Media Ranch, Founder, President and Executive Producer, Sophie Ferron, announced the 8 chosen candidates (5 women, 3 men) who applied and earned a chance to participate in Horsepower 2.0 the French-Canadian Format incubation project. Over 80 applications were received by Media Ranch and Quebecor Content, who formed a partnership for the initiative.
The incubation process will begin in January with six months of intense workshopping with the goal to create eight fresh formats for broadcast and distribution. Media Ranch’s Phil Kalin-Hajdu, Media Ranch’s Head of Content & Storytelling will provide mentorship support for the project with input from the company’s Amsterdam-based SVP, Tanja van der Goes, and Ferron. Top Format producers from the industry will provide additional mentorship. The winning Format will receive funding from Quebecor Content to develop their Format for broadcast and Media Ranch will manage production and global distribution. Formats created by remaining candidates may also be developed and distributed.
The Horsepower 2.0 candidates are: Marianne Mercier-Lacombe: retail salesperson and communication student at UQAM (Université du Québec à Montréal); Widmayer Edouard: debt collection agent and Instagram content creator; Amélie Tintin: traveler, arts lover and communication assistant; Isabelle LaPerrière: writer, drama teacher and media coordinator; Alexandre Perras: Folk musician and literature student at Montreal University; Gisèle Palancz: translation specialist, entrepreneur and author; Justine Salette: artist and fitness coach; and David Bourgeois: young actor, student and author originally from remote Québec area les Iles-de-la-Madeleine.
The winning Format from Horsepower 1.0 was created by An Tran. Titled Family Tripped, this Format is a fun spin on dating; and is in active co-development with Quebecor Content in Montreal, and is being reviewed by various production and broadcast partners around the world.
