SPI International / FILMBOX acquires leading scripted titles from FremantleMedia International
Major dramas including The Young Pope headed for Central Eastern Europe, Russia and CIS.
Global TV operator SPI International / FILMBOX has inked a deal with FremantleMedia International (FMI) to acquire pay window rights for three major scripted titles for SPI's FilmBox movie channels and FilmBox Live VOD service. The agreement will see the critically-acclaimed smash hit The Young Pope, gripping thriller Apple Tree Yard and hugely successful Swedish crime drama Modus heading to Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), Russia and CIS.
“The Young Pope has been the topic of much excitement with global audiences. We are thrilled to bring this extraordinary series to FilmBox viewers across our territories,” said Berk Uziyel, executive director at SPI International / FILMBOX.
Maximilian Bolenius, SVP Sales & Distribution, German speaking Europe, Central & Eastern Europe, Russia & CIS, who completed the sale for FMI added: “The Young Pope, Apple Tree Yard and Modus are three outstanding scripted titles from FremantleMedia International’s catalogue, which represent the very best of European drama. All three have received critical acclaim and have captivated audiences wherever they have aired, so we’re really excited that titles will be available to FilmBox audiences in Central and Eastern Europe, Russia and CIS.”
The Young Pope is an international production directed by Academy Award winner Paolo Sorrentino, and starring two-time Academy Award nominee Jude Law and Academy Award winner Diane Keaton. The series, which has received five-star reviews in the USA, UK, and Europe, tells the story of Lenny Belardo, alias Pius XIII, the first American Pope. Young and charming, his election seems to be the result of a simple yet effective media strategy on the part of the College of Cardinals. But appearances can be deceptive. Above all, in the place and among the people who have chosen the great mystery of God as the compass guiding their existence. That place is the Vatican and those people are the leaders of the Church. And Pius XIII proves to be the most mysterious and contradictory of them all. Shrewd and naïve, ironical and pedantic, primeval and cutting-edge, doubting and resolute, melancholy and ruthless, Pius XIII tries to cross the endless river of human solitude to find a God he can give to mankind. And to himself.
Adapted from the best-selling novel, Apple Tree Yard is a tense, provocative mini-series about a respected female scientist and the single impulsive act that leads to her standing trial for murder. Married with two grown-up children, Yvonne Carmichael (Academy Award nominee Emily Watson) lives a contented, conventional suburban life. But her world spirals into chaos when a chance encounter leads to an impulsive and passionate affair with a charismatic stranger (Ben Chaplin). Despite all her careful plans to keep her home life and career safe and separate from her affair, fantasy and reality soon begin to overlap and everything she values is put at risk.
Modus is a gripping Swedish detective thriller that was Swedish network TV4’s biggest drama launch in 2 years. The story follows psychologist and ex-FBI profiler Inger Johanne Vik as she finds herself and her autistic daughter drawn into an investigation surrounding a series of disturbing and brutal deaths. As the number of mysterious murders starts to increase, Johanne is driven by her need to protect her daughter and starts noticing a pattern. But her discovery of the killer’s weakness and the connection to a ruthless international network unintentionally turns the entire threat towards herself and her family.
Visit SPI/Filmbox at MIPTV 2017: Stand # P3.B8
Maximilian Bolenius, SVP Sales & Distribution, German speaking Europe, Central & Eastern Europe, Russia & CIS, who completed the sale for FMI added: “The Young Pope, Apple Tree Yard and Modus are three outstanding scripted titles from FremantleMedia International’s catalogue, which represent the very best of European drama. All three have received critical acclaim and have captivated audiences wherever they have aired, so we’re really excited that titles will be available to FilmBox audiences in Central and Eastern Europe, Russia and CIS.”
The Young Pope is an international production directed by Academy Award winner Paolo Sorrentino, and starring two-time Academy Award nominee Jude Law and Academy Award winner Diane Keaton. The series, which has received five-star reviews in the USA, UK, and Europe, tells the story of Lenny Belardo, alias Pius XIII, the first American Pope. Young and charming, his election seems to be the result of a simple yet effective media strategy on the part of the College of Cardinals. But appearances can be deceptive. Above all, in the place and among the people who have chosen the great mystery of God as the compass guiding their existence. That place is the Vatican and those people are the leaders of the Church. And Pius XIII proves to be the most mysterious and contradictory of them all. Shrewd and naïve, ironical and pedantic, primeval and cutting-edge, doubting and resolute, melancholy and ruthless, Pius XIII tries to cross the endless river of human solitude to find a God he can give to mankind. And to himself.
Adapted from the best-selling novel, Apple Tree Yard is a tense, provocative mini-series about a respected female scientist and the single impulsive act that leads to her standing trial for murder. Married with two grown-up children, Yvonne Carmichael (Academy Award nominee Emily Watson) lives a contented, conventional suburban life. But her world spirals into chaos when a chance encounter leads to an impulsive and passionate affair with a charismatic stranger (Ben Chaplin). Despite all her careful plans to keep her home life and career safe and separate from her affair, fantasy and reality soon begin to overlap and everything she values is put at risk.
Modus is a gripping Swedish detective thriller that was Swedish network TV4’s biggest drama launch in 2 years. The story follows psychologist and ex-FBI profiler Inger Johanne Vik as she finds herself and her autistic daughter drawn into an investigation surrounding a series of disturbing and brutal deaths. As the number of mysterious murders starts to increase, Johanne is driven by her need to protect her daughter and starts noticing a pattern. But her discovery of the killer’s weakness and the connection to a ruthless international network unintentionally turns the entire threat towards herself and her family.
Visit SPI/Filmbox at MIPTV 2017: Stand # P3.B8