A TV 2 DENMARK & CANAL+ CREATION ORIGINALE IN CO-PRODUCTION WITH CANAL+ POLAND, M7 AND ARD DEGETO
STARRING NIKOLAJ LIE KAAS, PAPRIKA STEEN, HELENE REINGAARD NEUMANN, MAGNUS MILLANG, ESBEN SMED, AMARYLLIS APRIL AUGUST, ALBERT RUDBEK LINDHARDT, THOMAS BO LARSEN, ASTA AUGUST & DAVID DENCIK
London, Paris, Denmark – Monday 3 October 2022 – 8.00am (Los Angeles). STUDIOCANAL and Zentropa today announce that principal photography has commenced on FAMILIES LIKE OURS, the first TV drama series by Academy-Award and BAFTA winning Thomas Vinterberg(Another Round, The Hunt) shooting on location inCopenhagen, Sweden, The Czech Republic, France and Romania.
This TV 2 Denmark and CANAL+ Creation Originale is written by Thomas Vinterberg and Bo Hr. Hansen(Darkness: Those Who Kill) FAMILIES LIKE OURS reunites Vinterberg and Zentropa with STUDIOCANAL who distributed the Academy-Award and BAFTA winning feature film ANOTHER ROUND in the UK.
STUDIOCANAL is co-producer and distributor of the 6-part series which boasts a stellar cast in multi award-winning Nikolaj Lie Kaas (Brothers, Open Hearts, The Killing, The Idiots, Riders of Justice)Paprika Steen (Festen, Open Hearts, The First Lady), Helene Reingaard Neumann (Another Round, Kursk, Borgen), Magnus Millang (Another Round, Kursk, The Commune), Esben Smed (Follow The Money, Held for Ransom, The Kindness of Strangers), Amaryllis April August in her acting debut, Albert Rudbek Lindhardt (Another Round, Riders of Justice) (Follow The Money, Held for Ransom, The Kindness of Strangers), Thomas Bo Larsen (Another Round, The Hunt, Festen), Asta August (Burn All My Letters, The Pact, A Song for Martin) & David Dencik (No Time To Die, Chernobyl, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo).
Zentropa Entertainments and TV 2 DENMARK developed the series with support from the Danish Film Institute’s Public Service Fund and The Creative Europe MEDIA programme of the European Union, STUDIOCANAL is co-producer. CANAL+ immediately commissioned the series at script stage in France as a CANAL+ CREATION ORIGINALE.
FAMILIES LIKE OURS is produced by Zentropa Entertainments in co-production with STUDIOCANAL & TV 2 DENMARK and with NRK and TV4 / C MORE co-produced by Zentropa Sweden, Film i Väst, Sirena Film and Ginger Pictures, co-funded by the Danish Film Institute’s Public Service Fund, The European Union and Nordisk Film & TV Fond and in co-production with CANAL+ Poland, M7 and ARD Degeto.
STUDIOCANAL is actively producing a slate of premium international TV series in-house, as well as through its network of award-winning subsidiary production companies.
STUDIOCANAL’s EVP Global Production Ron Halpern and Executive Managing Director TV Francoise Guyonnet comment: “We are incredibly proud to collaborate with Thomas Vinterberg on his first series. The scripts from Vinterberg and Bo Hr. Hansen approach this important story with such empathy, talent and vision while dealing with themes that will resonate significantly with audiences worldwide. It is inspiring to see such ambition realized as we look ahead to production with our partners and a cast which boasts a wealth of magnificent European talent.”
Head of CANAL+ Creation Originale, Olivier Bibas adds: “It is a great honour for CANAL+ Creation Originale to partner with Zentropa and Thomas Vinterberg for his first TV series. FAMILIES LIKE OURS tackles ecological issues in a profound, intimate and spectacular way. The series is a tale about tomorrow’s world told in a humane and sensible way, embodied with a stellar cast.”
Producers Sisse Graum Jørgensen and Kasper Dissing expand: “Thomas Vinterberg’s new series, Families Like Ours, is in many ways an ambitious project that is close to our hearts. It is the story of what happens, when a country ceases to exist as a nation and its people is forced to leave behind all that they know and love. Flung into a world of uncertainty without a safety net. But it is also a tale of hope and of families starting over in new, foreign countries. Thanks to our esteemed partners at Studiocanal, Canal+, TV 2, Zentropa Sweden, Film i Väst, Sirena Film, NRK and TV 4 / C More and with support from the Danish Film Insitiute’ Public Service Fund the series is now becoming a reality. Thomas Vinterberg and Bo Hr. Hansen delivered six magnificent, dramatic, and moving scripts and we can all look forward to seeing them redeemed on screen by our star-studded cast.”
