The brand new series development program Pop Up Series Incubator will showcase 5 European projects at KVIFF

A vital part of this new small-screen focus is the Pop Up Series Incubator showcase (Tuesday, July 8), a brand new series development program designed to support European producers and scriptwriters by boosting their projects through hands-on development, expert mentorship and financial support.

Presented and organised by Tatino Films, co-financed by the European Union and supported and hosted by La Région Grand Est, the city of Reims, and KVIFF, the 8-month-long program comes together in Karlovy Vary with a pitching session where the creative teams will present their series concepts to industry professionals and decision makers, followed by curated match-making sessions with professionals that look to finance or produce series.

“The impulse to create Pop Up Series Incubator comes from our observation and analysis of the rapid evolution of the European audiovisual landscape, as well as from the many exchanges we have had with Tatino programs alumni. Intellectual property (IP) has become the buzzword of the audiovisual industry. Most of the upcoming shows of streamers are adaptations of existing IPs - literary, audiovisual works or even true stories. The reason for that is simple: building an audience or generating attention from scratch is seen as way too risky and unlikely considering the financial implications of drama series production,” explains Matthieu Darras, CEO of Tatino Films.

“This ‘IP Adaptation Game’ is mostly reserved to big players, but Pop Up Series wants to create opportunities for audiovisual talents that are not necessarily in the orbit of international behemoths such as Banijay, Freemantle, or Mediawan, to adapt their own IP’s into compelling series projects. We believe that there’s room for more niche and/or innovative series that tap into under-explored IPs, thus contributing to offer fresh and meaningful stories to diverse audiences.”

The 5 selected projects that will be showcased in Karlovy Vary are:

Angelmaker (Romania)
Producer: Anda Ionescu, Tangaj Production
Writer: Cristina Grosan
Based on a true story of The Angel Makers of Nagyrév
Accompanied by screenwriters Leana Jalukse and Loïc Barrère

Erotic Lives Of The Superheroes (France)
Producer: Eric Dupont, Incognito Films
Based on La Vita Erotica Dei Superuomini, acclaimed Italian novel by Marco Mancassola
Accompanied by screenwriters Nadya Todorova, and Ruddy-Williams Kabuiku

The Night Of The Beguines (France)
Producer: Candice Zaccagnino, Eliane Antoinette
Writer: David Roux
Based on La Nuit des Béguines, acclaimed French novel by Aline Kiner
Accompanied by screenwriter Yaelle Kayam

The Three Burials Of Irma (Greece)
Producer: Fenia Cossovitsa, BLONDE S.A.
Writer: Elina Psykou
Based on Alfatride (O iatrodikastis), a Greek novel by Vassilis Vassilikos
Accompanied by screenwriter Lemba de Miranda

Therapies (Lithuania)
Producer: Dagnė Vildžiūnaitė, Just a moment
Writer: Birutė Kapustinskaitė
Based on a play by Lithuanian writer Birutė Kapustinskaitė
Accompanied by screenwriters Fabrizio Muscia and Ruxandra Ghitescu