Nicôle Lecky, the creative force behind the BAFTA-winning BBC drama Mood, revealed that streaming platforms struggled to grasp the nuances and specificity of her show during the pitching process. Lecky, currently working on another untitled BBC series, praised the BBC for appreciating the complexities behind Mood while expressing frustration with streamers attempting to categorize the series narrowly.
According to Deadline, in contrast to the streamers’ approach, Lecky acknowledged the BBC’s understanding of the unique aspects of Mood, which originally stemmed from her one-woman play, Superhoe. The musical drama, delving into the life of a mixed-race girl in London and exploring social media culture, received critical acclaim for its originality and won the coveted Best Mini-Series BAFTA last year.
“The streamers wanted to say, ‘This is about one thing, and we can market it to a very specific audience,'” Lecky stated at the Outside the Box event in London. “In doing that, the nuance and specificity was taken out if it being about a mixed-race girl in London. The streamers didn’t really understand that in a way that free TV did.”
While Lecky praised public broadcasters, she also highlighted the challenges faced by talent from under-represented backgrounds when reaching a “middling point” in their careers. The industry’s tendency to pigeonhole and pressure diverse talent into specific roles or narratives can be stifling. Lecky emphasized the need for creatives to define their own interests and vision to avoid being confined to stereotypical projects.
Her candid insights into the industry’s dynamics were shared at the Outside the Box event, alongside discussions featuring ITN boss Rachel Jupp and former BBC broadcaster Andrew Marr.
