Since April 1, ZDF Enterprises has become ZDF Studios. This strategic step is much more than a change of name, it’s the confirmation that ZDF’s international business has transformed into a full-equipped global unit covering the all the segments in an integral way.
Heading MIPTV, Fred Burcksen, president and CEO, describes to Prensario the brand-new titles the company is launching on the Junior, Drama and Factual divisions.
Produced by TV-Loonland AG and Happy Life Animation AB / Edel Kids and B-Water Animation Studios, ZDF Studios launches 26 new episodes of its animated series Pettson and Findus (52×13’ and 4×75’) tells captivating stories of the old, inventive farmer Pettson and his loyal but impudent cat Findus.
The live action series Theodosia (26×26’) transports its audience in a universe full of magic, adventure, fantasy and mystery. This premium series, based on the highly-acclaimed books by New York Times best-selling author Robin L. LaFevers, is an interntional coproduction by Cottonwood Media for ZDF, ZDF Studios, France TV, HBO, Globo and TVA/Québecor.
Tilda Appleseed (26x’7) is a clever, very cultivated white church mouse, who lives in a tiny house at the foot of the church wall. The series, produced by WunderWerk, was already successfully aired on MDR / SWR / KiKA, NRK and others and received the Asian Television Award.
On the drama highlights stands In Stories to Stay Awake (4×50’ UHD), where top Spanish directors bring Chicho Ibáñez Serrador’s nightmares back to the world of the living. The anthology revolutionized the Spanish TV landscape back in the 60s. Now, 50 years later, it returns to transform it once again. The rebooted series is produced by Prointel e Isla Audiovisual and Paramount for RTVE.
The fascinating story of White Night (12×60’) takes place over two parallel time periods. Set in the 1970s and in the modern day, it is a compelling drama that follows a family struggling to cope with an imbalance of power wielded by a person who is no longer alive, interwoven with a murder mystery. It is produced by PIXCOM for Radio Canada.
The US military presence in West Germany in the early 50s is opening up a ‘new world’, paving the way for a new era of individual freedom, permissiveness and capitalism. This development in the fictitious town of Kaltenstein is the setting for Between Two Worlds (3×90’ or 6×45’), the powerful story of friendship between two women who both strive to create lives for themselves during a time of great change, coming into conflict with the old order: the conservative forces of politics, the Church and society. It was produced by FFP New Media GmbH in co-production with SWR, ARD Degeto, NDR and WDR.
Last but not least, the unscripted / factual catalogue, including Take to the skies to see Africa from Above (10×50’ or 3×50’ UHD), a stunning series showing a fresh perspective of the continent produced by Off the Fence for ZDF Enterprises in association with ZDF, Arte, ORF and UKTV. The two-part series Lions versus Hyenas (2×50’ HD) corrects this misconception and provides a fresh perspective of these ancient adversaries, produced by Doclights / NDR Naturfilm in association with NDR.
Going Circular (90’) unlocks the secrets to an innovative concept called circularity, an economic system based on the idea that nothing should go to waste. Produced by Off the Fence for CuriosityStream in association with ZDF Enterprises, ZDF and Arte, describes the experiences of different people, 102-year-old inventor Dr. James Lovelock, biomimicry biologist Janine Benyus, engineer and designer Arthur Huang, and financier John Fullerton, that changed the way they think about humanity’s future.
