Beta Film Sells Ukrainian War Drama ‘In Her Car’ to NHK Japan as Creator Eugen Tunick Speaks Out: ‘We Are Still Here and We Are Still Fighting’ (EXCLUSIVE)
13.02.2024 - 10:49
/ variety.com
Marta Balaga Beta Film has sold Starlight Media and Gaumont Ukrainian war drama “In Her Car” to NHK Japan, Czech Republic, Latvia and Slovakia. Further negotiations are underway. Created by Eugen Tunick – who directs alongside Arkadii Nepytaliuk – and backed by ZDF, France Télévisions and all Nordic public broadcasters, and “In Her Car” sees therapist Lydia (Anastasia Karpenko) trying to divorce her husband.
It’s February 2022 and the war has started, but instead of following her daughter’s advice and fleeing the country, Lydia starts helping strangers, driving them to their destinations. The show is set to world premiere on Feb. 19 in Berlin as part of a special event dedicated to the future of Ukraine in Europe, hosted by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.
“The idea was to tell one story per episode: There is always a new passenger. That being said, it was also essential to follow Lydia’s story, because it keeps developing throughout the whole season. One of these people can perhaps help her solve a mystery that has been on her mind for the last eight years,” explained Tunick.
Lydia, who puts on a brave front, lost a sister. And soon, she will have to address her trauma. “At one point, she becomes a passenger too.
Usually, she is silent and composed, but those walls will eventually come down.” A Starlight Media and Gaumont production, “In Her Car” was made in co-production with ZDFneo, France Télévisions, SRF Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen in association with The Dreaming Sheep Company, SVT, DR, NRK, RUV and YLE. “This war has changed us,” admitted Tunick. “Suddenly, when someone needed help, they would get it.