HBO, Walter Presents, key Nordic players take centre stage at TV Drama Vision

Unveiled this morning by Cia Edström , head of industry and industry producer Josef Kullengård, the full programme of Göteborg’s TV Drama Vision (February 3-4) is poised to engage and inspire drama professionals at a time when the industry is faced with unprecedented challenges.

The effects of the pandemic on the production sector, its role as accelerator of a transforming industry under the streaming war’s influence, the significance of the European drama industry in the coming years, but also what stories do audiences embrace are some of the topics that will be debated by Walter Presents’ founder Walter Iuzzolino and media analyst Johanna Koljonen.

The drama specialists’ talking points, live streamed to the accredited delegates, will also be included in Koljonen’s Nostradamus report entitled ‘European Vision: Transforming Storytelling Together’.

As always, a favoured platform for key Nordic commissioners unveiling their strategies and upcoming drama slate, this year’s Nordic decision-makers invited at a round table include TV2 Denmark’s Katrine Vogelsang, TV4/C More’s Josefine Tengblad and Piodor Gustafsson, DR’s Christian Rank, NRK’s Ivar Køhn, NENT Group’s Fillippa Wallestam, and Camilla Rydbacken, SVT’s Anna Croneman, and Yle’s Jarmo Lampela. The session will be moderated by Marike Muselaers, long-time Nordic drama buyer and CEO at Lumiere Group, Nordic drama.

HBO Nordic’s recently appointed Commissioning Editor and VP Original Programming Christian Wikander and Antony Root, HBO Europe’s Exec VP, Original Programming & Production will also outline the strategy of WarnerMedia ‘s flagship brand in the Nordics and in Europe, as HBO Max prepares to roll out in the region.

Meanwhile two seasoned Danish professionals -Thomas Gammeltoft - former head of the Copenhagen Film Fund, and screenwriter Kim Fupz Aakeson - nominated for Best Nordic script with HBO’s Welcome to Utmark, will launch the new production and distribution company True Content Entertainment.

In terms of exciting upcoming series from the Nordics and Europe, the Icelandic premium drama Blackport (Verbudin) backed by Nordisk Film & TV Fond will be highlighted as work in progress. The suspense drama set against the backdrop of Iceland’s fishing quotas is produced by Vesturport for RÚV.

The event series from actors and co-creators Björn Hlynur Haraldsson (Fortitude), Gísli Örn Gardarsson (Ragnarok, Vultures) and Nína Dögg Filippusdóttir (The Valhalla Murders) is set to premiere on Iceland’s public broadcaster in the coming months.

Iceland’s talent collective and production outfit Vesturport is also behind one of the three series in development unveiled today.

Two of them are biopics about leading female political figures in the Nordics.

• The biopic Vigdís tells the remarkable transformation story of how a young Icelandic woman named Vigdís Finnbogadóttir defied the patriarchal society, overcame adversities and eventually shattered the glass ceiling and made history by being elected the world’s first female president in 1980. Nina Dögg Filippusdóttir will play the coveted role of Iceland’s influential politician and role model for several generations of Icelandic women.
  
  The four-part series directed by Baldvin Z (Case, Life in a Fishbowl), is produced by his company Glassriver with Vesturport in collaboration with RÚV. Vesturport producer Agusta Olafsdóttir serves as co-writer, together with Bjorg Magnusdóttir (The Minister), and Jana Maria Gudmundsdóttir. Besides Olafsdóttir, producers are Hordur Rúnarsson, Rakel Gardarsdóttir (who came up with the idea) and Arnbjorg Haflidadóttir.
  Vesturport and Glassriver will unveil a trailer and look for potential co-financiers and co-producers.

• NRK biopic Power Play will portray Norway’s former Prime Minister and Labour Party leader Gro Harlem Brundtland. The 2 times 8x60’ TV drama will follow the internal power struggle in the Norwegian Labour Party in the late 70s, as Brundtland navigates her path to become Labour leader and eventually Norway’s first female Prime Minister.
  
  The series is created by Home Ground’s Johan Fasting with actors Silje Storstein (Witch Hunt, Young & Promising) and Kristin Grue (Beforeigners, The Machinery) who came up with the idea. Director Yngve Sve Flikke (Home Ground, Ninjababy) is concept director. The project is produced by Motlys’ Kathrine Hagen and November Film’s Camilla Brusdal for NRK.

• 506 Grams of Ural Snow is a Finnish crime drama produced by Aito & Haapasalo Entertainment and Aito Media Group for Yle. The screenplay is written by Topi Koljonen. Returning to work after his son’s disappearance in Russia, Finnish police inspector Marttinen arrests the Russian drug lord Andrey in Helsinki.

Two European TV dramas will also be introduced:

• Who Shot Otto Mueller (Estonia), about power, money and abuse. When a legendary businessman gets shot on his 65th birthday, detectives interrogate 8 suspects, who tell their own versions of the story. The series produced by Cuba Film is presented in collaboration with TV Beats Tallinn, Black Nights Film Festival.
• The Abyss (Croatia), a crime drama in which a female detective investigates gruesome ritualistic murders of powerful men. The series produced by Nukleus Film is presented in collaboration with Cinelink, Sarajevo Film Festival.
  
  

Another major highpoint at TV Drama Vision will also be the awards ceremony of the 5^th Nordisk Film & TV Fond Prize, celebrating the best screenplay in the Nordic region.

This year’s nominees are Maja Jul Larsen for Denmark’s Cry Wolf (DR), Matti Kinnunen for Finland’s Cargo (Yle), Jóhann Ævar Grímsson for Iceland’s Sisterhood (Síminn, Viaplay), Kim Fupz Aakeson for Norway’s Welcome to Utmark (HBO) and Cilla Jackert for Sweden’s Thin Blue Line (SVT). The prize will be handed out on February 3^rd. See full details on all nominees and their series: CLICK HERE.

The first part of TV Drama Vision was unveiled last week - see story here.

TV Drama Vision is a sidebar to the Göteborg Film Festival (January 29-February 8) and a preamble to the Nordic Film Market (February 4-7). For further information, check: www.goteborgfilmfestival.se