Global Drama’s Golden Age: Why Television Must Dare to Surprise

Ron Leshem, the Oscar-nominated writer and co-creator of the Israeli series that inspired HBO’s cultural phenomenon “Euphoria,” has stated that television is moving into a golden age of international storytelling. Addressing this year’s Canneseries festival, Leshem—whose credits include “Valley of Tears,” “No Man’s Land” and “Bad Boy”—argued passionately that independent producers and international storytelling hold the key to revitalising television drama. As streaming services increasingly retreat into local-focused content and broadcasters take conservative approaches, Leshem stays firmly confident about the future, backed by his own slate of expansive global initiatives spanning Brazil, Australia, Europe and France. His conviction comes at a pivotal juncture when global drama risks being reduced to merely a cost-effective option or exotic niche rather than a transformative medium transforming the medium.

The Case for Courageous, Convention-Challenging Story Creation

Leshem’s primary argument questions the prevailing caution in modern television. Rather than retreating into familiar templates, he argues that international storytelling offers something the industry critically demands: real unpredictability. When television channels and digital platforms play it safe, commissioning only time-tested formulas and conventional stories, they surrender the medium’s core strength to engage and challenge. Leshem believes this juncture demands the opposite approach—creators must adopt the unfamiliar, venture into uncharted ground, and trust audiences to go along into unfamiliar and unsettling ground. The Israeli original “Euphoria” demonstrated this philosophy, introducing raw authenticity and cultural distinctiveness to a tale that transcended its origins to become a international hit.

The economics of international production, Leshem highlights, truly emancipate rather than constrain creative ambition. Whilst American television increasingly demands substantial financial investment to justify green-light verdicts, overseas projects can achieve equivalent production quality at a fraction of the cost. This budgetary adaptability somewhat counterintuitively allows greater creative risk-taking. Creators operating in international settings don’t face the same business imperatives that force American networks toward safe, accessible content. Instead, they can support original viewpoints, unconventional narratives, and the kind of ambitious creative risk that finally creates the most memorable and culturally significant television.

• Global storytelling opens doors to unexplored territories, frameworks and narrative journeys
• Independent creators can produce quality programming at substantially lower costs
• International narratives engages audiences weary of standard programming
• Cultural distinctiveness establishes genuine appeal that transcends geographical boundaries

Disrupting the Established Model

The television industry’s current risk aversion represents a fundamental misreading of viewer demand. Streaming services and traditional broadcasters have become fixated with metrics and algorithmic predictability, leading to an endless parade of rehashed content and franchises. Yet audiences keep turning toward programmes that surprise them—narratives that feel genuinely dangerous, ethically nuanced, and culturally rooted. Global drama, by its very nature, resists the standardising tendency that dominates mainstream American television. When creators operate within different cultural contexts and production ecosystems, they’re forced to think differently, to question assumptions, to move past the well-worn paths that have become entrenched as industry convention.

Leshem’s own production company, Crossing Oceans, reflects this approach through its deliberately international slate. From “Paranoia” in Brazil to “Revolution,” a France Télévisions partnership with Iranian filmmakers, his projects deliberately pursue creative friction and cultural collision. These aren’t prestige vanity projects intended to gather festival laurels; they’re calculated bets that audiences worldwide crave stories that challenge, unsettle, and eventually reshape them. By welcoming the unknown rather than retreating from it, Leshem suggests, television can restore its standing as the medium where genuine artistic risk-taking still matters.

From Israeli Heritage to Worldwide Ambitions

Ron Leshem’s progression from Israeli television to international prominence exemplifies the profound impact of stories deeply embedded in place. His foundational creations in Israeli drama positioned him as a distinctive creative voice, unafraid to tackle intricate ethical and cultural questions with uncompromising integrity. This foundation proved instrumental in shaping his future direction to international filmmaking. Rather than abandoning his cultural specificity for expanded commercial viability, Leshem has continually drawn upon his Israeli perspective as a artistic resource, proving that profoundly rooted narratives possess universal resonance. His trajectory reveals that the most engaging global content often emerges not from weakening cultural distinctiveness, but from deepening commitment to it.

