Tele Munchen Group pacts with NICE FLX for Centenarian

The Tele Munchen Group will handle German-speaking territories distribution of the forthcoming movie The Centenarian Who Climbed Out the Window and Vanished.

The film is adapted by Jonas Jonasson’s bestselling novel that has been a global hit and will soon be published in the UK and US.

NICE FLX Pictures — a joint venture between the Swedish producers NICE Drama and FLX2.0 — will start shooting the project in Sweden and Eastern Europe in the third quarter of this year. The Swedish premiere is already set for Christmas 2013.

Herbert Kloiber, owner and managing director of TMG, said: “We are looking forward to working with our Swedish partners on the adaptation of this brilliant novel.” (The book has already sold half a million copies in Germany.)

Patrick Nebout, managing director and executive producer of NICE Drama, added: “The German sales of the book are amazing. It’s the first non-crime Swedish novel to have generated such huge international interest. The story is universal and its very special tone clearly appeals to audiences everywhere.”

The story follows a man who celebrates his 100th birthday with a road trip around Sweden, also journeying into the history of the 20th century.

NICE FLX acquired the worldwide film adaptation rights to The Centenarian in 2011, beating off competition from other Nordic and US companies.

Felix Herngren [pictured] (TV’s The Sunny Side) will direct. He also produces alongside Henrik Jansson-Schweizer and Patrick Nebout.

Joni Sighvatsson (Killer Elite) will executive produce.

distribution in the theatrical, video, broadcasting and merchandising sectors. In addition, TMG is a shareholder in Germany’s nationwide free-TV stations Tele 5 and RTL II, as well as in ATV and ATV 2 in Austria. TMG continues to strengthen its market position through partnerships with other companies, such as the CinemaxX AG exhibition chain, the post-production service-provider CineMedia Film AG, Odeon Film AG and On Demand Deutschland.