The Crown

For scripted projects such as dramas and comedies, an editor will have a script to work to, choosing the best combination of shots to tell the story.

“The script is like a blueprint,” explains The Crown editor Una Ni Dhonghaile,

A documentary is a rather different beast. “You may be faced with 400 hours of footage shot across many years in a sprawling way. The people making the film don't know what's going to happen next,” says editor Ben Stark whose credits include Dispatches, Baby P: The Untold Story and 9/11: The Falling Man.

Is Netflix set on “world domination”? That was one of the themes in this intriguing encounter between the company’s Chief Content Officer, Ted Sarandos, and Francine Stock, presenter of Radio 4’s The Film Programme. Since a huge expansion across the globe in January, only China, North Korea, Crimea and Syria remain outside the streaming service’s worldwide reach. 

When the latest project from multiple Oscar nominees Peter Morgan (The Queen) and Stephen Daldry (The Reader) reaches audiences in November, it won’t be in cinemas.

Morgan has created and written The Crown, an extended biopic on the life of Queen Elizabeth II. Daldry is the executive producer and has directed an episode of the show. The series begins with Elizabeth’s marriage in 1947 and aims to recount the story of her life until the present day.

Speaking during a self-published video of their investor call, Netflix CEO and co-founder Reed Hastings began: "There are so many competitors and everyone is working hard to build the best content. We're seeing growth in the overall internet TV market."

When pressed if there were any plans to purchase an existing film company in order to produce content more easily, chief content officer Ted Sarandos confirmed: "we're building it versus buying it [...] not just in our films, but in several of our series Netflix is the studio and the network." 

Doctor Who fans missing Matt Smith will be excited to he will return to our screens in new Netflix drama The Crown. The former Doctor will play Prince Phillip with an all-star cast including Wolf Hall's Claire Foy as Queen Elizabeth II and John Lithgow as Winston Churchill.