SINGAPORE — When viewers are inundated with choices, how do you set out to make a drama that will captivate audiences around the globe?

For a start, it has to be accessible. And, today, BBC Worldwide rolled out its subscription video-on-demand service, BBC First, in Singapore. Viewers here are the first in South-east Asia to enjoy this service, which boasts access to new dramas every month, some of them launching less than 24 hours after their original telecasts. Entire series will also be made available.

But these have to be top-notch as well, especially in a competitive landscape where streaming and on-demand services are giving TV viewers a wealth of options. No doubt, BBC Worldwide will have to be more discerning in its choice of programmes to water and fertilise.

“Viewers are very discerning,” acknowledged Liam Keelan, director of scripted content at the company, where he leads the team responsible for securing and developing content. “So, I’m looking for … completely new stories, new takes by brilliant, A-list talent. The writing talent behind the show is really, really important. Ultimately, it comes down to great storytelling and things that are going to make a difference in the market.”

And it’s sparing no expense. Take War And Peace, the BBC’s latest epic period drama from writer Andrew Davies (House Of Cards, Pride And Prejudice). Much has already been made of it: Starring Lily James, Paul Dano and James Norton, it is a fresh, sexy adaptation of Leo Tolstoy’s sprawling novel and has been hailed in the United Kingdom as the greatest period drama of the decade.

A number of things motivated its production, said Keelan. “It’s an iconic title — it’s widely regarded as the most famous novel, the best novel ever written, so, obviously, we knew that people around the globe were going to know that title. It was instantly sellable. It felt like a title that hadn’t been made for a good many years.”

In some ways, it does feel like the BBC made a new version of War And Peace — for the first time in about 40 years — well, because it can. “BBC Worldwide has always gone for the most ambitious and biggest projects we possibly can,” said the show’s executive producer, Bethan Jones.

Although she would not disclose how big a budget the show had, she did say that because expectations were naturally high with a title like War And Peace, “it would have felt very small and insignificant” if they had stinted “on things like the look and the feel of it, and the grandeur and scale of it”.

Keelan affirmed how it had to be funded properly, “so that it doesn’t look cheap; so that it looks as if it’s the definitive version of War And Peace”, adding that it was a big-budget piece, and that they could not undercut funding for the locations, costumes and CGI.

“One of the first decisions was that we needed to shoot it in Russia, not build the sets in Britain, because we would have never found the vast nature of those palaces,” Jones said. “And we were very fortunate that the people at the Catherine Palace allowed us to shoot inside.” Shooting also took place in historical buildings across Lithuania and Latvia.

GOING INTO BATTLE

Once the funding and the locations for the show were secured, the next step was getting through the everyday challenges of a big-budget production involving scores of actors, extras and even animal actors. War And Peace had a crew of 550 and was in production for 30 months.

Jones spent each day watching the scenes right after they were filmed. Battle sequences, for instance, were tricky, with “all the extras running around the battlefield and all the explosions”. “Getting enough horses was a huge challenge because you have to train them, and horses don’t remember (well),” she stressed.

At one point, the pigs in War And Peace posed a challenge as well. When it looked like a specific breed of pigs was not going to be available — they had to look like pigs of the period — “there was talk that the pigs might have to have makeup,” Jones chuckled. Thankfully, it worked out and the correct pigs, sans makeup, clocked in on set.

For the most part, though, Jones saw her role on set as that of a motivator. “If people were starting to get tired, I’d go out and chivvy them up a bit. They’re away from home a long time — it’s nice to have somebody go in there with some nice sweets and say, ‘Come on, you’re doing marvellously.’ They were a brilliant crew and they worked incredibly hard in all weathers,” she shared. “So, I felt it was right that when they were going through difficult moments, it was important for someone to be out there and make sure they were happy, that they felt supported.”

And at the end of it all, there was an immense sense of satisfaction. “I’m proud of the achievement, really. It actually felt like we were in those battles sometimes,” Jones said. “One of the other things I’m really proud of is that sales of the novel have shot up after the series (aired).”

She added: “I think it was an opportunity for this generation to look at that material and interpret it for this generation. And I guess in 30 years’ time, the next generation may well look at it and go, ‘Well, actually, we can do it better, because we can do it for us.’”

Taking on the greats may require gumption, but a good storyteller’s themes will always resonate, whether you’re in Russia in 1805 or Singapore in 2016.

BBC First is available on StarHub TV Channel 522. Non-StarHub TV customers can catch BBC First through the Go Premium Pack on the online streaming service, StarHub Go.