Red Bull Studios global head Bernadette McDaid teases producer's ambitious plans for upcoming 'The Real Mo Farah' slate

When 'The Real Mo Farah', a documentary about the Olympic gold medalist, aired on the BBC in the UK last month, it made headlines.

The feature-length documentary, which had been kept so tightly under wraps that even some of those who worked on it weren't sure exactly what it contained, revealed that the story Farah had repeatedly told about her upbringing - on talk shows and in his autobiography publications – was a lie. In fact, his real name was Hussein Abdi Kahin and at age 9 he was snatched from his family and trafficked by neighbors in Somaliland to Britain to work, he says, in indentured servitude.

A co-production between the BBC, Atomized Studios and Red Bull Studios, 'The Real Mo Farah' made UK headlines the week of its release, receiving numerous accolades for Farah, who chose to tell her story at risk of potentially losing his British citizenship (which was obtained under his fake name as opposed to his real one), and for the documentary itself.

For Red Bull Studios, a new entity related to but legally separate from the energy drink and extreme sports media companies that share its name, the documentary couldn't have been a better calling card for its market debut . "We were thrilled because it represents everything we wanted Red Bull Studios to be known for," said studio global head Bernadette McDaid in an interview with Variety.

"This is the story of an extraordinary person and an extraordinary situation that truly celebrates all of the truly positive aspects of humanity in terms of resilience, strength, courage, optimism, hope," McDaid continues. "Because we really didn't know what was going to happen in terms of the Home Office and Mo [in terms of citizenship]."

In the event, the Home Office reassured Farah that they had no intention of revoking his passport. A police investigation is currently underway to determine how the athlete was smuggled into the UK.

Mo Farah with his family in Somaliland in 'The Real Mo Farah' Courtesy of Red Bull Studios

When the BBC and Atomized pitched Farah's story to McDaid about eighteen months ago, to see if Red Bull Studios wanted to join as a co-producer, she said the story was greenlit almost immediately. "It's a high-end, prestige production," she says. "And it's also representative of how we hope to work to get ahead in the market. So working with top partners like the BBC, forging these kinds of co-productions, it allows films that need to be told to be in the best possible way."

Located in Austria, Red Bull Studios is part of Red Bull Media Network and was launched under McDaid in 2020 with the aim of creating what it describes as "a premium programming strand that focuses solely on the commercial content for co-production with broadcasters". and banners. Although it bears the Red Bull name, McDaid points out that the studio is a separate legal entity, allowing them to work with public service broadcasters such as the BBC which are not permitted to...