FAMILIES LIKE OURS takes place in summertime Denmark where everything seems normal but is about to be disrupted. After a flood slowly takes over the land, the country is gradually evacuated. People must bid farewell to what they love, what they know, and to who they are. In the coming years, people disperse in all directions: only houses, schools and empty streets are left.
Those who can afford it travel to good countries, while those who are less well-off have to use a government-funded program to move to more challenging places. Families, friends and loved ones will be separated; hatred and division will arise among some, while love and reconciliation will grow among others. In a flash, all property is worthless, all fortunes changed, and luck favors only a few of the traveling population.
Laura is a high school student in love for the first time and on the brink of graduating, when news of the evacuation breaks. A reality that will change the course of her and her families’ lives forever.
STUDIOCANAL’s EVP Global Sales and Distribution Anne Cherel will oversee worldwide sales; all rights available excluding France, Benelux and Scandinavia which will be handled by TrustNordisk, Germany and CEE.
STUDIOCANAL produces its series directly (such as Paddington which won two Daytime Emmy Awards) and through its network of award-winning European production companies, including STUDIOCANAL SERIES GmbH (Shadowplay) and LAILAPS FILMS (Shadows of the Past) in Germany, the UK’s RED Production Company (Stay Close, It’s a Sin, Years and Years) and URBAN MYTH FILMS (War of the Worlds, Extinction), Spain’s BAMBÚ PRODUCCIONES (Two Lives, Jaguar, Cable Girls) and France’s STUDIOCANAL ORIGINAL (Nine Women, About Last Night, Mouche). STUDIOCANAL is also an associate of Benedict Cumberbatch’s production company SUNNYMARCH TV (Patrick Melrose) and Danish-based SAM Productions founded by Søren Sveistrup and Adam Price (The Chestnut Man, Ride Upon The Storm).
ABOUT STUDIOCANAL
STUDIOCANAL, a 100% affiliate of CANAL+ Group held by Vivendi, is Europe’s leader in production, distribution and international sales of feature films and series, operating in all five major European markets - France, United Kingdom, Germany, Benelux and Spain - as well as in Australia and New Zealand. It finances and produces around 30 films per year, distributes around 50 films per year and owns one of the largest film libraries in the world, boasting nearly 7 000 titles from 60 countries, spanning 100 years of film history. 20 million euros has been invested into the restoration of 700 classic films over the past 5 years. STUDIOCANAL also producesmore than 200 hours of TV series each year at an international level. All productions take place directly through STUDIOCANAL entities or with its award-winning network of European production companies (STUDIOCANAL Series, LAILAPS FILMS, RED PRODUCTION COMPANY, URBAN MYTH FILMS, BAMBÚ PRODUCCIONES, STUDIOCANAL ORIGINAL, 2e BUREAU, SUNNYMARCH TV, SAM Productions, DUTCH FILMWORKS)
ABOUT ZENTROPA
With a back catalogue comprised of 275+ titles Zentropa is one of the most prolific and notorious Scandinavian and European production companies today. Alongside producing feature films Zentropa is now also engaging substantially in the production of TV-series.
The portfolio of the company who launched the DOGME 95 movement includes a comprehensive list of awards and accolades among them:2 OscarsÒ, 5 Academy AwardÒ-Nominations, a Golden-Globe, 5 Golden GlobeÒ-Nominations, 5 Cannes Film Festival Palms, 3 Berlinale Silver Bears, 1 BAFTA, 1 César and 22 European Film Awards.
The vast majority of Zentropa’s films and TV-series are international co-productions. The international perspective was ingrained from the onset. Founded in 1992 by Director Lars Von Trier and Producer Peter Aalbæk Jensen, Zentropa was named after the railroad company in Trier’s Europa (1991). The company soon grew to encompass and nurture additional talents, several of whom also became world renowned including: Susanne Bier, Thomas Vinterberg, Lone Scherfig, Niels Arden Oplev, Kristian Levring, Per Fly, Pernille Fischer Christensen, Nikolaj Arcel, Mikkel Nørgaard and Anders Thomas Jensen.
In 2016 the reigns were handed over to the current management group: CEO Anders Kjærhauge and Producers Louise Vesth and Sisse Graum Jørgensen. All three have been associated with Zentropa for decades and the company’s growth and successes are in no small part to their credit. While much has changed and evolved since Zentropa was established nearly 30 years ago the artistic freedom, a creative environment and an international outlook remains the fundamental, unequivocal backbone of the organization.
Zentropa is owned by: Nordisk Film, Kristian Levring, Torben Røsler, Peter Aalbæk Jensen and Lars von Trier.
