
SVT commissions Apple Tree Productions' event tv series Blackwater based on Kerstin Ekman's multi award-winning crime novel
A coproduction with ARD Degeto and Filmpool Nord distributed internationally by ITV Studios
EUROPEAN FILM MARKET, Berlin, 26 February 2020 - SVT has commissioned a major six-part TV adaptation of Kerstin Ekman's multi award-winning* crime novel, Blackwater from Apple Tree Productions. The event series will be coproduced with ARD Degeto in Germany and Filmpool Nord, supported by the MEDIA Programme of the European Union and distributed internationally by ITV Studios.
International Emmy and BAFTA award winning CEO of Apple Tree Productions, former Head of Drama at DR and producer of The Killing Piv Bernth will lead production. Blackwater will be adapted for television as a landmark, premium crime drama series by Maren Louise K ehne (Queen of Hearts, The Bridge, Borgen) and directed by Pernilla August (The Legacy, A Serious Game). Marek Wieser (Darling, Tigers, The Violin Player) will serve as Director of Photography and Oscar winning Anna Asp (Fanny and Alexander, Wallander) will handle production design.
Originally published in Sweden in 1993, Blackwater has since become available in 25 countries and the drama has pre-sold to DR in Denmark, NRK in Norway, YLE in Finland and RUV in Iceland. The story begins on a Midsummer night in 1970, when two tourists are found murdered in a tent, far up in the mountains of North Sweden, near the small town of Blackwater. The incident intersects four random people's lives, intertwining their destinies for better and for worse.
Blackwater is a powerful and compelling story, filled with unique, intriguing characters and many spectacular events, told through multiple points of view. Its setting - the log-filled Scandinavian forests - matches perfectly the ominous sense of foreboding that permeates the plot.
Anna Cronemann, Head of Drama at SVT, said:
Developing a novel as iconic as Blackwater into a series, inevitably means taking a huge risk. But with a beautiful script by Maren Louise K ehne, Piv Bernth producing and Pernilla August as Director, I'm certain we're about to make something quite extraordinary. I'm also thrilled about the collaboration with ARD.
Sebastian L ckel, Head of Acquisitions and Coproductions at ARD Degeto, said:
With the pedigree of the team behind this project and an outstanding plot we simply could not say no to this collaboration with SVT. We have great trust in the taste and ability of Piv Bernth, Maren Louise K ehne and Pernilla August to deliver something truly amazing that will entertain our audience on all platforms.
Piv Bernth, CEO Appletree Productions, said:
We are so proud to be the company that gets to make a landmark TV series of this iconic novel and feel lucky to be working with the incredibly talented writer Maren Louise K ehne and director Pernilla August in bringing this story to the screen. Together with our partners, SVT, ARD Degeto, Filmpool Nord and ITV Studios we are so much looking forward to presenting the series to Swedish, Nordic and international audiences.
Sandra Warg, CEO Filmpool Nord, said:
It is truly a great privilege to be a co-producer of this project adapted from an outstanding novel. This is a local story aimed for the global market. All the creative powers behind the TV series ensure the best prerequisites for a successful outcome, and I am really excited that Norrbotten will be a part of this - offering, among other assets, the vast and uniquely suggestive surroundings of our Arctic region.
Ruth Berry, Managing Director of Distribution, ITV Studios said:
Were really excited to take Blackwater to market. It's a gripping internationally renowned story, recreated by a team of leaders in their fields and backed by three committed partners from the outset. We couldnt be more delighted to represent Blackwater on the world stage at a time when demand for European drama is going from strength to strength.
Blackwater is the second production from ITV Studios-backed Apple Tree Productions following Equinox, a character-driven supernatural thriller series of 6 x 45 mins., currently shooting in Copenhagen for Netflix. The series has been developed with the support of Creative Europe - MEDIA Programme of the European Union.
* Blackwater was awarded the Swedish Publishers Association's August Prize 1993, the Swedish Crime Writers Academy Prize 1993 and The Nordic Council of Ministers' Literature Prize in 1994.
[end]
About Apple Tree Productions
Apple Tree Productions is a production company established in Denmark and In Sweden, which develops and produces high quality drama series for Nordic and international audiences.
The company was founded by Lars Hermann and Piv Bernth, who were behind international successes like The Killing, The Legacy, Follow the Money, The Bridge, Liberty and Ride Upon the Storm. Backed by ITV Studios, Apple Tree Productions pursues ideas big and small nationally as well as internationally.
SVT
Sveriges Television (SVT) is the Swedish public service television company with the widest range of programming of all TV companies in Sweden. Our vision is to contribute to a more inquisitive, informed Sweden. Our aim is to create content that engages, entertains and enriches - in the service of the public. SVT is together with the public service radio (SR) the most trusted Swedish media and enjoys a very good support from the Swedish TV audience.
ARD DEGETO
ARD Degeto is a wholly owned subsidiary of ARD. Its shareholders are the nine German regional broadcasters and their advertising subsidiaries. ARD Degeto acquires fictional programs for the ARD collective program Das Erste', for the Third Program' of the German regional broadcasters (BR, HR, MDR, NDR, Radio Bremen, RBB, SR, SWR, and W
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
23/06/2026
When we began planning our transition from an SDI-based infrastructure to a new ...
