ITV’s commissioning editor of comedy has called on new writers to come up with “big, bold characters” to fill vacant slots in the channel’s schedule.
And Saskia Schuster, who joined the broadcaster in August as a replacement for MyFanwy Moore, is encouraging writers who have previously worked with Channel 4 and BBC3 to pitch for ITV.
Saskia Schuster
She also outlined the main priorities for the channel: its Thursday pre-watershed slot and 9pm on Fridays.
According to Broadcast, she said that compelling storytelling was “a must”, with “big, bold characters”. She added that sitcoms should not be “too gentle”, highlighting Birds Of A Feather and Plebs as a good guideline in terms of tone.
Schuster will also work alongside Angela Jain, ITV’s director of digital channels and acquisitions, Angela Jain to commission sitcoms for ITV2, with the 10pm weekday slot a priority.
The tone for the slot should be rude and naughty, but not crude, she added, with Celebrity Juice suggested as a marker.
