Jenny Stjernströmer Björk heads restructured Netflix Nordic Content

Stjernströmer Björk who joined the US streamer a year ago as Director of Nordic Original Series, has been promoted to Vice President Nordic Content, based at Netflix’s main Nordic hub in Stockholm.

Reporting directly to her are Håkon Briseid, named Director of Nordic Original Series, and Annika Sucksdorff, head of the Nordic Original Film department.

Briseid was recruited from Norway’s powerhouse Monster ten months ago where he held senior positions in the scripted department for over a decade, executive producing premium series such as Furia, Pørni, and The Girl from Oslo.

Sucksdorff for her part moved to Netflix in the spring from SF Studios where she worked as Head of Film Production Sweden. Her most recent production was Björn Runge’s Burn All My Letters. Reporting to Sucksdorff is Claire Willats, Director of Film, Netflix Nordics.

Asked if the consolidation of Netflix’s content under one roof would involve job cuts, Stockholm-based communication manager Malin Cumzelius said: “this change doesn't affect any members of the Nordic content team.”

Since 2012, Netflix has been aggressively commissioning Nordic content, and up to 70 original Nordic titles were available on the US streaming platform by late 2021.

The most recent Nordic hits include Loving Adults, the first Danish language Netflix film starring Dar Salim and Sonja Richter. The SF Studios production is currently number 8 in the Netflix top 10 non-English films, after 7 weeks, with 1,790,000 hours viewed globally.

Meanwhile Yellow Bird UK’s limited series The Playlist ranked number 7, week October 17-23, hitting 10.9 million hours viewed since its October 13 global launch.

Next up among the most anticipated Netflix Original series from the Nordics is the Swedish teen drama Young Royals season 2, about Prince Wilhelm (Edvin Ryding) and his classmates from the privileged Hilleska boarding school. The Nexiko production is premiering globally on Netflix November 1.

Although Danish scripted orders have been halted this year due to a dispute with local creative unions, activity in the rest of the Nordics is as dynamic as ever.

Upcoming Swedish productions include:

• A Nearly Normal Family, limited drama thriller co-written by Anna Platt (The Congregation, The Truth Will Out) and Hans Jörnlind (Top Dog, The Truth will out) from Mattias Edvardsson’s best-selling novel. Toplining the Jarowskij show directed by Per Hanefjord (Hamilton) are newcomer Alexandra Karlsson Tyrefors - as the young Stella, accused of murder, and seasoned actors Lo Kauppi (Modus) and Björn Bentsson (The Last Kingdom) who play her parents.
• Untitled comedy from award-winning Lisa Aschan (She Monkeys, Call Mom!) produced by Meta Film Sweden. Filming has just started in Stockholm on the heart-warming story about forgiveness, family, and sisterhood, penned by Danish seasoned screenwriter Marie Østerbye (Deliver Us, Rita). In the title roles are Charlotta Björck, Sanna Sundqvist, Amael Blomgren, Ia Langhammer, Juan Rodriguez and Ville Virtanen.

Coming from Norway are two titles produced by Global Ensemble, founded by Netflix regular contributor, writer/director Per-Olav Sørensen (The Playlist, Quicksand, Home for Christmas).

• About a Storm for Christmas (6x30’), series directed and co-written by Sørensen with Lars Saabye Christensen and Jan Trygve Røyneland. The story of a group of people stranded at Oslo airport, 24h before Christmas headlines Alexandra Rapaport, Ida Elise Broch, Jon Øigarden, Valter Skarsgård, Hanna Ardéhn, Ghita Nørby, Carmen Gloria Pérez, among others. The premiere is scheduled for December 16, 2022.
• Royal Teen: Princess Margrethe, YA film based on the book ‘Royalteen Prince Charming’ written by Randi Fuglehaug and Anne Gunn Halvorsen. Sørensen serves as exec producer and co-writer with Ester Schartum-Hansen and Marta Huglen Revheim. Ingvild Søderlind is directing. No premiere date on Netflix has yet been set.

According to media analyst Mediavision, Netflix is the biggest streamer in the Nordics, with over 4 million subscribers out of 223.1 million global paying customers. The US streamer which added 2.41 million subscribers Q3, is due to launch its AVOD service in November in 12 territories, but no date has yet been set for the Nordic region.