The founding of Crossing Oceans, his creative enterprise based in Los Angeles but operating primarily across international markets, reflects a conscious departure from conventional studio-led frameworks. Working alongside established creative allies Amit Cohen and Daniel Amsel, Leshem has developed a portfolio strategically created to prioritise genuine creativity over commercially proven templates. His active ventures span Brazil, Australia, Europe, and France in partnership with Iranian filmmakers—a geographical and creative diversity that would have been inconceivable in established industry frameworks. This international presence goes beyond simple ambition; it’s a strategic assertion that the direction of television storytelling lies in dispersed creative systems where ground-level understanding and international ambition intersect.

The Euphoria Effect

The original Israeli series that influenced Sam Levinson’s HBO adaptation became a defining cultural moment, demonstrating conclusively that non-English language drama could achieve extraordinary international box office success. Leshem’s creation connected so deeply with audiences worldwide that it produced countless international versions, each adapted to reflect local cultural contexts whilst maintaining the emotional depth and genuine emotional resonance of the original vision. This success significantly transformed industry perceptions about international television’s commercial viability. Studios and digital platforms that had previously dismissed non-English language drama as limited market appeal suddenly acknowledged the commercial opportunity of culturally distinct narratives executed with creative excellence.

The HBO version emergence as the second most-watched series in the network’s history confirmed Leshem’s creative philosophy entirely. Rather than proving that international drama needed Americanisation to succeed, it demonstrated the opposite: audiences craved the psychological complexity and cultural specificity that the Israeli version reflected. Levinson’s adaptation succeeded not by sanitising the source material but by preserving its fundamental boldness whilst rendering it for American sensibilities. This model—honourable reimagining rather than wholesale reimagining—has become more impactful in how global drama is approached, motivating producers to seek genuine regional talent rather than imposing standardised templates.

• Original Israeli series generated multiple international adaptations in various regions
• HBO adaptation became the network’s second-most popular series of all time
• Success proved international drama could achieve remarkable commercial and critical acclaim

Crossing Oceans: Establishing an International Manufacturing Network

Leshem’s production company, Crossing Oceans, represents a carefully structured response to the fragmented nature of global television production. Founded in partnership with CAA and headquartered in Los Angeles, the company operates as a genuinely international enterprise rather than a Hollywood-centric operation that occasionally ventures abroad. Established alongside long-standing creative partners Amit Cohen and Daniel Amsel, Crossing Oceans serves as a creative centre where creators with varied geographical and cultural perspectives converge to develop projects with truly international scope. This framework allows Leshem to maintain artistic control whilst drawing upon the unique production environments, regional expertise, and creative talent pools that various regions provide, fundamentally challenging the notion that quality drama must originate from traditional entertainment capitals.

The company’s current portfolio demonstrates the breadth of its international reach and the range of storytelling approaches it champions. Projects span continents and cultures, from Brazilian psychological dramas to European co-productions and collaborations with Iranian filmmakers, each bringing distinct perspectives and production methodologies. Rather than imposing a standardised creative template across territories, Crossing Oceans functions as a facilitator of authentic local voices working in partnership with international ambition. This approach generates productions that possess both cultural specificity and universal emotional resonance, proving that truly global drama emerges not from homogenisation but from championing unique creative perspectives whilst connecting them across borders.

Collaboration Throughout Continents

Crossing Oceans’ cross-border partnerships showcase how current world drama succeeds through authentic artistic partnership rather than traditional top-down production models. The work alongside Iranian filmmakers on “Revolution” embodies this philosophy, introducing viewpoints and narrative approaches that conventional industry approaches would commonly ignore. By establishing these relationships as creative equals rather than external vendors, Leshem’s company generates productions enriched by diverse perspectives and creative practices. This collaborative model questions conventional wisdom about where quality drama originates, proving that innovation emerges when multiple creative talents collaborate authentically toward mutual artistic objectives.

The parallel development of projects across Brazil, Australia, Europe, and France showcases how Crossing Oceans operates as a authentically distributed creative enterprise. Rather than centralising decision-making in Los Angeles, the company empowers local production teams and creative partners to drive projects forward within their respective territories. This decentralised approach speeds up production schedules whilst guaranteeing productions preserve local character and local relevance. By treating different territories as collaborative partners rather than satellite offices, Crossing Oceans introduces a production model that respects local knowledge whilst maintaining the artistic standards and international perspective essential to global commercial success.

