Another German drama to US network

A German drama set in 1980s East Berlin is heading to a US channel, marking the second such deal in TV history.

Weissensee, an intense ARD Degato family drama from Ziegler Film, will broadcast on multichannel net MHz Networks with English subtitles following a deal with distributor Global Screen.

This deal follows SundanceTV picking up Deutschland 83, an agreement thought to represent the first time a German-language drama had been acquired for the US.

The series takes its name from the locality in the then-divided city of Berlin that housed the Stasi secret police-run Hohenschönhausen prison, and follows a police officer from a party-loyal family that falls in love with a woman from a family of dissidents.

In Germany, the show is heading into a third season this fall. Its first episode, launched nearly five years ago, took 5.68 million viewers and an 18% share in Germany. It has already sold to the likes of YLE in Finland and SVT in Sweden.

Scripted fare from Germany is enjoying a boom period akin to that experienced in Scandinavia and France in recent years.

“Some of Germany’s most prolific producers, like UFA Fiction [Deutschland 83], Constantin, Ziegler and Bavaria Film have developed highly interesting TV movies and series, which can compete in the international market more and more,” said Global Screen’s head of TV sales, Marlene Fritz told TBI.