Dramas set in the worlds of Eurovision and the Vatican are among the projects selected for the Series Mania collaborative promotion sessions next month.
Among 16 European titles in six parts Eurovision Murder Mystery, from the French APC Stories and the German Friday Film. Plot details were scant, but the synopsis reads: “When you have 72 hours to solve a murder, save Eurovision and the fate of Europe.” Fabien Hirst and Bertrand Soulier write.
Vatican, from Italian company Fabula Pictures, follows a father investigating the suspicious death of his only son. He discovers that his child is involved in a prostitution ring within the church used by unscrupulous bishops to control Vatican policy. Flavio Bernard, Ciro di Masso and Marcello Olivieri are attached to write.
Fifteen of the 16 Series Mania titles were not previously announced for the event, which will take place on March 19 as part of the Series Mania forum. It included titles from Japan, Europe, Israel, Argentina and several co-productions. See the full list below.
Project sixteen Witness 36, from The Mediapro Studio and creator Daniel Burman, took his place by winning Series Mania at the Co-Pro Series event at the Berlinale Series Market in Germany earlier this week. will be submitted but will be excluded from competition for the grand prize.
Proposals will compete for the Best Project Award, which will provide €50,000 ($54,000) to help develop the winning series.
Nina Lederman, Executive Vice President of Global Programming, Development and Script at Sony Pictures Television, will chair the judging panel, which also includes Jennifer Ebel, Season 5 Executive Vice President of Sales and Acquisitions EMEA, Union Studios Co-General Manager Marco Schimmins, and Head of Drama at NRK’s Marianne Verevold-Boland and Starz VP of Program Acquisitions and Co-Productions Karen Marelli.
This year, the 15 projects were selected from 413 applications from 57 countries, including four new territories: Mexico, Cameroon, Panama and Chile.
“Since its inception in 2013, the aim of the forum’s co-promotion sessions has been to help high-end European and international drama projects find potential financial partners,” said Lawrence Herzberg, founder and general manager of Series Mania.
The Series Mania Forum has previously helped push series such as the Icelandic thriller Viaplay Stella BlomqvistWelsh drama Keep the faith and co-production with European Sky Devils In production.
“Given the illustrious list of titles that have started at the forum, we know for a fact that this works,” Herzberg said. “This year we have seen a significant increase in projects coming from South America, especially from Brazil and Mexico, and we have noticed the emergence of Asia as a new entrant, which is highlighted by the presence of two Japanese companies in this year’s selection.”
“This year we also received a number of stories inspired by real events and several projects based on strong IPs,” Herzberg added. While we saw a decline in dystopian themes in favor of more realistic projects and found that submissions favored traditional thrillers with an increasing number of dramas.
List of projects selected for Series Mania collaborative promotion sessions
Antilia – 6 x 52′ – France
Produced by Pierre-Emmanuel Florentin and Vincent Moloquet for Ego Productions
Written by Maxime Crupeau and Baptiste Fillon
Directed by Vincent Mile Cardona
Short summary: Hell and Heaven are on the same island.
True novel – 8 x 60′ – Japan and USA
Genre: Historical drama
Produced by Satoko Ishida and Merry Koyama for Shochiko and Jonathan Kerr and Matt Broadley for Upgrade Productions
Written by Reiko Sakaguchi
Synopsis: While investigating the life of reclusive Japanese industrialist Taro Azuma, the celebrated novelist begins to unravel a complex mystery of love and obsession that spans decades.
Eurovision Murder Mystery – 6 x 52′ – France, Germany
Genre: Murder mystery
Produced by Emmanuelle Gelbart and Agatha de Lorme for APC Stories and Henning Kamm and Johan Buchholz for Friday Film
Written by Fabien Hirst and Bertrand Soulier
Short Summary: When you have 72 hours to solve a murder, save EUROVISION and the fate of Europe.
Food, love and faith – 8 x 50′ – Israel
Genre: Drama
Produced by Efrat Shmaya Dror for United Studios IL
Written by Yossi Madamuni
Synopsis: An Orthodox Jewish mother smuggles her gay son from Jerusalem to London, to save him from being forced into an arranged marriage. In the big city, when he experiences freedom of choice, he becomes torn between his identity and everything he knew before he formed it.
Isak – 6 x 45′ – Japan, Germany
Genre: Historical drama
Produced by Eitaro Mizuno of Nippon TV and Lasse Scharpen of Studio Zentral
The story is written by Eitaro Mizuno and Richard Kropf, and is based on the manga “Issak” by Shinji Makari and DOUBLE-S, published by KODANSHA LTD.
