Screentime
Production Cliff-Edge Forces TV Industry to Plunder the Past
- Archive material helps producers piece together new programs
- One show about an English blacksmith even uses YouTube clips
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Broadcasters are having a hard time trying to replace canceled sporting events and live-action TV with something people want to watch.
Their plight will only worsen in coming months, when documentaries and scripted programs that couldn’t be made because of the coronavirus would normally begin to hit screens. Some filming has resumed, but most of the industry is still in limbo because producers can’t get insurance for shoots and many crews and actors can’t or won’t travel.