REinvent Kicks Off Pre-Sales on Hot New Scandi Drama ‘Outlier’ (EXCLUSIVE)

Elsa Keslassy
·3 min read

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REinvent, the banner launched by TrustNordisk’s former CEO Rikke Ennis, has come on board “Outlier,” a female-led crime thriller set in Arctic wilderness amid the Sami community.

The eight-part series was created by Arne Berggren, the award-winning Norwegian novelist, playwright and rock musician, and Kristine Berg, the duo behind “The River” (“Elven), “The Dead Ones,” “Maria” and “Hotel Caesar,” Scandinavia’s longest running melodrama series.

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REinvent will kick off pre-sales for “Outlier” at the Cannes virtual market with a teaser. The series, which is lensing in English, Norwegian and Sami, is expected to be delivered in September.

Produced by Shuuto Arctic, the series follows Maja Angell, an acclaimed young academic in London who specializes in profiling serial killers and aims to develop analytical tools to predict serious crimes. One day, she learns of a young women who has been murdered in her hometown, in the Norwegian wilderness, and decides to head back home to her Sami community to be part of the investigation and track down the killer. As Maja must think like the criminal to fight him and anticipate his next move, the hunt leads her to confront her own demons.

“Shuuto Arctic is all about finding stories that have not been told before and that are original, surprising and entertaining. We believe ‘Outlier’ is such a story,” said Berggren at Shuuto Arctic.

Ennis, who is executive producing the series with Berggren, Berg and Kjetil Jensberg at Filmcamp Nord, said, “REinvent is constantly trying to push the boundaries and look for untouched grounds.”

“When we first read the scripts of ‘Outlier,’ which was a fresh take on serial killers, and when we saw the stunning location, we knew that this was a project we want,” said the executive, who added that “TV channels and streaming services are in high demand for finished content so it’s a good time to be launching fresh content and exciting new stories coming out of the Nordics.”

Directors on the series include Ken Are Bongo, a Sami photographer and filmmaker who is familiar with the Arctic environment, as well as Arne Berg and Kristine Berg.

“The international market is looking for finished content and ‘Outlier’ should be a good fit for a number of buyers,” pointed Helene Aurø, sales and marketing director at REinvent.

“I see a big potential in a crime story set in a remote area of the north that not many people have seen before. The story itself is fascinating and I am sure it will travel far,” added Aurø.

“Outlier” stars Stein Bjørn, Eila Ballovara Varsi, Benjamin Noble, Hanne Mathisen Haga, Jonas Delerud, Egil Keskitalo and Erik Smith-Meyer.

 

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