Luca Bernabei
Leading Italian production studio Lux Vide (Part of Fremantle) showcased its new premium English series “Costiera” to the global market at MIPCOM. Based on an idea by Luca Bernabei, CEO of Lux Vide, the light crime series stars Jesse Williams (“Only murders in the building”) and features a gripping storyline, fast-paced action, comedy, a complex main character, and breathtaking locations.
“An English writer once said that if you haven’t seen the ‘Costiera’, you don’t know Italy,” Bernabei mentioned in an exclusive interview with Señal News. The executive highlighted the beautiful landscapes of that part of the Amalfi Coast, as well as the excellent food and warm hospitality of the locals from Naples. “In Costiera, you find people from all over the world; it’s a place full of stories, and that’s what we do—we tell stories,” he said. He also shared that Lux Vide had been developing a concept for “Costiera” for a long time, adding, “We found that the Italian lifestyle is something people may love and dream about right now. So, we created a character who’s a problem-solver (Williams), with an Italian mother and an American father, blending Anglo-Saxon rationality with the Italian way of solving problems,” Bernabei explained.
NEW MODELS
Just as the main character finds solutions to different problems in each episode of “Costiera”, Lux Vide has also adapted to industry challenges by finding innovative production methods. “We’ve been managing budget constraints, but we found a way to co-produce with Amazon in an equal relationship. Amazon MGM studios Italy believed as much as we did to create a new business model based on an equal partnership, an unprecedented approach by a major.” said Bernabei. “Today, a producer has to be resourceful, working closely on the script to make production feasible,” he added.
“Costiera”, directed by Adam Bernstein (“Breaking Bad”) and written by Elena Bucaccio (Head of Drama, Lux Vide) and Francesco Arlanch, tells the story of Daniel De Luca, an Italian-American former marine who serves as a problem-solver at one of the world’s most exclusive hotels in Positano. Daniel helps wealthy tourists get out of trouble and return home, while he lives in this paradise as a guest of the hotel’s owner—because he’s the only person who caught a glimpse of the face of a man suspected of kidnapping his daughter, making him uniquely suited to track him down. “I believe that people today are looking for something light and entertaining,” said Bernabei, adding that the series is procedural. “Procedural shows are important right now because they allow for returning stories,” he said.
The series will premiere on Prime Video this year, with Prime Video Italy holding exclusive rights in Italy, France, Spain, and Portugal. Amazon US holds the rights for the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, and Australia, while Fremantle will handle global sales in other territories.
A MODERN “SANDOKAN”
Lux Vide also announced a collaboration with Rai Fiction this year to produce “Sandokan”, a new adaptation of Emilio Salgari’s historic saga. Developed for television by Alessandro Sermoneta, Scott Rosenbaum, and Davide Lantieri, and directed by Jan Maria Michelini and Nicola Abbatangelo, the series will bring a fresh take on the classic IP. “We’ve found a way to make this IP feel modern,” noted Bernabei.
“Sandokan” is a tale of adventure and romance, in which the protagonists discover themselves and realize they are part of a much larger story—one of revolution, a love of nature, and the fight for freedom. “It’s an escapist story that transports you to a faraway world of wild nature. It’s a story of battles and fights, and we aim to infuse it with as much humor as possible. This is the kind of story we love to tell,” Bernabei concluded.