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PRODUCTION / FUNDING Iceland

First Icelandic Netflix Original series, Katla, in the works

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- The sci-fi TV series has been co-created by Baltasar Kormákur and Sigurjón Kjartansson for RVK Studios

First Icelandic Netflix Original series, Katla, in the works
Director Baltasar Kormákur

Award-winning Icelandic filmmaker Baltasar Kormákur (Adrift, The Oath [+see also:
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) has announced via nordicfilmandtvnews.com the pre-production of the country’s first Netflix Original series, entitled Katla. The project, co-created with Sigurjón Kjartansson (Trapped, Case), will start principal photography in spring next year, and casting is already under way.

The eight-episode sci-fi thriller series, penned in its entirety by crime writer and playwright Lilja Sigurðardóttir, screenwriter Davíð Már Stefánsson and show-runner Kjartansson, is set in Vik, a remote seafront village devastated by the eruption of a sub-glacial volcano, called Katla. One year later, the few remaining people manage to provide the necessary community service, and despite its magnificent location, the area turns out to be somewhat apocalyptic. Mysterious elements that had been hidden, frozen into the glacier from prehistoric times, start to emerge, with consequences no one could ever have predicted.

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Kormákur is enthusiastic about the Netflix deal and commented: “It’s an exciting challenge to be embarking on this journey on Katla with Netflix, and we’re honoured to be the first Icelandic production team to be commissioned to deliver a full series. Katla is a unique and ambitious sci-fi project that has been in development within my company, RVK Studios, for a few years, and we’re delighted that it has now been picked up by Netflix.” Tesha Crawford, Netflix’s director of the Northern European International Originals division, added: “Iceland has been the home of so many series and films over the years. We are excited to be able to feature its breath-taking surroundings in a story that is so firmly grounded in Icelandic themes. Working with such an acclaimed talent like Baltasar Kormákur makes this project a perfect set-up for us. We can’t wait to see this story come to life and bring it to our members all across the globe.”

Kormákur has been developing Katla, which is being produced by his own RVK Studios, for a number of years and took it to the Berlin Film Festival in 2017, where several broadcasters were thought to have been interested. Filming will take place partly at Kormákur’s own RVK Studios production facilities on the outskirts of the capital. Meanwhile, RVK Studios is developing the third season of the successful crime-drama Trapped, produced for public broadcaster RÚV, and Kormákur’s next feature film, entitled Arthur the King and starring Mark Wahlberg

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