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Red Arrow adds Irish-Kiwi copro mystery The Gone to its slate down under

Richard Flood and Acushla-Tara Kupe

Red Arrow Studios International has come onboard as distributor for an Ireland/New Zealand coproduction starring Richard Flood (Grey’s Anatomy) and Acushla-Tara Kupe (Under the Vines).

The Gone (6×60’) is described as “a gripping new mystery series” from Wellington-based Kingfisher Films and Blinder Films of Dublin, in association with Southern Light Films (NZ) for Irish pubcaster RTÉ and TVNZ of New Zealand.

The coproduction started principal photography on location in Auckland and Te Aroha, New Zealand this week with further shooting in Dublin, Ireland in late 2022.

The show was presented at the Berlinale Copro Series event in 2021 but has since gained Southern Light as a production partner, with Red Arrow taking distribution rights outside Ireland and New Zealand.

It is the latest antipodean scripted series to be acquired for distribution by Red Arrow, after deals for New Zealand comedy Kid Sister and Australian anthology series Summer Love, as well as Aussie dramedy While the Men are Away.

The exec producers for The Gone are Karl Zohrab for Kingfisher Films, Yvonne Donohoe (Striking Out) and Katie Holly (Mr Malcolm’s List) for Blinder Films, with producer Timothy White for Southern Light Films, producer Reikura Kahi (Waikato) and exec producer Greg Bailey. The series was created by Simone Nathan (Our Flag Means Death) and Zohrab and developed by Anna McPartlin, Michael Bennett and Donohoe.

The show is about an Irish detective who is sent to New Zealand and teams up with a Kiwi cop to investigate the disappearance of a young Irish couple, leading him to battle civil unrest, the spectre of a serial killer and the manipulation of a corporate giant, alongside his own personal demons.

The English-language show also features the Māori language “woven organically through the series, reflective of a nation on a journey towards embracing the Māori language,” said producer Reikura Kahi.

The Gone is made with support from Te Puna Kairangi, the New Zealand government’s Premium Productions for International Audiences Fund and New Zealand’s Screen Production Grant, Screen Ireland/Fís Éireann, RTÉ, TVNZ, NZ On Air and the BAI Sound & Vision Fund.

“The Gone is a thrilling concept that is sure to resonate with our viewers across TVNZ 1 and TVNZ+,” said Cate Slater, TVNZ’s director of content, while Dermot Horan, director of acquisitions and coproductions at RTÉ described the series as “a cracking drama which will hopefully have viewers glued to their seats both in Ireland and New Zealand.”

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