WRITTEN BY: Annika Pham
Among the six event-series unveiled by the Swedish public broadcaster are also The Pirate Bay inspired by the Pirate BitTorrent true story, set to start filming this fall for B-Reel Films.
Under the aegis of Head of Drama Anna Croneman, SVT has upped its bets within its two-editorial strands - event series, meant to create a sense of community, and thought-provoking and engaging shows, such as the hit realistic cop series Thin Blue Line (see our separate exclusive interview with Anna Croneman).
Among the new thought-provoking Swedish shows that have triggered interest from major international distributors are Taelgia, picked up by Paris-based Wild Bunch Television, and The Pirate Bay, snapped by L.A. based Dynamic Television.
- Taelgia (6x60’) is created and directed by Jens Östberg (The Gambling Scandal, Blowfly Park) who also serves as head-writer. The Bridge’s Filmlance International (part of Banijay Group) is producing alongside Garagefilm International, in co-production with Film Stockholm, in association with Viaplay, and support from Nordisk Film & TV Fond.
In the Swedish town of Södertälje, families, police and criminals are caught in a crossfire of loyalties, demands and guilt. Meanwhile, some young people are trying to find a way to a better life. Surrounding the adult criminals are the younger ones, the runners. They sell drugs and rig getaway mopeds, until one day they are forced to take on more dangerous missions with a mixture of fear and pride. This is their story. It is also the story of their families: wondering siblings and desperate parents struggling to keep their children on the straight and narrow road.
In some of the title roles are Jonay Pineda Skallak, Guldbagge best supporting actor for Netflix’s filmVinterviken (JJ+E) and Sara Shirpey, cast in the romcom series Out of Touch, competing at this week’s Canneseries.
The premiere on SVT Play and SVT1 is slated for September 2023.
- The Pirate Bay (6x45’) is penned by head-writer Piotr Marcinak and episodic writer Patrik Gyllström, with I am Zlatan’s Jens Sjögren serving as director. Fredrik Heinig and Frida Bargo are producing for BR.F (B-Reel Films), in co-production with SVT, Film Stockholm, co-financing from the Nordic public broadcasters DR, NRK, Yle, RÚV, and Creative Europe Media.
As announced earlier - see our story: SVT orders The Pirate Bay series to BR.F the series is based on the incredible true story of the notorious pirate BitTorrent site and its co-founders Fredrik Neij, Peter Sunde and Gottfrid Swartholm.
“The Pirate Bay is an exciting story of three genius young men who opened Pandora’s box,” said Annika Schmidt, Head of German Originals and European Co-productions for Dynamic Television, for whom the Pirate Bay founders literally “sparked a global digital and political revolution with an impact still felt today, while putting their own lives at risk in unexpected and thrilling ways.”
For Croneman, the show can be seen as “the starting point for the shift between the analogue world of entertainment to the streaming world of today. One can argue that it started on ideological grounds for a free internet, or that it happened because the technology was now suddenly there,” she added. The Pirate Bay is due to premiere late 2024.
Two other forthcoming SVT shows unveiled earlier are family dramedies directed by female auteur filmmakers, both backed by Nordisk Film & TV Fond.
- Keep it Together/Hålla samman (8x30’) is penned by head-writer Erik Ahrnbom (The Bridge, Thin Blue Line) for Anagram Sweden - see our story: The Yellow Affair boards SVT’s dramedy Keep it Together.
Maria Blom (Dalecarlians) serves as concept director. The heart-warming series starring Michaela Thorsén, Lennart Jähkel and Ulrika Nilsson, tackles different aspects of family life - from the daily situations to the life-altering ones. It’s about how you take on life with humour and lightness and hold on to the good times, despite hardships. The show set to premiere this fall on SVT, is sold internationally by The Yellow Affair.
- Painkiller (6x30’) is the series debut of the multi-awarded filmmaker Gabriela Pichler (Eat, Sleep Die). As announced earlier, (click here) the limited series stars Dodona Imeri and newcomer Snežana Spasenoska as a mother and her daughter who try, in their own ways, to make life better for one another but keep failing.
The series produced by Anna-Maria Kantarius for Garagefilm in co-production with SVT and Film i Väst, is due to premiere in the spring 2024. REinvent handles sales.
Meanwhile the Swedish pubcaster has now greenlit Thin Blue Line Season 3, created by head-writer Cilla Jackert. The Swedish viewers will get a chance to reconnect with Malmö police officers Magnus (Oskar Töringe), Sara (Amanda Jansson), Jesse (Per Lasson) and their colleagues, fighting against drug traffickers.
Anagram Sweden is producing the six-part series, in co-production with Finland’s Helsinki filmi, SVT and Film i Skåne, in association with RÚV, NRK, DR and Yle. ITV Studios handles global sales. The premiere on SVT is set for the fall 2024.
Finally in a new strategic move, SVT is co-producing alongside Anagram Sweden, the Spanish drama comedy This is Not Sweden (8x40’) created by Aina Clotet and Sergi Cameron. The show follows a family, as they move out of Barcelona to a mountain nearby, to taste a more natural and authentic lifestyle. However, when a tragic event shakes their new neighbourhood, shattering their dreams, the parents’ convictions begin to unravel, and they get dangerously close to the very thing they were trying to escape.
The series which won the Conecta Fiction Best Pitch Award in Göteborg, is produced by Spain’s Nanouk Films and Funiculal Films for RTVE, TV3, SVT, NDR and Yle.
The premiere is set for 2024.
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