Production Company Name
Abode Entertainment
When was the company founded?
The company was founded in 2016 in the United States. We were initially based in Los Angeles before expanding to Australia in 2019. We are all Australian.
Where are you based, and which states did you film in for the 2022, 2023, and 2024 productions?
Our headquarters are located on St Kilda Road, Melbourne, Victoria. We film nationwide across Australia.
How many full-time equivalent staff do you have, and how large does the team grow during production?
We have around 20 full time staff. We maintain a full-time team and reduces reliance on freelancers, keeping production costs lower while ensuring quality control. Our team is deeply aligned with our culture of excellence, delivering consistent, high-quality results.
What is your ownership model, and who are the key principals?
We are a family-owned business. Gary Takle, the father, serves as a key principal along with his sons Jonathan, the Creative Director, and Daniel, Director of Photography (DOP). Gary’s life partner, Ben, is the Production Manager.
What genres do you specialise in?
Our primary focus has traditionally been on lifestyle TV, particularly in the home and real estate space, which aligns with the name ‘Abode Entertainment.’ We’ve also ventured into food shows in the U.S., including ‘Tasting America ‘for AWE and ‘United Plates of America’ for DirecTV’s 4K channel. Our latest project,’Listing Melbourne’, marks our entry into the unstructured reality genre, which we’ve identified as a key focus for future growth. We also Produce Country House Hunters form prime time in three countries. New Zealand on TVNZ, Canada on CTV and here in Australia on Nine
What are some of your notable credits, and with which broadcasters or streamers?
Find My Country Home– A+E Networks (U.S.) in partnership with Hello Sunshine (Reese Witherspoon)
Listing Melbourne – Nine (launching 23rd October 2024)
Country House Hunters – Australia, NZ and Canada
Beach House Hunters with Shelley Craft – Nine
Million Dollar House Hunter s – Hulu (U.S)
What’s coming up on your slate, and how many projects are in active development?
We are currently delivering the final episodes of ‘Find My Country House’ in the U.S. It’s a co-production with Abode Entertainment and Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine—an exciting project for us. This week, ‘Listing Melbourne’ launches, and we are eagerly waiting to see how it resonates with viewers as our first venture into reality TV. Additionally, we are developing a new reality show called ‘Small Luxury Hotel,’ which follows the lives of staff and guests over five days, featuring a vibrant mix of personalities. We are also in the early stages of developing a show centred around a company that owns several restaurants, focusing as much on the staff as on the food.
Do you receive unsolicited material, and how should people pitch projects?
No, we do not accept unsolicited material. We generate plenty of ideas internally. The challenge lies in executing them effectively, not in coming up with new ideas.
What change would you like to see in the commissioning process?
One of the biggest challenges in pitching to streamers and networks is their preference for working with large, established production companies. This creates a risk-averse environment, making it difficult for newer companies to establish relationships and demonstrate what they can offer. Networks tend to rely on the familiarity and safety of these relationships instead of investing in new partners. We believe this is an industry-wide issue that needs to be addressed.
Listing Melbourne begins 8:30pm tonight on Nine.
links to content on ABC
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