you wear a silver suit to a school reunion?

Finally, Moses Jones, which first on BBC Two in 2009, follows a Scotland Yard detective who is seconded onto an enquiry investigating a mutilated body found floating in the Thames. The series, which was written by Joe Penhall, also stars a pre-Doctor Who and The Crown Matt Smith.

The deals were negotiated by Jennifer Liang, Senior Director, Acquisitions at Topic, while the BBC Studios deal was negotiated on behalf of BBC Studios by Jim Brown.