Entered into: Best Reality Format 2022
Produced by: Fremantle
For: Real Time and Discovery+
Distributed by: Keshet International
Five party girls abandon booze, boys, and smartphones and move into a Catholic convent for four weeks of life-changing spiritual guidance in this authentic, insightful, and warmly humorous reality series. How will these two vastly different groups cope when the wild materialistic lifestyle of the millennial generation collides with the devoted, simple existence of nuns of the Suore Oblate del Bambin Gesù?
An Italian convent in Sorrento at La Culla has agreed to open its doors for the very first time, hosting five millennial women as they embark on a spiritual journey far removed from social media, selfies, and one-night stands.
With their phones confiscated and make-up banned, the girls are plunged into a back-to-basics environment dedicated to reflection, prayer, and good deeds in the community. As they struggle to meet the demands of life as a nun and confront the reality of their own habits, we’ll witness dramatic emotional breakdowns, serious wake-up calls, and frank conversations, as well as get a rare glimpse behind the scenes at a convent.
Can the nuns’ vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience provide relevant signposts for young people trying to survive in a social media-obsessed world? Everyone has a desire to find their way and, as these open, insightful, and often witty nuns set about showing the girls an alternative approach to their lives, both groups will find unexpected connections and build deep bonds despite their differences.
When the month comes to an end, the sisters set the girls their final and toughest mission yet – to go home for a week and put to work the lessons they have learned. The transformations may be remarkable, both inside and out, but will they last in the "outside world"? And what can the rest of their generation – and the rest of us – learn from their experience?
This format was originally produced in the UK by Crackit Productions for Channel 5, and to date has been adapted in Belgium (SBS), the Netherlands (NPO), and Italy (Discovery’s Real Time), where it’s been reordered for a second season in 2022.
