Fire Monkey’s Seconds, Deception set the tone for REInvent’s genre-driven MIPCOM slate

After their partnership on Enemy of the People, REinvent and Finland’s TV production powerhouse Fire Monkey are introducing to global buyers two high end series at MIPCOM.

Now in post-production with a delivery date in 2024, the Fire Monkey’s suspense thriller Seconds is being unveiled for the first time at the market with a promo-reel.

“Germany’s NDR has boarded the Yle series as co-producer. It is a very high-quality series with strong international potential,” REinvent sales and marketing director Helene Aurø tells us.

Co-created by Laura Suhonen with Fire Monkey’s co-founders, producer Roope Lehtinen and writer Mikko Pöllä, the 6x50’ series follows accident investigator Marita Kaila, responsible with her team of experts, of uncovering the causes of a spectacular train accident and explosion that claims the lives of 60 people.

In the title roles are Leena Pöysti (Roba, Deadwind), Mikko Kauppila (Man in Room 301), Meri Nenonen (Dance Brothers) and Juho Milonoff (Border). Enemy of the People’s Mikko Kuparinen directs.

“We believe that we were able to create a super impressive series both emotionally and visually, and being a YLE/NDR co-production and part of the N12 [Nordic 12] initiative helped us both in script development and production to achieve the goals we set for this series,” Pöllä told us.

“We wanted the show to be big scale enough to make it visually impactful and to create interesting story layers. However, the core of Seconds is the emotional journey of our main characters who are trying to make sense in a world that seems to make no sense at all.”

Currently in postproduction, the show which received backing from Nordisk Film & TV Fond will premiere on YLE next year. A second season is in development.

Fire Monkey’s other upcoming series Deception (Kerma) reuniting Kuparinen with creator Pöllä is set in a jet-set environment. The 8x42’ crime drama ordered by MTV/C more centres on the young underprivileged Riku who infiltrates a group of the young Finnish elite. His initial plan to rob them in order to settle a debt with the local drug-lord doesn’t go according to plan when he falls for the heiress Linda. Headlining the show are Daniel Virtanen and Mariette Tikkanen.

“We’re thrilled to be able to show all episodes to our buyers ahead of its premiere in Finland next year,” said Aurø.

Two other MTV series are being pitched at MIPCOM: the crime series Freezing Embrace-Building 31 from Solar Films, scheduled to premiere in January 2024, and the psycho thriller The Girl Who Disappeared (Nainen Joka Katosi) created by Simo Halinen (Open Up to Me) for Reel Media and MTV, currently in production.

Also making its debut is the much-anticipated Danish thriller Oxen created by the Emmy-winning writing duo Mai Brostrøm and Peter Thorsboe for SF Studios. The premiere on TV2 Play in Denmark is set for October 22.

Rounding off the REinvent slate are two female-driven Norwegian shows from genre specialists Shuuto Arctic (Outlier). The crime Fatal Crossing based on a bestselling novel by Lone Theils will be delivered later this year to Altibox in Norway and DR in Denmark, and the family drama LIV starring Jesper Malm (Ragnarok) and Charlotte Grundt (22 July).

A few days before the opening of MIPCOM, Aurø said the market for scripted shows has definitely slowed down with streamers either pulling out of the market or revising their strategies. “But we have a packed agenda and are confident we will announce new sales in a few days,” she said.