NENT Group and Filmlance adapt Astrid Lindgren’s ‘Ronja the Robber’s Daughter’ as major Viaplay Original
- Family fantasy series based on Astrid Lindgren’s world-famous story ‘Ronja the Robber’s Daughter’
- ‘Ronja’ written by ‘The Bridge’ creator Hans Rosenfeldt and directed by Lisa James Larsson (‘Victoria’)
- Swedish-language series produced by Bonnie Skoog Feeney and Mattias Arehn (‘Beartown’) as producers for Filmlance, a Banijay company, and executive produced by Sara Askelöf for NENT Group
Nordic Entertainment Group (NENT Group) and Filmlance International, a Banijay company, are partnering with The Astrid Lindgren Company to adapt Astrid Lindgren’s world-famous story ‘Ronja the Robber’s Daughter’ into a major Viaplay Original family fantasy series. Scripted by ‘The Bridge’ creator Hans Rosenfeldt, directed by Lisa James Larsson (‘Victoria’) and featuring groundbreaking visual effects, ‘Ronja’ represents a milestone in establishing NENT Group’s position as the leading producer of premium Nordic content for local and international audiences. The series will premiere exclusively on NENT Group’s Viaplay streaming service from 2023 with 12 episodes across two seasons.
‘Ronja the Robber’s Daughter’ is one of the best-known books by Astrid Lindgren, who is among the world’s most translated and best-selling authors with more than 75 books published. Her work has been translated into over 100 languages and sold more than 165 million copies, and has been adapted for more than 70 feature films and TV productions. Alongside Ronja the Robber’s Daughter, Lindgren’s characters include Pippi Longstocking, Emil in Lönneberga and The Children of Noisy Village.
The series ‘Ronja’ follows the adventures of a young girl born into a band of robbers in a medieval Scandinavian fortress. As Ronja grows up, she learns that the surrounding forest can be a magical and sometimes dangerous place filled with strange creatures. But when Ronja befriends the young boy Birk from a rival band, a vicious family feud ignites, at the same time as a notorious bailiff arrives to rid the area of robbers once and for all. Ronja and Birk flee into the forest and try to survive on their own.
Filippa Wallestam, NENT Group Chief Content Officer: “Ronja’s confidence and complexity make her one of my all-time favourite characters. This classic story of a strong and independent girl was always far ahead of its time, and its themes of friendship, closeness to nature and questioning one’s assumptions are so relevant today. It is a privilege to work with such a top-class creative team to bring ‘Ronja’ to Viaplay viewers around the world, and this project shows just how quickly our ambitions are growing. For a Nordic storyteller like NENT Group, adapting an Astrid Lindgren work is as big as it gets.”
Cilla Nergårdh, CEO of The Astrid Lindgren Company: “Artistic quality is the number one priority for The Astrid Lindgren Company. We always strive to partner with the best creators, just as Astrid Lindgren did in her time. We have worked closely with the creative team on this project and have no doubt that this new version of ‘Ronja the Robber’s Daughter’ will fully live up to our high ambitions.”
Mattias Arehn and Bonnie Skoog Feeney, producers for Filmlance: “We’ve grown up with Ronja just like so many others and we are extremely proud and humbled by this huge undertaking. The story of Ronja is a timeless story about the struggles to find your own place in the world, go your own way and be your own person. All of this in a world that is complicated, dangerous but also wonderful and magical. With the huge support we have received from NENT Group, we want to produce a series that is an epic and thrilling adventure, an homage to nature, for the entire family.”
Casting for ‘Ronja’ is ongoing and announcements will be made in due course. The Swedish-language series is executive produced by Sara Askelöf for NENT Group, with Bonnie Skoog Feeney and Mattias Arehn (‘Beartown’) serving as producers for Filmlance International.
Every year, NENT Group will produce two major English-language films about Nordic figures and events, beginning with ‘Hilma’, a biopic of the Swedish artist and feminist pioneer Hilma af Klint written and directed by Lasse Hallström (Oscar-nominated for ‘The Cider House Rules’ and ‘My Life as a Dog’) and starring Lena Olin (Oscar-nominated for ‘Enemies, A Love Story’).
About NENT Group’s original productions
NENT Group is set to premiere at least 50 Viaplay Originals in 2021. In the past three months, ‘Two Sisters’; season two of ‘Face to Face’; ‘Threesome’; ‘A Class Apart’; ‘Home Invasion’; ‘Dystopia’; and ‘Max Anger’ have premiered on Viaplay.
Recently announced originals include ‘Ida Takes Charge’; season two of ‘The Machinery’; ‘The Prize of Silence’; ‘Sort Of’; ‘The Uninhabitable Earth’; ‘Polish Murderesses’, ‘Black Dog’ and ‘Freedom of the Swallow’; season two of ‘Partisan’; season three of ‘Honour’; seasons three and four of ‘Hammarvik’; ‘The Holiday’; seasons two and three of ‘Pørni’; ‘Red Election’; ‘Hilma’; ‘Billy the Kid’; ‘Sisterhood’; ‘Who Shot Otto Mueller?’; a biopic of Börje Salming; ‘Fadime’; ‘Taylor’s Island’; ‘Kin’; ‘What about Monica’; ‘Trom’; ‘THE KINGDOM EXODUS’; ‘Made in Oslo’; ‘Estonia: The Last Wave’; ‘Suedi’; season two of ‘Stella Blómkvist’; season two of ‘Wisting’; ‘The Box’; ‘Furia’; ‘Close to Me’; ‘The Swarm’; season two of ‘The Truth Will Out’; ‘Harmonica’; ‘Perfect People’; and ‘Margeaux’.
NENT Group has established a UK-based joint venture with FilmNation Entertainment and invested in US studio Picturestart.
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NOTES TO EDITORS
Nordic Entertainment Group AB (publ) (NENT Group)’s Viaplay streaming service is available in every Nordic country, in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, and in Poland. Viaplay will launch in the US in 2021 and the Netherlands in 2022, followed by additional markets by the end of 2023. We operate streaming services, TV channels, radio stations and production companies, and our purpose is to tell stories, touch lives and expand worlds. Headquartered in Stockholm and with a global outlook, NENT Group is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm (‘NENT A’ and ‘NENT B’).
About The Astrid Lindgren Company
Astrid Lindgren’s children and grandchildren own The Astrid Lindgren Company. There are currently 16 people employed by the company, most of whom are experts in different fields of copyright. We are based in Stockholm, but our work covers the globe. The foundation on which our work is built is the love of Astrid Lindgren and her work. We are convinced that the world needs Astrid Lindgren – perhaps now more than ever before.
About Filmlance
Filmlance, a Banijay company, is one of Scandinavia’s leading production companies, and behind critically acclaimed drama and feature films. The company created global hit ‘The Bridge’, originally written by Hans Rosenfeldt, which has sold to over 180 countries and has adapted in eight markets including UK/France, Singapore/Malaysia and more. Recent and forthcoming credits include ‘Caliphate’ (SVT/Netflix), ‘Beck’ (SVT), ‘The Sandhamn Murders’, ‘Top Dog’ and ‘Beartown’ (HBO). Coming up soon is a remake for Netflix of 90s cult film ‘Vinterviken’.
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