Sonar Entertainment has teamed up with Germany's Bavaria Fernsehproduktion and Sky Deutschland to co-produce and distribute the eight-episode series DAS BOOT, set to begin production in 2017 and to air worldwide in 2018. The announcement was made today by David Ellender, President, Global Distribution and Co-Productions, Sonar Entertainment, Jan Kaiser, Managing Director Bavaria Fernsehproduktion, and Marcus Ammon, Senior Vice President Fiction & Entertainment Channels Sky Deutschland.
Sonar holds all global distribution rights to the series, with the exception of Sky's five European territories, which include Germany, Austria, U.K., Ireland and Italy.
The new production is set immediately after the events of Wolfgang Petersen's 1981 Oscar-nominated classic anti-war film, one of the most successful German films of all time. While the original film exclusively followed the claustrophobic world inside a World War II German U-boat, the new miniseries expands to focus not just on the German perspective but also on the experiences of the French Resistance and Allied forces. Like the original film, the series is based on the best-seller of the same name by Lothar-Gunther Buchheim.
The drama is being adapted by Tony Saint and Johannes W. Betz. The project is executive produced by Bavaria Fernsehproduktion's Oliver Vogel and Moritz Polter and Sonar's Jenna Santoianni, together with Sky's Marcus Ammon and Frank Jastfelder.
Tony Saint, who wrote the BBC drama Margaret Thatcher: The Long Walk to Finchley and Sky's Strike Back, is co-writing the script with German screenwriter Johannes W. Betz, whose credits include the award-winning period dramas The Tunnel (2001) and Die Spiegel-Affire (2014).
"We are thrilled to partner with Bavaria Fernsehproduktion and Sky Deutschland on this highly prestigious new production," said Ellender. "This project reflects Sonar's ongoing strategic commitment to pursue fully integrated creative and commercial collaborations with top tier global partners to develop and distribute high end content. Das Boot is a property with broad based appeal to networks and broadcasters worldwide and will play exceptionally well to diverse audiences throughout the world."
Jan Kaiser, Bavaria Fernsehproduktion's Managing Director said: "I am very proud that Bavaria Fernsehproduktion has been able to put together such strong partners in Sky Deutschland and Sonar for this amazing project. With Jenna Santoianni, Oliver Vogel and Moritz Polter we have a fantastic team of executive producers who follow the same vision for this international multilayered drama. With Das Boot we are launching the first in a number of international projects that we are developing with ambitious and seasoned international partners alongside our German network partners."
Marcus Ammon, Senior Vice President Fiction and Entertainment Channels Sky Deutschland: "We are very excited to have Sonar Entertainment on board. In the five Sky territories Germany, Austria, UK, Ireland and Italy, Sky is holding the exclusive TV rights. For the distribution in all other territories with Sonar Entertainment we have found the perfect partner."
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