Chinese variety show exported to European broadcasters

Many Chinese variety shows once borrowed and imitated successful foreign formats. However, after years of development, original Chinese variety shows have begun to be widely accepted and introduced to mainstream European broadcasters.

Shanghai Media Group's "Singing with Legends" is the first homegrown variety program that will soon have different foreign versions in Europe.

Production for the Spanish version of the show is underway, slated to air on Spain's large public broadcaster RTVE later this year.

In the future, the show's format will also be introduced to audiences in Germany, Italy and the United States.

These developments are a historic breakthrough for original Chinese television programs.

The first variety program "Singing with Legends" debuted on SMG's Dragon TV in 2019 and continues to this day.

It features young, promising singers teaming up with well-known veteran singers to deliver new adaptations and interpretations of classic songs.

According to Chen Hong, chief director of the show, it took more than a year to develop the show, and many other domestic programs have faced a similar plight.

"After the success of a show's first season, Chinese TV producers usually find it hard to break the bottleneck and retain the popularity in its new seasons," said Chen. "We noticed that, so we never stopped innovating and improving the show's artistry every season."

With the support of the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television, many shows, such as China Central Television's cultural programs "National Treasure" and "Readers," have been exhibited in international TV festivals and markets in recent years.

"Singing with Legends" was first presented to international buyers at the Cannes TV Festival in October 2020. It was lauded by industry professionals for creatively assembling different generations of singers to bring new vitality to classic hits.

Since the beginning of 2021, Dragon TV has signed format-sharing agreements with many broadcast organizations in Europe and America, including France's Herve Hubert SAS, Spain's Grupo Ganga, Italy's Garbo Produzioni and America's Warner Bros. Entertainment.

Sun Kan, an SMG official, said purchasing the format is just the first step to introduce the show to foreign audiences. Broadcast organizations will spend a lot of time communicating with different broadcasting platforms and advertisers to produce foreign-language programs based on the format.

Professionals from Dragon TV have also shared their expertise in producing the show's three seasons with their Spanish peers.

The Spanish version, titled "Duos Increibles," has recently selected the show's performers, who are between the ages of 20 and 70, and will cover pop, ballads and opera.

Additionally, the fourth season of "Singing with Legends" is in the works. Chen said the overseas expansion boosts the producers' confidence in creating more original content and telling Chinese stories to the world.