Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

SVT commissions Apple Tree Productions' event tv series Blackwater

26/02/2020

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
LINK: https://www.itv.com/presscentre/press-releases/svt-commissions-apple-t...
See more stories from itv

Most recent headlines

01/12/2025

L3Harris and PentenAmio Formalise Agreement to Advance Key Management and Secure Communications Technology

L3Harris and PentenAmio formalise their teaming agreement at MilCIS 2025, streng...

01/12/2025

Artemis II: A Mission of Veterans, Firsts and Lunar Dreams

Artemis II is NASA's first crewed flight test of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft. The crew, from left: Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Vic...

01/12/2025

Wooden Camera Releases Accessory Collection for Canon EOS C50

IRVINE, Calif. Wooden Camera has introduced its new Accessory Collection for the Canon EOS C50. The new lineup includes a low-profile, gimbal-ready cage, expand...

01/12/2025

FCC to Vote on LPTV Rules at December Public Meeting

WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has released a tentative agenda for its Dec. 18 Open Commission Meeting that will include a vote on a report an...

01/12/2025

2026 Local TV Ad Forecasts Offer Growth and Uncertainties

In most years, a graph of annual local TV ad spending is about as predictable as an electrocardiogram of a reasonably healthy patient in a doctor's office. ...

01/12/2025

Increasingly Software-Centric Switchers Occupy Hybrid Space

Many industries have seen big-ticket hardware turn into software. Switchers, though, demand a combination of real-time performance and sheer bandwidth that has ...

01/12/2025

China to Host ITU World Radiocommunication Conference 2027

GENEVA Shanghai will host the next quadrennial Radiocommunication Assembly (RA-27) and World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC-27), Oct. 11-Nov. 12, 2027. This...

01/12/2025

Broadcasters Foundation Seeks Donations for Giving Tuesday

NEW YORK Just in time for Giving Tuesday tomorrow (Dec. 2), the Broadcasters Foundation of America is seeking out donations to help television and radio industr...

01/12/2025

Net Insight CEO Crister Fritzson Sets 2026 Retirement

STOCKHOLM, Sweden Net Insight CEO Crister Fritzson has informed the company's board that he will retire from the video transport and media cloud technology ...

01/12/2025

Kyivstar and Ukrainian Ministry of Digital Transformation Select Google Gemma as the Foundation for Ukraine's National LLM

01 Dec 2025 Kyivstar and Ukrainian Ministry of Digital Transformation Select Go...

01/12/2025

Sky unveils official trailer for highly anticipated prequel Gomorrah The Origins coming to Sky and NOW early 2026

The prequel to the global hit Sky Original mob crime saga, Gomorrah' is a s...

01/12/2025

Step inside Nick Caves Veiled World a one-off special featuring Florence Welch, Flea and more, premiering 6 December on Sky and NOW

Featuring Florence Welch, Red Hot Chilli Peppers' Flea, designer Bella Freud...

01/12/2025

A DowntoEarth, AllTooRelatable Hero: Cashero' Teaser Trailer Unveiled, Premieres December 26

Back to All News A Down to Earth, All Too Relatable Hero: Cashero' Teaser ...

01/12/2025

The Hidden Impact of Bad Conversion

In the rush to deliver content to every screen, many broadcasters overlook one of the most crucial steps in the workflow: format and frame rate conversion. Get ...

01/12/2025

Fox Corporation Chief Financial Officer Steve Tomsic to Participate in Upcoming UBS Global Media and Communications Conference 2025

Fox Corporation Chief Financial Officer Steve Tomsic to Participate in Upcoming ...

01/12/2025

Arvato Systems' Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) Receives BSI C5 Certification (Type 2) Following Audit by HLB Stckmann

Arvato Systems' Virtual Private Cloud (VPC) Receives BSI C5 Certification (T...

01/12/2025

Consumer Magazines Returns System - 2025 Update

Summary This short video gives you an summary of the changes in under two minutes. --...

01/12/2025

From Ballet to Books: RT is Supporting 12 Arts and Cultural Events all over Ireland this December

As the festive season approaches, RT Supporting the Arts is proud to showcase a...

01/12/2025

At NeurIPS, NVIDIA Advances Open Model Development for Digital and Physical AI

Researchers worldwide rely on open-source technologies as the foundation of their work. To equip the community with the latest advancements in digital and physi...

01/12/2025

Lights, Camera, Christmas: RT rings in the Season S an Nollaig

Festive specials of Christmas in Kilmainham presented by Marty Whelan, High Road Low Road, Callan Kicks the Year and Keys to My Life Ring in the New Year with ...

01/12/2025

Architect and presenter Hugh Wallace dies aged 68

Architect and television presenter Hugh Wallace, best known to RT audiences as a long-serving judge on Home of the Year, has died at the age of 68. In a state...

28/11/2025

Brides Asks for Compassion for Our Youths

Nadia Fall attends the 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere of Brides at the Egyptian Theatre on January 24, 2025, in Park City, Utah. (Photo by Donyale West/...

