A brand-new Lithuanian drama series, titled Cold, is now in development, Cineuropa has learnt. The story, penned by Birutė Kapustinskaitė (I Am Fine, Thanks [+lire aussi :
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interview : Ernestas Jankauskas et Gab…
fiche film], Sasha Was Here [+lire aussi :
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fiche film]) and Artūras Voiničius (Detektyvai: 209), is set in Lithuania in 1991. As the country is fighting its bloody last stand against the crumbling Soviet empire, a young US-German journalist discovers some documents that are essential for the KGB to maintain control of the “separatist” republics. The disappearance of these top-secret files starts a deadly and desperate chase across Eastern Europe, involving five individuals who are unknowingly interconnected through personal stories of love, betrayal and revenge.

The creative team is made up of showrunner Stjepan Klein (Os Boys, Glória), Invisible [+lire aussi :
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fiche film] producers Aurimas Pukevičius and Ramojus Petrauskas, development producer Greta Akcijonaite (I Am Fine, Thanks) and production designer Sigita Šimkūnaitė (Slow [+lire aussi :
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interview : Laurynas Bareisa
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interview : Tiago Guedes
fiche film], Remains of the Wind [+lire aussi :
bande-annonce
fiche film]) and Vilnius-born Domas Petronis attached as the directors. Hungary’s Gabor Krigler recently joined the project as an executive producer and co-writer.

They have described the 5x50-minute show as “a character-driven, ‘slow-burning’ drama with a multi-layered yet linear plot”. Touching on the main themes, the team tells us: “Our story, set against the tumultuous backdrop of January 1991 in Lithuania, delves not only into the complexities of a specific period in history, but also into the intricacies of familial relationships and the personal struggles faced by our five main characters. Through their journeys, we explore universal themes of national identity, the yearning for freedom, the quest for revenge, the power of love and the weight of responsibility.

“We aimed to not only depict the lives of those within Lithuania, but also to delve into the experiences of those outside of it, in order to reveal the multifaceted layers of society at the end of the Soviet era.”

Cold is being produced by Lithuanian outfit Magic Film, and co-produced with Matthias Greving for Germany’s Kinescope Film. The project received development support from the Lithuanian Film Centre and Germany’s Nordmedia, with additional backing from Lithuanian pubcaster LRT and VoD platform Telia Lietuva. It has also benefited from co-development support from the European Union’s Creative Europe – MEDIA programme, thus becoming the first Lithuanian show to receive this type of grant.

The release date is yet to be disclosed.

Check out our exclusive poster for Cold below: