Viaplay adapts Gulraiz Sharif’s ‘Listen Up!’ as major Norwegian feature film

• Gulraiz Sharif’s acclaimed novel one of Norway’s most popular in 2021
• ‘Listen Up’ directed by prize-winning Kaveh Tehrani (‘The Manchador’) and stars BAFTA-nominee Asim Chaudhry (‘People Just Do Nothing’)
• Viaplay set to premiere at least 70 Originals in 2022

Gulraiz Sharif’s acclaimed novel ‘Listen Up!’ will become a major Norwegian film from Viaplay, in partnership with Motlys and Arthaus. A lively and warm exploration of identity, class and family, ‘Listen Up!’ marks Kaveh Tehrani’s (the prize-winning short ‘The Manchador’) directorial debut feature and is now filming in Oslo. The film joins the World War II drama ‘Gold Run’ on Viaplay’s Norwegian feature slate, and will stream on Viaplay following a cinema window in autumn 2023.

In Oslo, 15-year-old Mahmoud is looking forward to the summer vacation. All that’s missing is a job, money or something to do. So when his uncle arrives on a visit from Pakistan, Mahmoud takes on the task of showing him everything the capital city has to offer. At the same time, his younger brother Ali lets him in on a very personal secret, leaving Mahmoud facing the biggest test of his life to keep the family together.

The film stars newcomers Mohammed Ahmed and Liza Haider, alongside award-winning British star Asim Chaudhry (‘Wonder Woman 1984’; ‘Black Mirror: Bandersnatch’), recipient of a Royal Television Society Award and two BAFTA Television Award nominations for ‘People Just Do Nothing’.

Kaveh Tehrani: “Not fitting into today’s Norway is something I recognise. I want to make a movie for everyone who feels the same, and which engages viewers regardless of whether they have Pakistani roots. ‘Listen Up!’ will be a modern, rich and enjoyable portrait of a wonderful family from east Oslo. The film will be bold and angry, charming and generous, and always full of love.”

Filippa Wallestam, Viaplay Group Chief Content Officer: “Gulraiz Sharif’s novel was the most borrowed book from the Oslo Public Library in 2021 – which just shows its remarkable appeal. The characters are multi-layered and the themes universal. This is a film for everyone, and we’re proud to bring it to Viaplay viewers in Norway and internationally, together with a hugely talented creative team.”

The film is scripted by Erlend Loe (‘Quick’) and Nora Landsrød (‘Stockholm Bloodbath’), with Ingvil Berger and Yngve Sæther producing for Motlys and Kari Moen Kristiansen as executive producer for Viaplay Group.

‘Listen Up!’ (Norwegian title: ‘Hør her’a!’) is produced in partnership with Norsk filminstitutt, Nordisk Film & TV Fond, and Oslo Filmfond.

About Viaplay Originals

At least 70 Viaplay Originals are set to premiere in 2022. Upcoming Originals include ‘End of Summer’; ‘R.I.P. Henry’; ‘Below’; ‘Thunder in My Heart’ season two; ‘Live Life’; ‘There's Something Going On’; ‘It Could Have Been Us’; ‘Threesome’ season two; ‘R.S.V.P.’; ‘The Fortress’; ‘The Hunt for Jasper S.’; ‘Liv Ullmann: The Road Less Travelled’; ‘Those Who Kill’ season three; ‘Face to Face’ season three; ‘The Meaning of Life’; ‘Something Stupid’; ‘The Guilty’; ‘Stockholm Bloodbath’; ‘Delete Me’ season two; ‘Boys’; ‘The Dreamer – Becoming Karen Blixen’; ‘Fenris’; ‘Gold Run’; ‘Last Light’; ‘Cell 8’; ‘Elvira’; ‘North Sea Connection’; ‘Limbo’; ‘Litvinenko’; ‘Karma and Jonar’; ‘Ronja’; ‘The Uninhabitable Earth’; ‘Polish Murderesses’; ‘Black Dog’; ‘Freedom of the Swallow’; ‘Honour’ season three; ‘Pørni’ season three; ‘Hilma’; ‘Who Shot Otto Mueller?’; a biopic of Börje Salming; ‘Fadime’; ‘Taylor’s Island’; ‘What about Monica’; ‘THE KINGDOM EXODUS’; ‘Estonia: The Last Wave’; ‘Stella Blómkvist’ season two; ‘The Swarm’; ‘Perfect People’; and ‘Margeaux’.

Two major English-language films will be produced by Viaplay every year. The company has also established a UK-based joint venture with FilmNation Entertainment and invested in US studio Picturestart.

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NOTES TO EDITORS

Viaplay Group AB (publ) is the international streaming challenger. Our Viaplay streaming service is available in every Nordic and Baltic country, Poland, the US and the Netherlands, and we are expanding rapidly by launching in the UK in 2022, followed by Canada, Germany, Austria and Switzerland in 2023. Viaplay will have a market presence in at least 21 countries by the end of 2023, including at least five partner markets for the Viaplay Select branded content concept. Every day, millions of customers enjoy our unique entertainment offering, including acclaimed Viaplay Originals and an unrivalled line-up of premium live sports. From streaming to TV channels, radio stations and production companies, our purpose is to tell stories, touch lives and expand worlds. Viaplay Group is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm (‘VPLAY B’).

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