Scandinavian networks start a new production cooperation

Danish TV 2, Norwegian TV 2 and Swedish TV4 have entered a production cooperation. The partnership was announced September 28 by heads of drama Piodor Gustafsson from Telia-owned TV4 Media, Mette Nelund from the stately-run TV2 Denmark and Alice Sommer from Egmont-owned TV2 Norway. Through their Scandi Alliance, the partners’ main goal is to co-finance and order a six to eight-part event series for a wide audience (15-65Y), which would premiere in 2026. “Should this prove fruitful, our ambition is to continue this collaboration”, said the three heavyweight players who plan to invest a total of NOK 63-90 million for the Nordic rights.

“We are seeking stories that can be defined as “large scale drama” which resonate with a broader audience rooted in a pan-Scandinavian reality,” explained Gustafsson. “In terms of genre, it can include a wide range from character-driven suspense to grounded sci-fi or at the intersection of multiple content genres,” he observed. Nelund and Sommer added that the event series will come as a supplement to their local long-runners and is meant to “facilitate brand new and highly original scripted projects ideas.”

Explaining what triggered their decision to launch their Scandi Alliance, Gustafsson, Nelund and Sommer told us: “TV 2 Denmark, TV 4 and TV 2 Norway are three "sibling" broadcasters who share many of the same ambitions and challenges. We are furthermore part of the same linguistic community and share a similar cultural and historical background.” They go on: “In unstable times like these, it will grow increasingly important to establish alliances and partnerships in order to produce high-end drama. So the timing for this Scandi joint venture is good, even though discussions started more than a year ago.”

Scandinavian producers and creators are invited to submit their ideas, starting immediately. “The ideas that best answer our ambitions will be called upon for pitching. Subsequently we will select the best project/projects to go into development, aiming to become a major Scandinavian drama series for Denmark, Sweden and Norway. We are delighted to join forces with our neighbouring countries and look forward to hearing from Scandinavia's best storytellers,” said Sommer.

Asked if at a further date, the Scandi Alliance would open up to partners from the rest of the Nordics such as Finland, Gustafsson said: “Yes. We would of course offer the serie(s) for publication in Finland, but we can also see opportunities to expand the collaboration to Finland.” The Scandi Alliance echoes the N12 partnership between the Nordic public service companies DR, SVT, NRK, Yle and RÚV, set up in 2018 to offer a continuous and strong drama slate for the Nordic audience, reflecting local culture and identity.