• Joyn, Germany’s new streaming service, announces its first original drama series commission
  • Now in production in Germany and Chile by Story House Productions and Invercine & Wood
  • Commissioned by Joyn Germany and MEGA Chile
  • Distributed worldwide by Red Arrow Studios International
  • A haunting drama inspired by the real-life story of a German cult in Chile

Red Arrow Studios International has acquired major new drama series Dignity, commissioned by Joyn in Germany and MEGA in Chile.

The show is the first original drama series commissioned by Joyn, the new German streaming platform launched in June 2019 by ProSiebenSat.1, Red Arrow’s parent company.

Dignity (8 x 52’) is a major new political thriller produced by Story House Productions in Germany and Chilean film and TV producer Invercine & Wood, in co-production with the Chilean television fund CNTV and MEGA, and is currently in production in Germany and Chile. Dignity will launch on Joyn alongside other premium product in December 2019, and in Chile during 2020.

Red Arrow Studios International has secured global distribution rights to the drama, and will launch the series together with Joyn and MEGA at MIPCOM 2019.

Dignity is created by María Elena Wood and Patricio Pereira (‘Ramona’, ‘Mary & Mike’) and written by Andreas Gutzeit (‘Sprite Sisters’, ‘Open Desert’), Paula del Fierro and Enrique Videla (‘La jauría’). Julio Jorquera  (‘Ramona’, ‘Mary & Mike’) and Nancy Rivas (‘Berlin, I Love You’) are directing the series, which stars Marcel Rodriguez (‘7 Days Berlin’), Götz Otto (‘Iron Sky’, ‘Tomorrow Never Dies’), Devid Striesow (‘The Counterfeiters), Jennifer Ulrich (‘The Wave’, ‘We Are The Night’), Antonia Zegers (‘El Club’, ‘Los perros’), Martina Klier (‘La Vacanza’, ‘Nati ieri’) and Nils Rovira-Muñoz (Goliath96, ‘SOKO 5113’)

Katja Hofem, CCMO and Managing Director  of Joyn, said: “We are very proud to offer this high-class series with international star appeal to our German audience. Joyn believes in local story-telling, and this story is of German and international relevance. This production is an important step for our young platform and shows our commitment to original production.”

Bo Stehmeier, President, Red Arrow Studios International, said: “Dignity is a gripping and tense thriller which sheds a fresh light on this dark chapter of German and Chilean history. With a narrative thread high in emotion and drama, coupled with the outstanding creative power of both Invercine & Wood and Story House Productions behind the show, we’re confident the series will make for important viewing and captivate audiences around the world.”

Dignity is a haunting thriller inspired by the real-life story of a German cult in Chile. Established by former Nazi soldier Paul Schaefer in a quiet Chilean town, the mysterious, Germanic cult ‘Colonia Dignidad’ forged a four-decades-long history of torture, child abuse and murder within the walls of its vast compound, protected by General Pinochet’s dictatorship.

Now, with a new government in power, Chile is finally ready to end Colonia’s violent legacy. Young federal prosecutor Leo Ramírez is tasked with bringing the cult’s elusive leader Paul Schaefer to justice. But Leo has his own secret history with Colonia. 20 years ago, his younger brother Klaus died there under mysterious circumstances, and it was Schaefer himself who paid for Leo’s education in Germany to keep him quiet.

Leo is determined to tear the walls of Colonia down once and for all – but when a young man claiming to be Klaus suddenly turns up alive, Leo must finally confront the demons that tore his family apart all those years ago.

Joyn is the new streaming service from ProSiebenSat.1 and Discovery featuring the largest free TV offering in Germany. With Joyn, viewers can watch live streams of 55 channels on a single platform. All channels from ProSiebenSat.1, Discovery, Viacom, WELT, Sport1, channels of public broadcasters ARD and ZDF, plus other partners are included in the service. Joyn also offers a vast on-demand library of original series, shows and exclusive preview, and more than 40 TV shows including ‘Grey’s Anatomy’. Joyn also has an attractive on-demand offering, enabling viewers who have missed a TV show or want to watch it again, a 30-day catch-up library. All content can be accessed without registration and Joyn already has over 3.8 million active monthly users across all devices.

In addition to Dignity, exclusive productions already announced include: a new season of ‘jerks’ with Christian Ulmen and Fahri Yardim; new comedy -drama ‘Die Läusemutter’;  and two Joyn originals: ‘Singles’ Diaries’ and ‘Technically Single’. In winter 2019, the series ‘Check Check’ with Klaas Heufer-Umlauf and ‘Frau Jordan stellt gleich’ with Katrin Bauerfeind will launch, produced exclusively for the Joyn Premium offer.

Story House Productions is an Emmy-nominated media production company with offices in Washington D.C., Berlin, Munich and Halifax. Founded in 1999, Story House has leveraged its unique position as a global media content provider in the United States and Europe. Its programs have been commissioned and aired by top broadcasters across the globe for over two decades.

Invercine & Wood, based in Santiago de Chile, was created in 2016 by Matias and Macarena Cardone, Andrés and María Elena Wood, and Patricio Pereira,  merging  two of Chile’s leading audiovisual companies, both recognized and awarded for the quality of their work. Some of their originals TV series are Ramona (Fipa D’Or 2017) and Mary & Mike (official selection Berlinale 2018). As the premier  producer of premium TV series in Chile, Invercine & Wood develops and produces both fiction series and documentaries for the national and international markets.