Exclusive: A long-running European thriller series is currently being filmed Collective (6 x 60′), which we can reveal will star Natasha McElhone (California), Celine Buckins (Review trial), Felix Mayer (Unconventional), Greg Sulkin (Marvel’s Runaways), Gregory Montiel (Call my agent), Karel Roden (A spy among friends), Cassiopeia Maenus (Clearstream case), Martha Kanja Antonio (Lupine(and Ralph Amuso)Transatlantic).
Produced by submarine (Apollo 10 ½) and created by Leonardo Fasoli (Gomorrah), Maddalena Ravagli (Gomorrah) and Submarine’s Femke Wolting, the series has been commissioned by the European alliance and will be distributed worldwide by A+E Media Group, with Hulu joining in for US distribution.
Inspired by the group of investigative journalists Bellingcat, the series will span Europe from Budapest and St. Petersburg in the east to London in the west. The film revolves around a group of brave young citizen journalists who, after a sudden tragedy, find themselves caught in a web of government lies and corruption. Through a dangerous international investigation, the group exposes the nefarious activities of rogue governments and discovers the human cost of keeping the truth alive.
The European alliance, which includes France Télévisions, Rai Fiction (Italy), ZDF (Germany) and Hulu (US), is preparing to launch the series in 2025. Videoland will premiere in the Netherlands.
The drama will be directed by master director and EP Assaf Bernstein (chaos(And Randa Shahoud)Deutschland 89). The writers are Fasoli and Ravagli, both of whom were major players in the successful Italian crime series Gomorrah.
Also on the creative team is writer and co-creator Ed Hemming, DOP Commander Robrecht Heyvaert (Boys are bad for life), Lennert Heilig (The forgotten battle(and designer Alexei Tilevich)Ant-Man and the Wasp).
The series is produced by Submarine’s Femke Wolting. For A+E Media Group, executive producers are Patrick Finn, Alexandra Finley and Hannah Dal Pozo. For Rai Fiction (Italy), the executive producers are Andriana Saint Amour and Andrea Oza. For ZDF, executive producers are Frank Seiberth and Laura Mae Harding. For France Television, the executive producers are Manuel Aldoy, Mourad Koufan and Pascal Deschamps. The series is financially supported by Creative Europe, Eurimages and the Netherlands Film Fund.
Femke Wolting, EP at The Kollective and co-CEO of Submarine, said: “We created this series to highlight the courage of individuals who will do whatever they can to protect each other and the community around them, even in a time of political turmoil. With a great creative team and a cast to match, this series is exciting, entertaining, and drives important conversations in equal measure.
Leonardo Fasoli, creator and writer, added: “We love investigating what is happening in the world around us and tackling difficult questions through our work. We feel that the fight for truth against fake news is the fight of our time, it is a fight for millennials.
Since 2018, the European Alliance has co-produced ten series, incl 80 days around the world leonardo And The swarm.