Spies from Poland, Ireland, Finland, Spanish devils in human disguise and Czech sex therapy spice up Tallinn’s series showcase whose titles vie for a $56,000 Council of Europe Series Co-Production Development Award
Polish film and TV luminary Darius Jabloński’s spy thriller “Fortel” and Estonia’s “Stormbird” from multi-awarded Kadri Kousaar (“Magnus,” “Mother”) feature in the lineup of Tallinn’s TV Beats Co-Financing Market, running over Nov. 16-17.
They are joined by Spain’s “When Devils Rule” from Rodrigo Susarte (“Patagonia”), and Belgium’s “The Inheritance” powered by “This is Not a Murder Mystery” producer Panenka.
Picked among 50 submissions from Eurimages member states, the 10 selected series will vie for the coveted €50,000 ($56,000) Council of Europe Series Co-Production Development Award.
“Never before have we welcomed that many big names and companies,” said Petri Kemppinen, co-head of TV Beats, alongside Roosa Toivonen.
This year’s crop hails from Belgium, Czechia, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Lithuania, Poland, Spain, and co-production partner Canada. As underscored by Toivonen, the geographical spread mirrors TV Beats’ core which is “to act as a bridge between the Baltics, Central Eastern Europe, and the Nordics. Three territories – Czechia, Finland, and Estonia – topped the list of applications.
“Estonia is very dynamic in TV drama, and we did receive more applications than from Lithuania and Latvia,” said Toivonen who mentioned the catchy story of “Stormbird,” about a young female fugitive, under Soviet-occupied Estonia in 1949. Also from Estonia is the fast-paced YA drama “Breaking the Ice,” produced by Jevgeni Supin, who was distinguished last year with an Honorary TV Beats Producer Award.
TV Beats co-heads also pointed at the larger number of projects in early development compared to previous years, set to make their very first pitch in Tallinn. “Obviously the hefty €50,000 development award from the Council of Europe is a major draw in today’s touch times for indie producers who struggle to gather development money when commissioners and public funders are cutting back. They need co-production partners to lift their projects,” Kemppinen said.Theme-wise, in an age of distrust and as the Baltics and CEE feel the heat from Russian threats, espionage is the beating heart of three shows (“Tanner,” “Fortel,” “The Woman Who Roared”), while oppressive regimes, systems or leaders -even disguised as devils-feature in the remaining slate, next to the ever-popular crime bets.
Next to the TV Beats Co-Financing Market slate, more than 20 other top-tier series looking for additional financing, distribution and sales, will bow at ‘TV Beats Screenings’ and ‘TV Beats Coming Soon’, to be unveiled at a later date.
The TV Beats Forum is part of the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival’s industry platform Industry Tallinn & Baltic Event, running over Nov 9-20.
Full rundown of TV Beats Co-Financing Market lineup:
“Breaking the Ice” (“Päike mis sulatab jääd,” 6X45’, Estonia)Young adult drama from Estonian powerhouse Zolba Productions (“Von Fock”, “My Dear Mother,” “A Girl From Tallinn”), co-penned and co-created by the seasoned Leana Jalukse (“Mother”, “Von Fock”) and German screenwriting expert Joachim Friedmann.
Beneath the polished surface of Estonia’s elite ice rinks, a Russian hockey prodigy ruled by his violent father and an Estonian figure skater groomed by a manipulative coach fall in love across a national divide. “Breaking the Ice” is not another fast-paced feel-good love story on skates,” says producer Jevgeni Supin. “Our series looks beneath the polished surface of youth sport, where abuse by parents and coaches is often disguised as pursuit for excellence. At its heart, it’s is a story about two young people who find the courage, through love, to break this cycle.”
Legendary Polish film mogul and director Dariusz Jabłoński (“The Pleasure Principle,” “The Cop-A New Chapter”), serves as creator and showrunner of this spy thriller penned by US screenwriter Marc Grey, episodic writer of Apple TV’s International Emmy-winning show “Tehran.”
Jabłoński’s own pedigreed banner Apple Film Production is producing for commercial giant Polsat.The core of the action is the little-known Polish town of Rzeszów close to the Ukraine border which has turned into a spy nest and arms dealing platform. The story tracks a CIA officer who sets a trap for Russian saboteurs, targeting confidential Western arms shipments while secretly searching for his missing brother, who may hold the key to the leak, says the logline.
“Fortel” is about the history we’re living through right now, in real time, two hours from my home,” Jabłoński tells Variety. “Rzeszów is a city that woke up one morning to find itself at the center of the war, with no instruction manual and no way out. I want to make a thriller that feels the way the war feels – chaotic, morally unresolved and shot through with unexpected moments of humanity, with a cast drawn from several of the countries involved. A Polish-based story that the whole world needs to see right now,” he claims.
“Happy New Year!” (“Laimingų Naujų!” 10X21’, Lithuania)
Created and helmed by rising talent Montis Norvaisis for his outfit Big Drama, setup with producer Lineta Lasiauskaitė. The drama turns on a young woman, victim of spike drinking at a lavish New Year’s Eve party in a remote manor. When the guests refuse to confront the crime, her best friend seeks justice herself. Norvaisis will draw from his own experience to portray a raw and authentic portrait of New Year’s Eve youth parties.
“Kalmann” (6X45’, Iceland, Finland, Estonia)TV adaptation of Icelandic-Swiss crime author Joachim B. Schmidt’s “Kalmann” book series, penned by María Heba Þorkelsdóttir and Kristófer Dignus who directs.