Empathy as the Core Mission

At the heart of Leshem’s perspective for international storytelling lies a core conviction in television’s ability to cultivate understanding across cultural divides. Rather than treating international storytelling as a business approach or budgetary convenience, he positions it as a ethical necessity—a medium through which audiences worldwide can inhabit unfamiliar perspectives and develop deeper understanding of different societies. This conceptual approach raises international storytelling beyond mere entertainment into something far more significant: a tool for bridging the emotional gaps that divide different populations. By centring empathy as the central principle, Leshem argues that television can accomplish what political discourse often cannot: creating genuine human connection across difference.

The expansion of locally produced content on international streaming platforms has somewhat counterintuitively created both opportunities and challenges. Whilst audiences now encounter stories from previously marginalised territories, there remains a danger of treating such productions as cultural oddities rather than stories of shared human experience. Leshem’s commitment to empathy-driven storytelling directly challenges this performative representation. His projects intentionally resist cultural stereotyping or performative diversity, instead constructing stories that reveal the shared vulnerabilities, ambitions, and ethical dilemmas that unite humanity. This approach converts audiences into authentic stakeholders in other people’s emotional landscapes, fostering the form of intercultural comprehension that has become increasingly vital in an interconnected yet polarised world.

• Universal human narratives transcend cultural and geographical boundaries
• Empathy-driven narrative prevents exoticisation of foreign productions
• Common emotional moments foster genuine cross-cultural understanding
• Television’s strength resides in rendering distant lives seem intimately close

Drama as a Method for Understanding

Television drama, when executed with genuine artistic ambition, functions as a uniquely powerful medium for building empathy. Unlike documentary approaches that preserve a detached perspective, drama invites audiences into the inner emotional lives of characters whose circumstances may differ substantially from their own. This absorbing quality permits audiences to enter unfamiliar social environments, familial arrangements, and ethical quandaries with an intimacy that builds understanding rather than superficial knowledge. Leshem’s work consistently harness this capacity, creating narratives that push audiences to face their own assumptions whilst recognising the core humanity in characters whose existences initially appear alien or incomprehensible.

The impact of this strategy becomes notably evident in works exploring conflict, trauma, and societal fracture. Series like “Valley of Tears” and “No Man’s Land” intentionally situate audiences within conflicted areas and divided societies, demanding that spectators navigate moral ambiguity without simple answers. Rather than delivering comforting stories of success or redemption, these dramas present the messy, complicated reality of how communities persist and periodically prosper within insurmountable conditions. By resisting oversimplification, Leshem’s work shows spectators that understanding doesn’t require agreement—it requires only the willingness to authentically engage with stories fundamentally different from one’s own.

What Makes a Series Break Through

In an era saturated with content, the dividing line between programmes that merely exist and those that genuinely resonate hinges on a commitment to take artistic chances. Leshem argues that international drama’s greatest asset lies not in its financial limitations but in its capacity to venture into storytelling ground that risk-averse American television increasingly avoids. When streaming companies emphasise predictable algorithms over artistic boldness, freelance production companies operating across continents possess the liberty to pursue stories that authentically provoke and challenge audiences. This fearlessness—the unwillingness to sand down rough edges for palatability—transforms television from passive entertainment into something far more impactful: a medium capable of expanding consciousness.

The international projects that gain widespread market traction invariably demonstrate an steadfast dedication to their original material’s cultural and emotional authenticity. “Euphoria’s” Israeli original version succeeded not because it catered to American tastes but because it remained firmly committed to its own context, ultimately demonstrating that particularity rather than universal blandness creates genuine broad appeal. Leshem’s existing portfolio of works—from “Paranoia” in Brazil to creative ventures with Iranian directors—demonstrates this conviction that the most internationally engaging narrative work arises when creators give precedence to their artistic vision’s honesty over organisational demands to standardise. Such creative courage, paradoxically, serves as the pathway to international success.

• Authentic storytelling grounded in specific cultural contexts resonates universally
• Artistic risk-taking distinguishes compelling shows from forgettable content
• Refusing commercial compromise frequently generates stronger financial returns
• International television thrives when creative direction supersedes algorithmic predictability