28/11/2025

4 Reasons Why Keeping Your Spotify App Updated Matters and What You Might Be Missing

It's easy to ignore those little red update available badges. But when it ...

28/11/2025

FCC to Vote on LPTV Rules at Dec. Public Meeting

WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission has released a tentative agenda for the December Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, December 18, 2025 ...

28/11/2025

Professional Fighters League Packs a Domestic, International MMA Punch (TV Sportsplay)

The Professional Fighters League is looking to super-serve fans of mixed martial...

28/11/2025

Fubo Launches Multiview Beta on Roku

Fubo has released in beta on select Roku devices a new feature that lets users display up to four simultaneous streams at once....

28/11/2025

WNBA Playoffs Continue: What's On This Weekend in TV Sports (Sept. 28-29)

The WNBA playoffs and Week 4 of the NFL regular season highlight the list of live sports events airing on television this weekend....

28/11/2025

Freeze Frame: B+C Hall of Fame 2024

The 32nd class of honorees to the B+C Hall of Fame took to the stage at New York's Ziegfeld Ballroom on September 26 for a gala induction event. Click below...

28/11/2025

Next Text: As DirecTV and Dish Try to Seize the Remains of the Day, Does It Even Matter?

We hold in our hands the very last Next Text for Next TV, the weekly back-and-fo...

28/11/2025

DirecTV Acquires Dish, Unifying Struggling Satellite Business

DirecTV said it made a deal with EchoStar to buy EchoStar's video businesses, including satellite-TV provider Dish TV and virtual MVPD Sling TV, for $1 plus...

28/11/2025

B+C Hall of Fame Announces Its Class of 2025

The Broadcasting+Cable Hall of Fame, the premier industry event paying tribute to the influencers, innovators and shining lights of broadcast, cable and streami...

28/11/2025

Sky Sports x Slawn drop limited-edition football jersey that unlocks a month of free content from the home of sport

Friday 28 November 2025 Sky Sports x Slawn drop limited-edition football jersey...

28/11/2025

Rohde & Schwarz shows resilience in a challenging environment, revenue exceeds three billion euros for the first time

Rohde & Schwarz shows resilience in a challenging environment, revenue exceeds t...

28/11/2025

Changing children's lives for good: Donations for the RT Toy Show Appeal 2025 open tonight

Unwrapped: The Toy Show Appeal - airing this Sunday on RT One and RT Player- s...

27/11/2025

Vizrt Launches Viz One 8.1 With AI-Powered Features

LONDON Vizrt has added several AI-driven advanced features offering improved speed, intelligence and accuracy in the newest version of its media asset managemen...

27/11/2025

Prime Video Debuts AI-Powered Video Recaps

Prime Video has launched AI-powered video season recaps in a beta version for select English-language Prime Original series in the U.S., a move Amazon is callin...

27/11/2025

Netflix's 'Raat Akeli Hai: The Bansal Murders' Marks a Grand World Premiere at IFFI Ahead of Its Global Release on 19th December

Back to All News Netflix's Raat Akeli Hai: The Bansal Murders Marks a Grand...

27/11/2025

Sky unveils first look image from high-stakes action thriller Prisoner, coming 2026

Tahar Rahim and Izuka Hoyle star in the gripping six-part Sky Original from Acad...

27/11/2025

Sky Arts Reveals the Nations Greatest Basslines and Queen Reign Supreme

Thursday 27 November 2025 Sky Arts Reveals the Nation's Greatest Basslines - and Queen Reign Supreme The UK's most iconic basslines have been revealed...

27/11/2025

Stranger Things 5': Prepare for One Last Adventure With Our Final Season Coverage Guide

Back to All News Stranger Things 5': Prepare for One Last Adventure With O...

27/11/2025

Elastic Compute for a Sustainable Media Industry

The media industry has a paradox at its core. It's an industry built on light, color and imagination, yet behind the scenes, it's powered by one of the ...

27/11/2025

Arqiva Achieves Five-Star GRESB Rating

Rating reflects rating progress across areas including policies, diversity & inclusion, health & safety and Net Zero leadership Winchester, UK, 27 November 202...

27/11/2025

Retail Media Audits Explained: What Networks Need to Know

What are the industry standards for Retail Media? Kathryn explains that certification is based on the IAB Europe Retail Media Measurement Standards and the IAB ...

27/11/2025

Katie Taylor, Rachael Blackmore and Arthur Gourounlian among the guests on this week's Late Late Show

World champion boxer and Irish sporting icon Katie Taylor will be in studio this...

27/11/2025

Tonight on RT Prime Time, serious child protection concerns emerge over online gaming platform, Roblox

Roblox, one of the world's most popular online gaming platforms for primary ...

27/11/2025

The Ultimate Black Friday Deal Is Here

Black Friday is leveling up. Get ready to score one of the biggest deals of the season - 50% off the first three months of a new GeForce NOW Ultimate membership...

26/11/2025

SVG Sit-Down: Prime Video EP Mike Muriano Previews Massive Black Friday Slate Featuring NFL, NBA, and Golf

SVG Sit-Down: Prime Video EP Mike Muriano Previews Massive Black Friday Slate Fe...