Berlinale: ORF showed co-productions with German and Swiss public broadcasters

As part of this year's Berlinale Series Market, ORF-Enterprise, ORF and SRF, with the participation of ARD as well as producers Superfilm and MR Film, were hosting the co-production panel "DACH: Great Stories under one Roof", where they provided insights into co-productions between the public broadcasters in the German-speaking countries.

The collaboration was illustrated by using two recent examples, the hit series "Days That Never Were" (ORF/ARD, 2022) as well as "School of Champions" (ORF/BR/SRF, in production) with an exclusive look at first clips of filming to date. Both series are distributed worldwide by ORF-Enterprise.

"Collaborating with other public broadcasters from the DACH region not only allows us to share the cost of producing high-quality content but also opens up new financing opportunities that might not be available to us otherwise. It can be challenging to coordinate efforts, but the rewards of such collaborations are immeasurable, as we can create original series that resonate with audiences worldwide," says Katharina Schenk, Head of Fiction at ORF.

"Following the worldwide success of ORF’s previous drama series we are confident that the broadcasters’ cooperation with German and Swiss partners will result in further highlights, telling exciting original stories. ORF-Enterprise will continue bringing unique content to audiences around the globe," adds Armin Luttenberger, Head of Content Sales International at ORF-Enterprise.

DACH – GREAT STORIES UNDER ONE ROOF
Germany (D), Austria (A) and Switzerland (CH) share a language as well as a cultural space. In an economically challenging environment and competitive market, co-productions have become all the more important for public broadcasters.

“By pooling resources and sharing the financial burden, broadcaster from the ‘DACH’-region enable us to produce truly outstanding and universal stories – always including the unique local cultural aspects and language,” Catrin Strasser, Producer at MR-Film (“Days That Never Were”), on cross-country collaboration among public broadcasters.

“Being in midst of production of the series ‘School of Champions’, I can already say that it has been worth taking the challenges of collaboration with three public broadcasters, who have been involved in the upcoming series from the very beginning. The broadcasters’ commitment allows me to raise the production value to the next level,” adds Samuel Schultschik, Showrunner at Superfilm (“School of Champions”).

SERIES
"Days That Never Were" (8×48 min.). When team of investigators shows up and examines an accident that suddenly turns into a murder case, the friendship of four women who have known each other since their elite school days is put to the test. The series is produced by MR-Film for ORF, ARD (MDR) and ARD Degeto.

"School of Champions" (8×45 min.) To realize their dream of reaching the top, ten young talents push themselves to their limit at an elite ski boarding school. They face immense pressure to succeed, tough training schedules and the struggles of adolescence. The series is produced by Superfilm for ORF, SRF and BR.