Finalist: Secret DNA of Us for International Format Awards 2025

The International Format Awards celebrate the most innovative and popular formats from around the world. The finalists are selected by a judging panel of leading buyers, commissioners and producers from across the international television industry.

This showcase brings together this year’s finalists across all categories, highlighting the creativity, storytelling and global impact of the standout formats of 2025. This years winners will be announced at MIPCOM in Cannes on October 12th. The Secret DNA of Us has been entered into Best Reality Format 2025: The Secret DNA of Us | International Format Awards 2025 - Finalists Showcase | Screenings | C21Media

"In this ground-breaking, first-of-its-kind TV social experiment, host Marc Fennell and his team of experts - Brad Argent (genealogy) and Rae Johnston (science and history) are bringing mass DNA testing to a different Australian neighbourhood each week - inviting the community on a journey to discover their hidden collective DNA story. Individual DNA results reveal unknown family history and ethnicities. Mass DNA testing tells a gripping story of Australia’s past through revealing surprise ethnicity, untold history and new connections. In this series, we focus on how waves of migration have shaped our multicultural nation’s identity. This is the untold story of contemporary Australia told through cracking our collective DNA codes. Every episode, our host Marc Fennell and his team of experts - Brad Argent (genealogy) and Rae Johnston (history and science), will take over a different Australian town and uncover surprising history, unknown ethnicity, and new connections. The show will be told through two narrative strands - macro and micro. THE MACRO STORY OF THE TOWN This is our overarching, big picture story that explores the collective identity of the town. Marc will set out to either confirm or transform the community’s beliefs about who they think they are. STRAND 2
THREE MICRO STORIES We follow the personal journeys of three people in the town, with multi-layered revelations. We start with their DNA results and more reveals follow, which take our community members on a journey of discovery. These personal stories connect to the bigger macro story of the town. "