NEM ZAGREB 2025: DAY 2
Micro-Drama as a New Trend, Conversations with Emmy-Winning Ludwig Creator, Marketing as a Driving Force
Zagreb, December 10th – The second day of NEM Zagreb 2025 brought together industry professionals for panels, presentations, and Q&A sessions on innovation, AI, and marketing in the video industry. A networking lunch sponsored by HAVC offered participants a chance to connect, while the day concluded with the Christmas Party by Pickbox and the NEM Awards Ceremony, celebrating excellence and achievements in the TV industry.
Panels Highlight Regional Insights and Global Creative Challenges
The panels at NEM Zagreb 2025 brought together leading voices from TV, streaming, advertising, and creative industries across the CEE region.
Video Ads: Linear TV vs. TikTok, Meta and YouTube on TV, moderated by Maria Rua Aguete (Omdia), explored the evolving video advertising landscape with Denis Oštir (VIDAA), Ivan Lovreček (CGM Films), Božidar Abramović (Omnicom Media Group Croatia), Nikola Vrdoljak (404 agency), and Ivanka Mabić Gagić (Aleph).
Original TV Series Formats and Adaptation, sponsored by Viaplay Group, highlighted strategies for creating and adapting series across markets with Igor Draguzet (CME), Rahela Štefanović (HRT), Kelly Alchanati (Argonauts Productions), Tereza Polachová (Czech Television), Vanda Rapti (Viaplay Group), and Katarzyna Franus (TVP).
The Vertical Revolution: Micro-Drama, moderated by Katarina Pavlović (Prva TV, B92), examined mobile-first storytelling with Maria Rua Aguete (Omdia), Milena Djuričić (Videomite), Bethany Thomson (Sea Star Productions), Dario Marčac (Crew), and Elena Petrova (A1 International Business). Maria Rua Aguete pointed out a defining change: „The year 2026 will mark a decisive transformation across the video and advertising landscape. Traditional broadcasters are moving firmly toward a ‘streaming-first’ strategy, driven by the decline of linear TV advertising and the rapid growth of CTV. At the same time, vertical video is emerging as the new prime-time format, with social video expected to capture nearly half of all TV and video ad revenue. The rise of agentic AI will further democratize advertising by enabling faster, simpler campaign creation, while simultaneously strengthening the position of major digital ecosystems. Together, these trends signal that flexibility, partnerships, and innovation will be essential to success.“ When asked whether vertical show drama represents an opportunity or a cost for Telcos, Elena Petrova, Head of Group Content, Broadcasting and Media
Solutions at A1 International Business, stated: „It’s both an opportunity and a cost. Everything comes with a cost, including the network load from all these 4K and HD videos. But at the same time, I see a major opportunity. As I mentioned, we had long been thinking about how to attract Gen Z and Millennials, and now we see that it’s not just them — in the end, it’s everyone, mainly women. This is a powerful engagement tool, especially when we offer it as part of a bundle.“
Creatives: It’s Not Hard Only in Your Country, moderated by Yako Molhov (CEETV/TVBIZZ), discussed global creative challenges with Lenka Szántó (TV Nova/VOYO), Ella Mische (Galileo Films, CIFF), Uglješa Jokić (Rainmaker Production), Danijel Pek (Antitalent), Marie Roussin, Erik Pack (Boat Rocker Studios).
YouTube Strategies and Behavioral Marketing Insights
The marketing-focused sessions on Day 2 offered actionable insights into the intersection of content, distribution, and audience engagement. Aleksandar Ašković presented From Broadcast to Algorithm: Why Every TV Station Needs a YouTube Strategy, highlighting how broadcasters can leverage YouTube to expand reach and optimize content performance. Guy Bisson (Ampere) followed with Distribution Strategies: When TV Meets YouTube, exploring data-driven approaches to content placement and maximizing audience engagement across platforms. The segment concluded with a keynote by Dalibor Šumiga (Promosapiens), titled Inception: The Art of Planting Ideas, offering a deep dive into behavioral insights, creative strategy, and the psychology behind effective marketing campaigns. AI remained a key topic, and in the presentation Revolutionizing Streaming: AI & New Monetization Innovations by Harmonics, Mikel Darrigues highlighted the latest monetization models and technological innovations transforming the way platforms grow and generate revenue.
Q&A Sessions Spotlight Creativity, Strategy, and Innovation
The Q&A sessions highlighted creativity, innovation, and strategic insights across media and production. A Band for a Brand? with a composer John Altman explored how music can shape brand identity and engage audiences, drawing on his experience of composing for over 4,000 commercials. Q&A A1 and UniqCast: B2B OTT Ecosystem for Telcos with Darko Robič from UniqCast and Elena Petrova from A1 International Business provided a deep dive into scalable OTT solutions and effective content distribution for telcos. The Pickbox-sponsored keynote Ludwig: The Puzzling World of Producing with Kenton Allen from Big Talk Studios offered an insider perspective on production challenges and creative decision-making in high-end content development, as Ludwig, the newly crowned International Emmy winner for Best Comedy Series – continues to earn global recognition. Allen explained how to reconcile the entrepreneurial and creative sides of his work: „The real strategic advantage in production is the ability to connect artistic ingenuity with entrepreneurial discipline. With a distinctive, International Emmy-winning show like Ludwig, we proved that a high-quality, culturally resonant idea can successfully change culture and create commerce. The two sides are both essential parts of the same vision.“
NEM Awards Ceremony and Christmas Party by Pickbox
The program concluded with an evening of celebration, featuring the Christmas Party hosted by Pickbox and the NEM Awards Ceremony. The party also marked the recent launch of Pickbox’s new pay-TV channel, Pickbox 2, which, under the slogan “Less Crime, More Feeling”, offers light-hearted and entertaining content including Latin American series, reality formats from the USA and UK, and shows about cooking, gardening, and pets. The NEM Awards recognized excellence in two categories: Best Pre-Development TV Series in Europe, powered by HAVC, and Best Finished TV Series in the CEE. The winners of the category Best Pre-Development TV Series in Europe, powered by HAVC are Inja Korać and Lea Stanković with their project “Gray Divorce”. Second place was awarded to Vasilis Chrysanthopoulos and Neritan Zinxhiria for “The Boy Who Could Listen to the Soil”, and third place went to Anastasia Pashkevich for “In Nomine Patris”. The jury explained its choice: „The jury applauds the high quality and strong personality of all three finalist projects. In our deliberation, we focused on creative clarity, market potential, and the strength of the live pitch. One project distinguished itself through its confident authorship, universal thematic appeal, and clear readiness for the next stage of development.” The winner of category Best Finished TV Series in the CEE is „The Breslau Murders“ by ATM Group, S.A., second place went to „A Decent Man“, by TVN Warner Bros. Discovery, and third place to „Detective Von Fock“, by ZDF Studios/Zolba Production. Special Mention was given to „Sram“, by CGM Films/HRT. The top projects were celebrated before an international audience, highlighting innovation and storytelling talent. The evening provided a great setting for networking and conversations among the participants, rounding off a successful fifth edition of NEM Zagreb.
New Europe Market
New Europe Market (NEM) is the collective name for a series of events organized by Mediavision, the Croatian marketing and television industry agency. NEM is traditionally held in Dubrovnik, and in 2019 NEM Zagreb was held for the first time, dedicated to creativity in television.
All information about the event and prices are available on the official website of NEM Zagreb 2025.