Did you switch off the news flow this summer? Here are selected Nordic news and events that happened while the Fund’s office was closed.

During the summer weeks, the Nordic film and TV industry traditionally eases up on the accelerator. Nevertheless, SF Studios and Warner Bros Discovery found time to sign a content partnership agreement that allows Warner Bros Discovery’s Max the first Nordic streaming of SF Studios’ local and international distribution titles following the cinema window, and offering them as purchase and rental films. The new agreement is also intended to encourage SF Studios to invest additionally in Nordic productions. According to SF Studios, which offered no further information, the collaboration will expand SF Studios’ licencing and distribution business in the Nordics and offer a stronger line-up of Nordic and international films to consumers in the Nordic marketplace.

In June, SVT, TV4, and other major players demanded emergency surgery on the Swedish production incentives program. The Swedish industry suggested that the government support scheme for production receive an urgent update because it is both outdated and insufficient.

No summer holiday for troubled Viaplay Group, which announced that there is work to be done before delivering profitability, according to the company's Q2 financial statements. In a conference call, President and CEO Jørgen Madsen Lindemann expressed precious little interest in scripted projects, as the streamer is focused on premier sports rights and stronger action against account sharing to reach profitability. Viaplay will primarily commission shows in the entertainment genre, such as new seasons of Paradise Hotel Sweden (Paradise Hotel Sverige), Charter Fever(Charterfeber), Norway, and reality classic Expedition Robinson (Robinson Expeditionen), Denmark. Even so, the slate includes Norwegian original crime series Wisting and Swedish crime soap The Beach Hotel (Strandhotellet).

Despite a TV industry in slow recovery after a significant drop in production during 2022-23, smaller companies remain under pressure, such as Swedish production companies Storyfire and We Dare, which filed for bankruptcy in June. We Dare cited financial struggles caused by the industry slowdown in the Nordics and beyond.

Some industry profiles made the news during the lazy summer weeks.

One key appointment was Johanna Gårdare as the new head of drama at SVT, replacing Anna Croneman. Industry veteran Croneman was appointed CEO of the Swedish Film Institute in February. Gårdare’s responsibilities will cover scripted TV and investment in Swedish feature films, as well as leading the strategic and creative development of SVT’s drama output.

This week, August 12, the new director of the Danish Producers' Association, Anna Porse Nielsen, takes the position by replacing Jørgen Ramskov, who has headed the association since 2019. Nielsen’s goal is that the film/TV industry will recapture the dynamics and output of the “golden years” while navigating new technology, legal intricacies - and politics. To read more: CLICK HERE.

Film producer John M. Jacobsen was invited as a member of Hollywood's most exclusive club: The Academy. Jacobsen has contributed to Norwegian film for decades including The Wizard (1987), Max Manus (2008), and Børning (2014).

CEO at Monday Media Norway, Stine Greaker, stepped down to become head of the Norwegian Film, TV & Gaming School. There are no words on her replacement.

Former CEO Anders Jensen, who left Viaplay a year ago, suddenly found himself back in the news. The new board at Viaplay was pushed by shareholders to pursue damages against the embattled Scandinavian streamer’s former CEO over the financial collapse of the company in 2023.

Leading up to the holidays, Viaplay surprisingly welcomed back Morten Mogensen in a new position as SVP Content & Programming Director, Viaplay Denmark. SVP of content Kenneth Kristensen and head of content Karsten Bartholin departed the company after nine and ten years, respectively.

The unique Nordic interview format Famous Last Words (Det sidste ord) was acquired by Netflix US, while Viaplay Sweden retains its rights. The extraordinary Danish TV format created by TV 2 in 2020 features in-depth interviews with older major political or cultural personalities who are aware that the interviews will be broadcast after they pass away.

SVT and SF Studios are remaking a timeless Swedish classic, Life on Seacrow Island (Vi på Saltkråkan). In June, SF Studios, and SVT in collaboration with Germany’s Beta Film Kids & Family, started filming a new adaptation of Astrid Lindgren’s 1964 series.

There was a lot of camera action in Iceland. Cameras rolled on two new Icelandic shows. Icelandic New Media Inc and Germany’s NDF started filming crime-thriller Reykjavik 112 in the Icelandic capital, while Vigdís, from Vesturport, entered postproduction. The four-part series tells the true story of Vigdís Finnbogadóttir, Iceland’s former president and the world’s first woman democratically elected head of state.

There was plenty of good news during the summer from the festival scene. Several Nordisk Film & TV Fond supported projects will premiere or appear at the Toronto Film Festival. Such as The Swedish Torpedo (Den svenska torpeden) and The End, The Girl with the Needle (Pigen med nålen), and Quisling - The Final Days (Quislings siste dager).

Other Nordic projects at Toronto include Fuck Me, The Quiet Ones (De lydløse), and Faithless (Trolösa), the series adaptation of Ingmar Bergman’s Faithless from Swedish filmmaker Tomas Alfredson, which will debut in competition in Toronto as part of the Primetime & Short Cuts line-up.

Another production supported by the Fund is Dag Johan Haugerud's Love, which competes in Venice. Also in Venice is the restored version of Pusher, and the short Beauty is Not a Sin. Göran Hugo Olsson's new feature documentary Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989 (Israel och Palestina på svensk TV 1958-1989) will also premiere at the Venice Film Festival.

In July, Jakob Rørvik’s Dates in Real Life received an award in both the best series category and the youth jury's award for best series at the Valencia International Film Festival Cinema Jove. Thomas Vinterberg's series Families Like Ours (Familier som vores) appears in Venice, Toronto, and at the London Film Festival.

The San Sebastian Film Festival announced that the apocalyptic musical, The End, will be the only Nordic co-production at the September event. Another news item this summer was Icelandic When the Light Breaks (Ljósbrot), which just recently picked up three awards at festivals, making it a total of four awards to date.

Unlike the Nordic industry, the international TV business fires on all cylinders even during the lazy summer weeks.

Just last week, Warner Bros Discovery posted a mammoth US$10.2bn operating loss in the second quarter, reporting a US$9.1bn write-down on the value of its linear TV networks. The write-down essentially means the valuation of its pay TV network business in the US has fallen by US$9.1bn since the company formed in April 2022.

Other recent events include Disney increasing prices across its entire streaming portfolio later this year, marking the second price hike for some of its services in a year. On 17 October, Disney+ (with ads) will increase from $7.99 to $9.99, whilst Disney+ (ad-free) will increase from $13.99 to $15.99.

Netflix added 8.05 mill. subscribers in the second quarter of 2024, taking its total global subscriber base to 277 million. Uptake of Netflix’s ad-tier increased 34% quarter-on-quarter, accounting for 45% of all sign-ups in its ad-markets.

Netflix’s success with an ad-based offer embodies at least one prevailing industry trend gaining momentum through the summer, notably the rise of Free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST TV), which is popular as consumers look for alternatives to subscription-based services.

Streaming services moving towards advertising income is a key trend as we enter autumn 2024, according to Swedish analysts Mediavision.

"This affects industry structure, actors, money, and content. In short, this 'shift' affects our industry," Maria Nilsson, Mediavision, told Dagens Media.

Sources: Ampere Analytics, C21Media, Variety, Dagens Media, Icelandic Film Centre, Norwegian Film Institute, Swedish Film Insitute, Danish Film Institute, Finnish Film Foundation