🎬 MIWF 2026 Experts Discuss the Transformation of the Series Market
As part of the Moscow International Film Week (MIWF 2026), the session "From Boom to Bust: TV Series Lose Their Ground" addressed the industry's overproduction crisis and shifting viewer consumption patterns.
Panelists noted that the era of unbridled streaming growth has given way to market cooling and saturation. Streaming platforms are now forced to be highly selective with projects and co-share production risks with linear television to build budgets for large-scale promotional campaigns. The competitive landscape for series has broadened significantly—they now compete not just with other titles, but with all forms of digital entertainment.
Experts highlighted key factors for a project’s survival in this new environment:
- Overcoming Tropes and Focusing on Niche Appeal. Screenwriter and Moscow Film School instructor Ivan Baranov pointed to audience fatigue with formulaic plots, noting that stories offering an original take on familiar settings are finding the most success. Writers must pack every scene with more narrative weight to prevent viewers from drifting to “second screens” (smartphones).
- Genre Hybridization. Pure genre formats are surrendering ground to multi-genre content. Consumer demand alternates between escapism and realism, requiring flexible positioning while still delivering an emotional punch.
- Global Choice Overload. Temitayo Adegboyega, head of Limecut Studios and Diplomontage Productions, emphasized that despite the steady growth of the global audience for legitimate content, the primary obstacle remains the sheer amount of time users waste trying to pick a title.
The TV series industry is entering a phase of mature stagnation, where production volume will yield to heightened selectivity and disciplined project economics.
Source: Kinometro
