The CBC is bringing back its Format Incubator for the second consecutive year, this time partnering with Warner Bros. International Television Production (WBITP).

The pubcaster and international producer are asking Canadian production companies to submit unscripted format concepts in two categories: “Field-based factual,” which has interesting characters, narrative and a unique point of view, such as Village on a Diet and “Studio-based smart entertainment,” which is geared toward adults aged 25 to 54 and families and offers a collective and participatory viewing experience, such as Canada’s Smartest Person.

The goal of the incubator is to develop formats that have the potential to “spark a national dialogue about a topic that matters to Canadians” and to help export Canadian television formats internationally.

Last year, CBC partnered with the Banijay Group on its inaugural incubator, a partnership that resulted in the pilot for Anything But Average, which aired on the CBC this past spring. The series is currently in development with Toronto-based Frantic Films and is represented in the international marketplace by Zodiak Rights, which is part of the Banijay Group.

The incubator program will support up to three new pilots through the development and production process and broadcast the pilots in primetime slots on the CBC in September 2017. Pilots will be financed by CBC and WBITVP, along with provincial and federal tax credits and CMF funding if applicable. Canadian producers will retain copyright of the program, and the format will be owned equally and jointly by the production company, CBC and WBITVP.

Format proposals will be accepted until Sept. 28.

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