Synopsis: 1620: In the chaos of the Thirty Years’ War, 11-year-old orphan Zita finds company with the mysterious Japanese samurai Isaac, who is fighting alongside the Protestants – and carries with him a dark secret…
Solomon’s rule – 6 x 45′ – Bulgaria
Genre: Mystery/Drama
Produced by: Katya Tereshkova for Contrast Films LTD and Mirrormind LTD
Written by Teodora Markova and Nevena Kertova
Synopsis: A 6-year-old Bulgarian girl begins to remember moments from her past life, which leads her family to meet a Swedish couple who lost their daughter.
Before my feet – 6 x 50′ – Finland, Netherlands
Genre: Drama
Produced by Aleksi Bardi for Helsinki Film Oy and Fleur Winters for Big Blue, Netherlands.
Written by Dan Gillis and Mark van de Grift
Synopsis: Max, a successful marketer, finds himself in a spiritual community in Finland, to help his brother Lukas. As he discovers the society’s secrets, Max and his girlfriend Daphne’s view of family changes radically.
Nanga Parbat – 6 x 52′ – France
Genre: Drama, Adventure
Produced by Amaury Ovise for Kazak Productions
Written by Karel Ferry
Short synopsis: Elizabeth Revol’s survival story, the “Killer Mountain” tragedy in Pakistan, and the daring rescue operation that reverberated around the world.
Magdalene art – 6 x 45′ – Poland, Ireland
Genre: Drama
Produced by Wiktor Piatkowski for Bahama Films and Jonathan Farrelly for PIO Media LTD
Written by Victor Piatkovsky
Short summary: A hardworking, religious immigrant tired of exploitation and humiliation. It is building an international art dealing empire based on the ignorance, superficiality, and greed of the wealthy. Its financial pyramid grows even faster when drug traffickers start using it to launder money.
Left hand of Venus – 6 x 45′ – Greece
Genre: Historical comedy
Produced by Ioannis Kostas, Development Producer Dimitra Parla for Arcadia Media
The film is written by Nikos Panayiotopoulos, and is based on the novel by Takis Theodoropoulos
Synopsis: When French naval officer Olivier Vauthier finds the love of his life in the face of the wife of the French consul on the island of Milos, his only hope of conquering her is to steal the statue of Venus that has just been discovered on the island before the others. The suitors hit on him.
Odessa wrestlers – 6 x 45′ – Norway
Genre: Drama
Produced by Kathryn Simonsen for Monster AS
Written by Joachim Førsund and Thorbjörn Haar
Short Synopsis: In a quaint rural town in Norway, two young, recently arrived Ukrainian refugees seize the opportunity to forge a brighter future as they meet a local sports icon – a world champion wrestler with a mission to form an unstoppable team of champions.
Thirst – 6 x 60′ – Canada
Genre: Thriller, science fiction
Produced by Julia Ferreira Langlois and Annie Sirois for Trio Orange
Written by Sylvain Nouvel
Short summary: What if Quebec’s greatest resource, water, had contaminated the entire region in less than a week. Thirst is the story of a woman haunted by death who chooses to fight to save humanity.
Our people – 6 x 55′ – Slovakia
Genre: Political drama
Produced by Jakob Viktorin and Thomas Hruby for nutprodukcia
Written by Miro Shivra
Directed by Tereza Nevotova
Short summary: The murder of a journalist changes the balance of power in Slovakia.
Vatican – 6 x 50′ – Italy
Genre: Drama, Suspense
Produced by Nicola De Angelis for Fabula Pictures
Written by Flavio Bernard, Ciro Di Masso and Marcello Olivieri
Synopsis: A father investigates the suspicious death of his only son only to discover that he is involved in a prostitution ring within the church used by unscrupulous bishops to control Vatican policy.
White ties – 6 x 45′ – Germany
Genre: Drama, based on true events
Produced by Laura Von Portatius for Wüste Film GmbH
Written by Uki Stilo and Uwi Vlad
Directed by Vivian Anderegen
Synopsis: While post-war Berlin is in utter chaos, teenage gangster Werner Glado declares himself to be the Al Capone of Berlin – and succeeds. Glau really existed. He is a true legend of Berlin, and this is his story.
The 16thy The project, which was announced on February 20 during the Co-Pro Series at the Berlinale:
Witness 36 – 8 x 45′ – Argentina
Genre: Spy thriller
Produced by Michael Nozick for Oficina Burman (Mediapro Studio)
Written by Natasha Caravia, Juan Matías Carballo, Daniel Burman
Directed by Daniel Boorman
Synopsis: A writer who specializes in creating fictional identities for an international witness protection program becomes embroiled in a love story with a mysterious man whose past resembles one of her creations.