11/11/2011

Six Nordic and Benelux broadcasters have joined forces to produce a five-part drama-thriller series, The Artist, with a cast of well-known actors from each participating country. Belgian director Hans Herbots (pictured) will helm all episodes, and the production will allow viewers to follow the story ”on digital platforms other than the television screen.”

Three public networks: Norway’s NRK, Sweden’s SVT and Finland’s YLE, will collaborate with three commercial stations – Denmark’s TV3, The Netherlands’ VARA and Belgium’s Canvas – to depict a group of international artists based in Copenhagen; when one of the members suddenly disappears, the others find themselves in a thriller-like plot.

”Quality-wise the series will match other international drama productions, which is confirmed by the partners we have liaised with, so we immediately jumped on the wagon,” said programme director Morten Mogensen, of Denmark’s TV3 (which is part of the Modern Times Group’s Viasat network).

With shooting already under way, The Artist stars Thure Lindhardt and Paw Henriksen from Denmark, Viktoria Winge from Norway, Tuva Novotny and Donald Högberg from Sweden, Teun Leysen from The Netherlands and Thomas Ryckewaert, Johan Van Assche, Johan Leysen and Lien Van De Kelder from Belgium.

Lindhardt and Novotny both starred in Danish director Nikolaj Arcel’s The Truth about Men (2010); he has just played the lead in, among others, Canadian director Boris Rodriguez’s Eddie, she toplines the cast in Danish director Christian E Christiansen’s ID:A and Swedish director Ulf Malmros’ Hardrock Brothers.

The Artist is realised as a European co-production by Belgian outfit, Caviar, with support from VAF and Wallimage (Belgium), Mediafonds and CoBo (The Netherlands), the Swedish Culture Fund and EU’s Media programme.