23/06/2026
Imagine Communications has announced the appointment of Greg Garmon as Senior Vice President, Americas Video Sales. Garmon will oversee account growth and busin...
23/06/2026
Snap has promoted Emma Wakely to Head of Sports and Media Partnerships, Americas, succeeding Anmol Malhotra, who has been elevated to Global Head of Content and...
23/06/2026
YES Network and The Gotham Sports App will air MI New York's Major League Cr...
23/06/2026
The Universal Talent Identifier (HAND) has issued HAND IDs to 34 top projected prospects in the 2026 NBA Draft class, including AJ Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer, and...
23/06/2026
World Boxing has announced the launch of World Boxing TV, a subscription-based streaming platform built on the Joymo platform, offering live events, on-demand c...
23/06/2026
FloSports will stream 32 off-road motorcycle racing events on FloRacing, includi...
23/06/2026
SES has announced the expansion of its ASTRA TV platform in Spain with the addition of 14 regional channels in HD and UHD quality and the launch of new hybrid s...
23/06/2026
Appear ASA has announced its role in Rede Legislativa de R dio e TV's contri...
23/06/2026
LTN has announced that PBS has selected it as its IP video partner to modernize content distribution and contribution across more than 330 public television sta...
23/06/2026
Ease Live has announced that its graphics overlay platform is powering an interactive fan experience on Rally.TV, the official streaming platform of the FIA Wor...
23/06/2026
Chyron has announced updates to Chyron LIVE, its cloud-native live production pl...
23/06/2026
ESPN has announced ESPN Fan House, a fan engagement hub powered by Flowcode, launching in August ahead of the 2026 college football season. Publicis Sports will...
23/06/2026
The city's solid position in broadcast, entertainment, and sports attracted the major microphone manufacturer
Sennheiser Group is moving its Americas Regio...
23/06/2026
128 channels of signal routing & DSP
Announced just before the NAMM Show 2026, Violet Audio's latest digital audio matrix offers 128 channels of signal ...
23/06/2026
Latest Current expansion created by EPROM
Minimal Audio have just launched the latest Current Expansion, Memory Rites. Designed in collaboration with renown...
23/06/2026
Popular hardware EQ gets official plug-in emulation
Undertone Audio have just launched a new plug-in that brings one of their most popular hardware designs ...
23/06/2026
December 7, 2022
Colorfront (colorfront.com) - the multi-award-winning develope...
23/06/2026
April 23, 2026
NAB 2026, Las Vegas - the Academy and Emmy Award-winning develop...
23/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/06/2026
PlayBox Neo appoints Besco as Channel Reseller to establish a firm foothold in Asia Pacific's thriving high-tech export-driven economic boom
PlayBox Neo, t...
23/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/06/2026
LTN, a global leader in IP-based video transport and network services, today announced that PBS has selected LTN as its IP video partner to modernize and future...
23/06/2026
LiveU will introduce its Q Era to Australia and New Zealand for the first time at ABE2026 on Stand No. 25, (July 30 31). Leading the showcase is the LU900Q, a n...
23/06/2026
Miri Technologies Inc. has begun shipping its highly anticipated V410 live 4K video encoder/decoder for streaming, IP-based production workflows and AV-over-IP ...
23/06/2026
DHD audio reports the completion of an upgrade to the audio production facilities at the Galilee headquarters of Radio Tzafon. The station broadcasts two progra...
23/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
23/06/2026
Multifaceted Growth Executive Brings 20+ Years of Experience Leading Organizations Across Tech and M&E
Imagine Communications today announced the appointment ...
23/06/2026
Australians in Film and Screen Australia's talent development initiative UNT...
23/06/2026
Visual Productions Unveils RdmRelay2 Four-channel Relay Control at InfoComm 2026
Brie Clayton June 22, 2026
0 Comments
New Relay Solution Combines DMX, ...
23/06/2026
SMPTE Makes Its Standards Freely Accessible, Opening Standards Library to the Gl...
23/06/2026
Also starring Jonny Lee Miller, Sheldon Shepherd and Bel Powley, the ambitious f...
23/06/2026
The priority now is a clear and credible plan
June 23, 2026, Winchester, UK - Arqiva, the UK's leading communications infrastructure provider, welcomes tod...
23/06/2026
The RT Toy Show Appeal has raised over 31 million since its inception in 2020 ...
23/06/2026
News Highlights:
NVIDIA technology runs 81% of the TOP500 and 90% of the systems new to the list.
26 systems on the TOP500 adopted the NVIDIA Grace CPU, up ei...
23/06/2026
Companies are asking how to build specialized AI that fits with the way their workflows actually run.
The first wave of enterprise AI was about access. Compan...
23/06/2026
Newly identified molecule strengthens the eye's response to damage in retinal disease Scripps Research discovery finds that restoring the naturally occurrin...
22/06/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
22/06/2026
Cosm has announced the appointment of David Ho as Chief Legal Officer, a newly created executive role reporting to President and CEO Jeb Terry. Ho will oversee ...
22/06/2026
Warner Bros. Discovery and Amazon Web Services (AWS) have announced the developm...
22/06/2026
Daktronics has completed an audio control system upgrade at Petco Park in San Di...
22/06/2026
Accelerate Media has named John Willi as President and announced the launch of the Accelerate Sports Network (ASN), a prep sports media and streaming platform c...