FormatBiz | Sweet and Sore is the Winner of The Natpe Global Pitch

The NATPE Global Pitch Showcase continues to be a premier platform for emerging and established storytellers to present their projects to key industry players. The 2025 edition brought forth an impressive selection of pitches, but one project stood out among the rest: Sweet and Sore, a half-hour comedy series created and written by Reem Morsi and produced by Adani Pictures under the leadership of Rua Wani. Sweet and Sore is a comedy series with an episodic twist. It follows Farida, an ambitious Egyptian waxing lady and community marriage broker in Toronto who dreams of climbing the social ladder. Determined to keep her new affluent friends from discovering her true social status, she finds herself entangled in a comedic whirlwind when she falls in love with a man above her station, forcing her to navigate the intersection of two vastly different worlds.

This year’s distinguished panel of judges included: Adam Steinman (EVP Global Formats and Acquisitions, Blink49 Studios), Luke Kelly-Clyne (Head of Studio, Hartbeat), Erika Kennair (Head of Scripted Content, The Mediapro Studio), Angel Zambrano (Agent, Condeco)

Sweet and Sore has already made waves in the industry, receiving development financing from the Canada Media Fund. A fully packaged pilot and series bible are now complete. The project was also selected as part of the Top 25 Pitch Program at the 2024 Netflix-Banff Diversity of Voices initiative, further solidifying its potential in the global television landscape.

Reem Morsi is an alumnus of some of the most prestigious industry programs, including Berlinale Talents, CFC Director’s Lab, and Warner Media Director’s Program. Her work has been recognized at Torino Comedy Lab, Berlinale Script Lab, Cannes Atelier, and TIFF Talent Lab. Among her directorial projects is BANNED, which was supported by Telefilm Talent to Watch, the CFC-Netflix Accelerator, and the Canada Arts Council.

As the head of Adani Pictures, Rua Wani is committed to backing storytellers and projects that challenge norms and engage audiences. Adani Pictures has successfully secured financing from leading organizations such as Telefilm, Canada Media Fund, Ontario Creates, Bell Fund, and New Dawn. The company has participated in prestigious programs, including EAVE-NSI-CMF Access BIPOC Producers Program, Canada-France Co-Production Lab at Series Mania, and the International Co-Production Market at EFM. Adani is currently in post-production on the feature film JUDE AND THE JINN, starring Alexander Siddig (STAR TREK, CAIRO TIME).
Prior to launching Adani Pictures, Rua worked as a scripted TV development and production executive on acclaimed series such as ORPHAN BLACK (BBC America, CTV Sci-Fi Channel).