Rodnyanksy puts Ukraine in the picture
September 11, 2003 at 08:11el STS in May 2002, the news caused a stir in both countries.
Ukrainian media analysts predicted that 1+1’s popularity would plummet without Rodnyansky in charge full time. Meanwhile, their Moscow colleagues speculated that the new general director would turn the entertainment-oriented STS into a Russian version of 1+1, with serious, information-laden programming.
Now 15 months on, Rodnyansky is shuttling between two capitals and doing the jobs of two people, and neither of the pessimistic forecasts has proved correct. Far from seeing its audience ratings decline, 1+1 has continued to develop, launching new projects and filming new serials.
Meanwhile, under Rodnyansky’s leadership, STS has shown the most dynamic growth among Russian TV channels. Its audience has grown by 50 percent, and STS is firmly set in fourth position in the Russian TV ratings.
Noting that most TV managers go through the process of starting up a large channel just once in their careers, Rodnyansky said he welcomed the challenge.
“I feel excited and fortunate that this is occurring for me for a second time,” he said.
Director and producer
Born in Kyiv in 1961, Rodnyansky studied in the film direction department of the Karpenko-Kary State Institute of Theater Arts in Kyiv. After graduating in 1983, he worked as a director for the Kyivnauchfilm studio.
Rodnyansky’s talents as a documentary filmmaker were already recognized outside the Soviet Union in the late 1980s. His films regularly won awards at international festivals. His best-known documentaries include “The Mission of Raul Wallenberg” and “Goodbye, USSR,” which he was making in Moscow at the time of the hardline Communist coup in August 1991.
For four years in the early 1990s, Rodnyansky was a director and producer with Germany’s Innova Films.
In 1995, Rodnyansky decided to set up his own TV company in Ukraine. He said that he borrowed the starting capital for the Studio 1+1 project in Germany.
Initially, 1+1’s programs were broadcast in blocks on the first national channel, UT-1. Starting Jan. 1, 1997, 1+1 went on the air as an independent national channel broadcasting on UT-2.
Later, Central European Media Enterprises, a U.S. company founded by cosmetics billionaire Ronald Lauder, acquired a stake in the channel. However, Rodnyanksy retained the 70 percent controlling stake.
1+1 now produces programming ranging from game shows to serials and feature films. Two films co-produced by Rodnyansky (“1001 Recipes of a Chef in Love” and “East-West”) received Oscar nominations for best foreign film.
The channel has also created one of the most powerful news operations in the country – TSN. However, the objectivity of its coverage has been questioned.
During the so-called “temnik” scandal last year, when leading journalists protested the intrusive influence of the Presidential Administration on editorial policy in various media, TSN was identified as one of the news programs whose coverage the authorities most heavily influenced.
Rodnyansky considers TSN the most professional news service in the country, and discounts accusations of bias.
“We start from the idea that we don’t know what is good and what is bad. Ukraine has democratically elected leaders, and we are loyal to the state and its leaders,” Rodnyansky said. “We want the country to flourish, and we don’t think it’s our job to establish who serves the authorities and who is fighting against them. The task is to help the country to stand on its feet, so that we are not ashamed to travel abroad.”
Healthy competition
Rodnyansky’s channel has grown into one of the leaders of the Ukrainian television market. Its only competitor as a channel with nationwide reach is Inter, which has recently overtaken 1+1 in its ratings. Rodnyansky is not unduly worried by this development, however.
“I was never a fan of sports competitions for first place in the rating,” Rodnyansky said. “We are fighting for the trust of an audience that is very varied.”
Rodnyansky pointed out that his channel tends to be most popular with viewers under age 45, while Inter tends to appeal to an older audience.
“There has to be competition,” Rodnyansky said. “I am happy that Inter is a strong channel. It is very useful to lose out sometimes – it renews the blood and forces you to think.”
Inter Chairman Vlad Ryashin is also positive about the benefits of competition with 1+1.
“It intensifies the fight for footage that will be competitive on the market. Competition forces us to experiment, take risks, which in the end is good for Ukrainian television,” he said.
While expressing some concern that Rodnyansky’s departure for Russia could be a sign that the country is losing its most talented executives, Ryashin said that the appointment was indicative of the high level of the country’s TV professionals.
“However, Rodnyansky proved that Ukraine has first-class TV specialists and that professionalism is international,” he said.
While Rodnyansky admits it is not easy to determine the size of 1+1’s share in the Ukrainian TV advertising market, he estimates that it receives between 30 and 35 percent of the $130 million that is spent on TV advertising every year. In Russia, the TV advertising market is worth an annual $1 billion.
Escapist TV
Rodnyansky considers his main achievement at STS to have been the creation of an entertainment format that appeals to children and adults alike.
“The most popular films in the world today are fairy tales that appeal to adults, like ‘Harry Potter’ and ‘Lord of the Rings,’” he said. “People won’t watch us if we are going to be serious. Why is anyone going to switch on STS for news, if they also have the First Channel (ORT), Russia (RTR) and NTV? If you’re tired of seeing disasters, criminals and murdered politicians, you can switch on our channel, and you won’t see anything other than fairy tales.”
However, the new format for the channel did not come together right away. Before Rodnyansky’s arrival, STS began showing the controversial talk show ‘Okna’ (Windows), which he later took off the air.
“I couldn’t stand for that sort of thing on the air,” Rodnyansky said. “Likewise, STS refused to show the ‘Bolshoi Kush’ [another scandalous talk show]. Instead of being an ironic mystification, the show just ended up being crude. Both shows were both very successful with viewers, but that’s not the way we wanted to be successful.”
According to his contract with STS’s owners, Rodnyansky has to win a 10 percent audience share for the channel within three years. Recent surveys show that the rating is already close to 9 percent. According to Rodnyansky, STS is growing from the second-tier of Russian channels into the top rank alongside ORT, Russia and NTV.
Since Rodnyansky’s arrival, STS has been producing its own programs. It currently has 260 hours of drama and 200 hours of comedy shows under production. STS is producing half of its drama content jointly with Columbia Pictures – the first such co-production in the history of Russian television.
“We have authors working for us who scripted ‘Dynasty,’ and producers who worked on ‘Bewitched.’ Our youngsters are learning to create products that are able to conquer the entire world,” he said.
Rodnyansky clearly believes that his work in Moscow will benefit 1+1. He said that his decision to accept the job offer from the owners of STS was influenced by his understanding that what is going on in the TV market in Moscow will affect the outcome of the struggle for Ukrainian audiences.
“Which channel comes out on top in the competitive struggle will depend on which Russian serials they show,” he said.
This article was first published in Russian in Korrespondent magazine on Sept. 5 as part of its series devoted to the Top 100 most influential individuals in Ukraine.