‘Nashville’ Exec Producer Steve Buchanan Ties With ‘The Cry’ Producer Synchronicity Films On Scottish Mystery Thriller

Peter White

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EXCLUSIVE: Nashville exec producer Steve Buchanan has teamed up with Synchronicity Films, producer of Jenna Coleman-fronted BBC drama The Cry, for a music-centered mystery thriller.

Buchanan, the former boss of famous music venue Grand Ole Opry and man behind the Connie Britton and Hayden Panettiere country music drama, is heading to Scotland for his latest television project, Shepherd’s Retreat.

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The scripted drama is a mystery thriller with a musical identity, set in a small Scottish village. Featuring original songs from a variety of styles including Scottish contemporary folk music and American tracks, the series, which is being developed into eight episodes, begins after the body of a local musician is discovered in the harbor opposite the local village pub.

Everyone in the village is cast with suspicion, not least a stranger who recently arrived in town. Despite his intention to seek solace in a place he thought could heal him, the stranger will be forced to join forces with a local cop to solve the town’s mystery. And along the way, he might just save himself.

Synchronicity MD and Creative Director Claire Mundell told Deadline that they were keen to put together a show that combined Scottish gothic mystery with music. “We have plenty of noir-ish thrillers but the music is the thing that will give it that point of difference,” she said. “It’s True Detective with music.”

The two companies are currently out for writers. Buchanan will exec produce through his SteadiBeat Media after stepping down from the Opry Entertainment Group last year. He said, “Claire Mundell and Synchronicity are the perfect producing partner to help bring this show to life. We plan to capture the same authenticity and dramatic flair that is true to Scotland that we found with Nashville”.

It is the latest crime project for Synchronicity. Last year, the drama producer had a huge hit with Jenna Coleman’s The Cry, which was one of the BBC’s biggest new dramas of the year, and it is working on an adaptation of Heather Morris’ novel The Tattooist of Auschwitz. Mundell added, “We’re excited to be developing a show with a modern twist to a much-loved genre.

 

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