Produced by Kontent’s Guðný Guðjónsdóttir and Sara Djeddou Baldursdóttir, who have attached Iceland’s main streamer Síminn and co-pro partners Snapper Films from Finland and Cuba Films from Estonia. Headlining the show is the eccentric sheriff Kalmann, who uses unique instincts to solve murders.
“’Kalmann’ sits within the internationally established Nordic crime space, but brings warmth, humor, melancholy and humanity to the genre alongside a compelling murder investigation,” says Baldursdóttir, who plans to use TV Beats to test the show’s concept, tone and international potential. Production is set to start in the fall 2027.“Intimacy on Prescription” (“Intimita na předpis, 8X60’, Czechia)“Can good sex save every marriage,” says the logline about the tragicomedy set in 1970s Czechoslovakia, and inspired by the real story of Stanislav Kratochvíl, a pioneer of couples sex therapy. The show, helmed by established theater and film director Jiří Havelka (“Owners”), is set in a psychiatric clinic, where couples are invited to say out loud what society, marriage and shame have taught them to hide.
“For us, ‘Intimacy’ is not only about sex, but about the courage to speak honestly about desire, fear, shame, power and the need to be seen by the person closest to you,” says producer Karolina Zalabáková, who looks forward to pitching in Tallinn this story “strongly rooted in Czech and Czechoslovak history” with “emotional themes that are universal and highly exportable.” The screenplay from head-writer Kristina Májová, co-written with Matěj Randár and Jan Smutný, is based on an original idea by Kateřina Kořínková.“Stormbird” (“Tormilind,” 5X42’, Estonia)
Historical thriller from acclaimed filmmaker Kadri Kõusaar, credited for the Cannes Un Certain Regard’s “Magnus” and Estonia’s Oscar pick “Mother.” Set in 1949, under Soviet occupied Estonia. After killing soldiers who attack her family, Lee (18), known as ‘Stormbird’, becomes a fugitive and joins the Forest Brothers band led by “Geronimo” to rescue her imprisoned brother, Uku. Hunted by the Red Army, she fights to survive, while her childhood friend Reinhardt becomes her enemy. producer Aet Laigu says “Stormbird” “is first and foremost a story about people trying to survive and forced to make impossible choices under occupation.” It’s also a unique take of a “rarely seen part of European history”, depicted through a young woman’s eyes, turning on topical themes such as freedom, resistance and identity.
“Tanner” (6X50’, Ireland, Canada)Produced by Fíbín Films’ Bernie Hoban and Darach Ó Tuairisg, co-produced by Fraser Ash and Kevin Krikst for Canadian power-player Rhombus Media, attached to HBO’s Emmy nominated “The Sympathizer.”
The story created and penned by Keith Hodder, with Damian McCann and Sarah Gordon turns on a former Irish intelligence officer who returns home to investigate a missing teenager and uncovers a tech-powered conspiracy reaching from elite schools to the highest levels of government. Hoban says “Tanner” stands out thanks to its unique world “rarely seen before, the Irish intelligence services operating in a country whose prosperity is increasingly intertwined with some of the world’s most powerful multinational corporations, creating fascinating tensions between democracy, sovereignty and corporate influence.”” Through a uniquely Irish lens, “Tanner” tackles themes that resonate across the world while anchoring them in the journey of an unforgettable protagonist – a deeply flawed investigator whose greatest gift may also be his undoing,” she adds.
“The Inheritance” (“De Erfenis,” 6X45’, Belgium)From fast-expanding powerhouse Panenka behind the New8 hit show “This is Not a Murder Mystery” and Series Mania 2025 Special Mention winner “Putain.” Commissioned by leading Flemish broadcaster VTM.Created and penned by Alexandra Jans with Jan Van Dyck for producers Kato Maes, Kristoffel Mertens and Karlijn Van de Cruys. Psychological thriller set against the world of animal welfare and hunting. When Hanne, a staff member of a struggling animal rescue, unexpectedly becomes executor of a wealthy hunting family’s estate, a bitter battle over the inheritance erupts. Van de Cruys says the show will draw from its breathtaking location-Belgium’s largest national park of Limburg’s Hoge Kempen, and the personal take from Jans who has crafted the story out of her own personal experience.
From box-office hit habitué, actor and filmmaker Pamela Tola (“Ladies of Steel,” “Bad Apples”). Dramedy in which the recently widowed Leena (65) discovers that the Helsinki Zoo is actually an arena where international spies gather. She believes the place is linked to a top-secret nuclear weapon her late husband had hidden.
“The Woman Who Roared” offers a fresh take on the spy genre – thrilling, funny, and full of heart,” says producer Mete Sasioglu of Sons of Lumière, who will be looking for co-producers, especially from France, Eastern Europe and the Nordics in Tallinn.
“When Devils Rule” (“Los demones mandan,” 6X35’, Spain)Darkly humorous political thriller with supernatural elements from the team behind Movistar Plus’ anticipated “Patagonia.” Atlantika Films’ Nano Arrieta-creator and producer with Claudia Ruíz — shares the writing room with Popy Blasco, Ibai Ariztegi and Bárbara Zemelman. In a world fractured by power, fear and political extremism, a group of women uncovers a demonic force operating at the highest level of society-and realizes the chaos around them may be part of a much darker design.