Series Mania has unveiled the ten projects, including a Drama Republic produced punk-rock drama, that make up the shortlist for its inaugural Buyers Upfront.
The scheme, which was launched in September, will act as a prelude to the main Series Mania Forum and invites select global acquisition and commissioning execs to watch 12-minute first-look screenings from upcoming series.
Scroll down for full list of series
It takes place 24 March at the Chamber of Commerce (CCI) in Lille and sits alongside other strands of the Series Mania event including the Co-Pro Pitching Sessions, whose shortlist was unveiled last month.
Mediawan-owned Drama Republic is presenting Riot Women, which follows a group of women who come together to create a makeshift punk-rock band for a local talent contest, but soon discover that they have a lot to say.
Other titles include Icelandic thriller Fusion, which explores the actions of a talented chef - wrongly imprisoned for a crime - as he tries to fulfil his restaurateur dream; and December Films’ comedy detective series Puzzle Lady.
The Buyers Upfront has been described by Laurence Herszberg, founder and general director at Series Mania, as marking “a new chapter” for the Lille-based event, which runs its Forum strand from 25-27 March.
“From the outset, our goal with this new event has been to give unparalleled access to our buyers as well as help facilitate networking opportunities with the leading distributors behind these series,” she said.
The event will kick-off with the invitation-only Beta Brunch, followed by the series presentations. A Buyers Choice Award, selected by a six-person jury of key buyers, will then be presented during the Forum & Unifrance Welcome Drinks.
Francesco Capurro, director of Series Mania Forum, added: “This new event marks the beginning of a truly new chapter in the history of Series Mania Forum. From creation to international distribution, we are further solidifying our position as the must-attend event of the spring for the scripted community.”
The selected shows have been curated by the Series Mania Festival’s artistic team based on artistic merit and broad audience appeal.
Series Mania Buyers Upfront titles
Dangerous Truth (Ger)
Int’lsales: OneGate Media
Prod co: Eikon Media GmbH, Deal Productions
Synopsis: Alex Jaromin has been living with his mother under a false name in the BKA witness protection program in Athens for 20 years. When she dies, he finds out that the deaths of his father and his sister in 2003 were not, as he had assumed, the work of Serbian nationalists. In his search for the truth, he comes across evidence that his father was commissioned by the German government to bring a witness out of Baghdad.
Escaping Bolivia (Nor)
Int’lsales: REinvent International Sales
Prod co: Fenomen TV, 4 1/2 FILM
Synopsis: Ida, her girlfriend and sister-in-law are brutally arrested at the airport in Bolivia, accused of smuggling cocaine. The three women are sentenced to 13 years in one of the world’s poorest prisons. Ida quickly realizes that she is surrounded by lies and betrayal and that no one can be trusted. While waiting for help from Norwegian authorities, an unexpected source gives her a chance and a daring escape plan is set into action.
Fusion (Ice)
Int’l sales: The Mediapro Studio Distribution, Wild Sheep Content
Prod co: Act4
Synopsis: Talented chef Jónas, falsely imprisoned, tries to regain his family’s trust. Shunned by society, he accepts illicit funds to open a restaurant, leading him to money laundering. This jeopardizes his parole, life, and loved ones.
Puzzle Lady (UK)
Int’l sales: ZDF Studios
Prod co: December Films
Synopsis: When a strange murder takes place in the sleepy market town of Bakerbury, the local police are baffled by a crossword puzzle clue left on the body. Fortunately, the famous cruciverbalist Cora Felton, known as The Puzzle Lady, has just moved to town with her long-suffering niece, Sherry Carter.
Riot Women (UK)
Int’l sales: Mediawan Rights
Prod co: Drama Republic Limited
Synopsis: Five women who come together to create a makeshift punk-rock band in order to enter a local talent contest but soon discover that they have a lot to say - and this is their way to say it. As they juggle demanding jobs, grown-up children, complicated parents, husbands who’ve buggered off, and disastrous dates and relationships, the band becomes a catalyst for change in their lives.
S Line (S.Kor)
Int’l sales: Sidus
Prod co: Sidus
Synopsis: Hyun-heup sees the “S Line”, a red thread linking intimate partners, which she calls a curse. She isolates herself to avoid bringing misfortune. A murder rocks her neighborhood. sinister glasses revealing S-Lines are to blame. Her friend falls into a coma after using them, so she teams up with Detective Han Ji-wook. Despite their efforts, loved ones suffer, prompting them to realize the glasses’ creator is luring them into peril.
Shadow Leaks (Ger)
Int’l sales: Beta Film
Prod co: Dreamtool Entertainment for ARD Degeto Film, funk, and Hessischer Rundfunk, with funding from Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg.
Synopsis: It’s Nola’s first day at a new high school, her last year before graduation, and things already seem off. Linus, a student, recently passed. And during his memorial, everyone’s phones go off: A mysterious website, the “Shadow Page”, upends all their lives by exposing their most intimate secrets. The more traffic the site receives, the more sensitive content is leaked: chats, screenshots, explicit pictures, and videos. Even the most popular couple, jock Simon and the beautiful Patricia, are to be exposed! Nola isn’t exempt either – whoever is behind the page knows a dark secret she’s keeping and is blackmailing her… Together with Linus’ best friend Corvin, she tries to prevent the leak. But does Nola have to betray him to save herself? Who is behind the Shadow Page? And what does it all have to do with Linus’ death?
The Danish Woman (Ice)
Int’s sales: The Party Film Sales
Prod co: Slot Machine
Synopsis: When Ditte Jensen retires from the Danish Secret Service she moves into an apartment block in Reykjavik seeking a quiet life tending her garden. But Ditte cannot stop beinga warrior. And soon the apartment building becomes a battlefield for a better world. With her deep-rooted sense of justice she sees her neighbor’s problems and is compelled to help, whether they want her help or not. And in her world, the end justifies the means. Always.
The Deal (Switz-Fr-Lux-Bel)
Int’l sales: Gaumont
Prod co: Bande À Part Films, Les Films Pelleas, Gaumont Télévision, Bidibul Productions, Versus Production
Synopsis: 2015 – Switzerland hosts last-chance nuclear talks between the US and Iran, with Europe, Russia and China. Swiss diplomat Alexandra Weiss leads the mission, where rising tensions and delegates’ hidden agendas threaten fragile diplomacy. But when her former love Payam - a threatened Iranian engineer - appears, Alexandra finds herself crossing lines to protect him. The world’s peace is at risk, how far will she go?
War Of The Kingdoms (Ger)
Int’l sales: Fremantle
Prod co: Constantin Television
Synopsis: An epic medieval fantasy based on the original heroic legend The Song of the Nibelungs, the inspiration behind Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones.Bound by duty and loyalty to the kingdom, Hagen is a soldier and Lord Commander ready to serve and stand by his King. But he has a secret,he is deeply in love with Princess Kriemhild. A love that will never be permitted.
The six-person jury of key buyers previously announced last September, includes:
• Ghislain Barrois, director cinema, fiction, sales, rights acquisition and distribution, Mediaset Spain Communication Audiovisual Group (Spain)
• Marina Chiaravelle, head of TV rights acquisition, RAI Cinema, (Italy)
• Rubén Fernández Loa, head of series acquisitions, Movistar Plus+ (Spain)
• Julia Fidel, head of international fiction - acquisitions, ZDF (Germany)
• Katie Keenan, group director of acquisitions, UK/ROI & Europe, Sky
• Virginie Padilla, commissioning editor, Arte (France/Germany)
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