THE FORTRESS WINS 'BEST SCREENPLAY' AT SERIES MANIA 2023
We are delighted to inform you that the dystopian thriller series THE FORTRESS has just been awarded ‘Best Screenplay’ at this year’s Series Mania 2023, that is Europe’s biggest event dedicated uniquely to television series.
COPENHAGEN, 24 March 2023 – Tonight at Series Mania in Lille, France, the Norwegian dystopian thriller series THE FORTRESS has been awarded ‘Best Screenplay’. THE FORTRESS was nominated as part of the International Competition, where it had its world premiere as the first two episodes were screened earlier this week at Series Mania and received great appreciation from both audience and the expert jury. The series will premiere on Viaplay later this year.
Screenwriter John-Kåre Raake was present during the award show Friday evening to accept the award and comments on the win:
'Our ambition, and the fundamental theme of The Fortress, is that in order to tackle the challenges the world is faced with, we need everyone. By telling this story, we want to show that withdrawing a nation from the world community and putting yourself first is not the best solution. So we are absolutely thrilled that an international jury understands and recognizes this by awarding us the prize for best screenplay'.
THE FORTRESS is based on the idea of and scripted by Linn-Jeanethe Kyed and John Kåre Råke (THE WAVE, 2015; THE QUAKE, 2018) and is directed by conceptual directors Mikkel Brænne Sandemose, who is particularly known for his family adventure franchise THE ASH LAD, and Cecilie Askeland Mosli, who directed episodes of the Primetime Emmy and Golden Globe-winning drama series and smash hit GREY’S ANATOMY (2005 -) and international Emmy Award-winning drama series MAMMON (2014-16).
Managing Director of TrustNordisk, Susan Wendt, comments:
'These are fantastic news and the award is incredibly well deserved for everyone involved in the series. We want to congratulate the whole team behind THE FORTRESS, but especially Linn-Jeanethe Kyed and John Kåre Råke, who wrote it. We were excited to show the first two episodes here at Series Mania but now we can't wait for the global audience to see it too'.
The series stars Norwegian actor Tobias Santelmann (OUT STEALING HORSES, 2019; KONTIKI, 2012) in the lead alongside British actor Russell Tovey (THE GOOD LIAR, 2019; YEARS AND YEARS, 2019) and talented upcoming actress Selome Emnetu.
Synopsis
In the near future, Norway has chosen to sever all ties with the rest of the world. Surrounded by an enormous wall, the nation has become entirely self-sufficient. The fortunate inhabitants enjoy a life of well-being in safety. However, when there’s an outbreak of a fatal disease, they soon find themselves trapped behind the very wall that was built to protect them.
THE FORTRESS is written by John Kåre Raake and Linn-Jeanethe Kyed and directed by Cecilie A. Mosli and Mikkel B. Sandemose. The series is produced by Ales Ree and Synnøve Hørsdal for Maipo Film, and co-producers are Violeta Drazdauskė and Kęstutis Drazdauskas for ArtBox. Executive producers from Viaplay are Kari Moen Kristiansen and Tanya Nanette Badendyck. It has received production support from Media Creative Europe, the Norwegian Film Institute and Zefyr. THE FORTRESS is a Viaplay Original. International sales are handled by TrustNordisk.
Expected broadcast on Viaplay in fall/winter 2023 with delivery set for Q3/Q4 2023. The series consist of 7 episodes of approx. 45 minutes each.