SVT has commissioned a major six-part TV adaptation of Kerstin Ekman’s multi award-winning crime novel, "Blackwater" from Apple Tree Productions. The event series will be coproduced with ARD Degeto in Germany and Filmpool Nord, supported by the MEDIA Programme of the European Union and distributed internationally by ITV Studios.
International Emmy® and BAFTA award winning CEO of Apple Tree Productions, former Head of Drama at DR and producer of "The Killing" Piv Bernth will lead production. "Blackwater" will be adapted for television as a landmark, premium crime drama series by Maren Louise Käehne ("Queen of Hearts", "The Bridge", "Borgen") and directed by Pernilla August (The Legacy, A Serious Game). Marek Wieser (Darling, Tigers, The Violin Player) will serve as Director of Photography and Oscar winning Anna Asp (Fanny and Alexander, Wallander) will handle production design.
Anna Cronemann, Head of Drama at SVT, said “Developing a novel as iconic as ‘Blackwater’ into a series, inevitably means taking a huge risk. But with a beautiful script by Maren Louise Käehne, Piv Bernth producing and Pernilla August as Director, I’m certain we’re about to make something quite extraordinary. I’m also thrilled about the collaboration with ARD."
Sebastian Lückel, Head of Acquisitions and Coproductions at ARD Degeto, said “With the pedigree of the team behind this project and an outstanding plot we simply could not say no to this collaboration with SVT. We have great trust in the taste and ability of Piv Bernth, Maren Louise Käehne and Pernilla August to deliver something truly amazing that will entertain our audience on all platforms.”
Piv Bernth, CEO Apple Tree Productions, said "We are so proud to be the company that gets to make a landmark TV series of this iconic novel and feel lucky to be working with the incredibly talented writer Maren Louise Käehne and director Pernilla August in bringing this story to the screen. Together with our partners, SVT, ARD Degeto, Filmpool Nord and ITV Studios we are so much looking forward to presenting the series to Swedish, Nordic and international audiences.”
Sandra Warg, CEO Filmpool Nord, said “It is truly a great privilege to be a co-producer of this project adapted from an outstanding novel. This is a local story aimed for the global market. All the creative powers behind the TV series ensure the best prerequisites for a successful outcome, and I am really excited that Norrbotten will be a part of this - offering, among other assets, the vast and uniquely suggestive surroundings of our Arctic region.”
Ruth Berry, Managing Director of Distribution, ITV Studios said, "We're really excited to take ‘Blackwater’ to market. It’s a gripping internationally renowned story, recreated by a team of leaders in their fields and backed by three committed partners from the outset. We couldn't be more delighted to represent the series on the world stage at a time when demand for European drama is going from strength to strength."
DARK CRIME
Originally published in Sweden in 1993, "Blackwater" has since become available in 25 countries and the drama has pre-sold to DR in Denmark, NRK in Norway, YLE in Finland and RUV in Iceland. The story begins on a Midsummer night in 1970, when two tourists are found murdered in a tent, far up in the mountains of North Sweden, near the small town of Blackwater. The incident intersects four random people’s lives, intertwining their destinies for better and for worse.
"Blackwater" is a powerful and compelling story, filled with unique, intriguing characters and many spectacular events, told through multiple points of view. Its setting - the log-filled Scandinavian forests - matches perfectly the ominous sense of foreboding that permeates the plot.
“Blackwater” is the second production from ITV Studios-backed Apple Tree Productions following "Equinox", a character-driven supernatural thriller series of 6 x 45 mins., currently shooting in Copenhagen for Netflix.