Mary Ellen Iwata
Vice President of Program Development, HGTV
Scripps Networks

What genre of documentary/non-fiction do you program?
We are open to anything pertaining to lifestyle - half hour series and one hour specials. We currently air a lot of makeover and design, but we have much more than that in development and production. We are moving beyond that.

How many hours or slots do you program per year?
HGTV commissions approximately 1100 hours of original programming a year.

What percentage or number of hours are commissioned vs. acquired? (Ie. 60% commissions/ 40% acquisitions)
90% vx 10%

What is the average amount for acquisitions and/or license fee?
It depends on the concept, the shelf life, and targeted daypart. It varies widely - there is no average. We are also commissioning a lot of series and specials in HiDef now so that will change the budgets.

What are you looking for right now?
Ideas for series and specials that will appeal to men as well as women. We are not interested in developing more of what is already on our air. As mentioned above, we are open to anything pertaining to lifestyle. We are also looking for shows that would appeal to a slightly younger demographic in late prime.

How do you prefer to be pitched?
Assuming the producer can follow up with more, I prefer a brief pitch. A page or two. At markets I don't mind brainstorming and taking verbal pitches.

What is your biggest pitch turnoff?
The biggest turnoff is realizing the producer does not know our network. Also, right now, I would prefer not to hear the words "competition", "two teams", or "this is X show meets Y show".

What is your market circuit?
MIP TV & MIPCOM, NATPE, RealScreen, Banff and an occasional doc fest.