UFA signs Haneke for sci-fi series

Germany’s UFA Fiction has teamed up with award-winning filmmaker Michael Haneke on an English-language TV drama.

Michael Haneke

Kelvin’s Book, Haneke’s first TV series, is an adventure story set in the not-too-distant future and follows a group of young people in a dystopian world.

UFA Group CEO Nico Hofmann and UFA Fiction CEO Benjamin Benedict will serve as executive producers on the 10-part series.

“No contemporary director has moved and inspired me more than Michael Haneke,” Hofmann said. “Kelvin’s Book is an extraordinarily rich, gripping and ambitious story. With contemporary themes and a reflection of the digital age that we live in, there’s no better time for this project.”

Haneke added: “After 10 TV movies and 12 films, I wanted to tell a longer story for once.”

The filmmaker has won multiple awards for his works, which include Funny Games, The Piano Teacher, Caché, The White Ribbon, the Oscar-winning Amour and, most recently, Happy End.

The collaboration marks the latest creative partnership for UFA parent FremantleMedia. The company has in recent years allied with a number of acclaimed filmmakers and screenwriters, including Paolo Sorrentino on The Young Pope, Neil Gaiman on American Gods and Neil Cross on Hard Sun.