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14 hours ago
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Icelandic producer Glassriver is teaming with ZDF Studios-owned Network Movie on “Áróra,” a crime drama series based on Lilja Sigurðardóttir’s internationally bestselling “An Áróra Investigation” novels.
Network Movie has optioned all five books in the series — “Cold as Hell,” “Red as Blood,” “White as Snow,” “Dark as Night” and “Deep as Death” — and is developing the adaptation with Glassriver.
The partnership brings together one of Iceland’s most active scripted producers and a German company with extensive experience in crime drama, literary adaptations and international co-productions.
Network Movie’s credits include the long-running procedural franchises “Murder Up North,” “In Other Circumstances,” “Helen Dorn” and “The Trace,” as well as the pan-European crime series “The Team” and the feature adaptation “The German Lesson.”
Set across Iceland and London, the series follows Áróra, a tough fraud investigator with Icelandic roots who returns home to search for her missing sister. What begins as a family mission soon expands into a wider criminal investigation as she teams with Daniel, an Icelandic police detective and potential love interest, exposing corruption, betrayal and violence beneath Iceland’s rugged landscape.
“We’re delighted to be partnering with Network Movie to bring ‘Áróra’ from the page to screen,” said Glassriver CEO Andri Ómarsson. “This series is truly an international project, with a story that unfolds across Iceland and the U.K. while bringing together the best talent from across Europe.”
Ómarsson said Sigurðardóttir’s ability to combine “compelling characters, suspense and a strong sense of place” gives “Áróra” “unique international appeal.”
Network Movie managing director Bernd von Fehrn and executive producer Moritz Mihm described the character of Áróra as an “irresistible heroine” and praised the novels for “interweaving intricate criminal cases with the complex private lines of the protagonist and her family.”
“The novels are ripe material for adaptation,” they added. “We are delighted to have found the ideal partner for this very special project in the Glassriver team.”
Sigurðardóttir is also working with Glassriver on an adaptation of her “Reykjavik Noir” trilogy and previously co-wrote episodes of Netflix’s Icelandic supernatural drama “Katla.”
According to the producers, the “An Áróra Investigation” novels have sold more than 800,000 copies and have secured publishing deals across English-, French-, German- and Arabic-language markets as well as Sweden, Finland and Estonia.
“Áróra” joins Glassriver’s expanding slate of literary crime adaptations, which also includes “Elma,” based on Eva Björg Ægisdóttir’s novels, and “Konrad,” drawn from Arnaldur Indriðason’s detective series. Its development lineup also features “Manifesto” and “Reykjavik Noir.”
English (US) ·