Sagafilm’s Minister wins Cineflix vote

UK-based sales house Cineflix Rights has picked up rights to one of Icelandic prodco Sagafilm’s latest productions, which has a host of Nordic pubcasters on board.

Ólafur Darri Ólafsson

The Minister (8×60′) is a political drama series starring Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Trapped, True Detective, The Missing).

It is being produced in collaboration with RÚV in Iceland, NRK in Norway, SVT in Sweden, DR in Denmark and YLE in Finland.

The series follows Benedikt Ríkhardsson (Ólafsson), who takes a unique approach to politics, surfing a wave of popular discontent with the establishment that earns him the support of Icelanders, leading him to become chair of the Independence Party and the country’s prime minister. However, Benedikt is also suffering from bipolar disorder.

The Minister is written by Birkir Blær Ingólfsson, Björg Magnúsdóttir and Jónas Margeir Ingólfsson. The series is directed by Nanna Kristin Magnúsdóttir and Arnór Pálmi Arnarson.

Julien Leroux, senior VP, global scripted coproductions at Cineflix Media, who brokered the deal, said: “The Minister sits alongside the best Nordic dramas of the past few years and reflects the new world of populism. It has a taut plot which follows the rise of a populist but flawed politician and how his team deals with the impact of his behaviour on the traditional political system and their ability to govern.”

The producer of The Minister is Anna Vigdís Gísladóttir and the line producer is Birgitta Björnsdóttir. Executive producers are Sigurðsson, Kjartan Thor Thordarson, Thorhallur Gunnarsson and Ólafur Darri Ólafsson.

Sagafilm recently made The Flatey Enigma, based on a novel by Viktor Arnar Ingólfsson, with Reykjavik Films and Sky Vision, and Stella Blómkvist, which is based on a book series by the pseudonymous author of the same name. The latter is distributed by Red Arrow Studios International.