Markets

At this year’s Natpe Budapest, held from June 24 to 27, we had the pleasure of meeting Carlota Vieira, Content Sales Deputy Director at SIC Portugal (Sociedade Independente de Comunicação). Vieira shared exciting insights about the hit series that SIC is promoting in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) regions, where there is a strong demand for compelling dramas and new series.

The Medalists is one of the standout series being pushed by SIC. This young adult drama is set against the backdrop of the Olympic Games and follows a group of teenagers in a high sports competition academy. These teens are not only striving to qualify for the Olympics but are also navigating the complexities of adolescence. Vieira described it as “the typical series with teens stuck in a high school,” but with a unique twist where their dreams, friendships, rivalries, and romances unfold amidst rigorous training and competition.

“The dream of these kids is to win the Olympics, to qualify for the Olympics,” Vieira explained. “And between then, of course, while they are competing, they are still trying to be friends, or they fall in love, or they hate each other. And you have all the typical series environment.”

The other title is Timeless Love, a compelling long-running novela with 110 episodes. This series centers on a young female protagonist searching for her missing mother. The narrative weaves a complex tale of love, duty, and family as the heroine falls in love with a boy from the family responsible for her mother’s disappearance.

“She has to struggle between the love she feels and the obligation and love she feels for her mother and for her young siblings,” Vieira said. “She’s taking care of the family, working three jobs per day to provide for her siblings to stay in school, while trying to figure out if her mother is dead or alive.”