Israeli surrogacy drama “A Body That Works” has been renewed for a second season.
“A Body That Works” (titled “Goof Shlishi” in Hebrew) was Israel’s highest rating drama of 2023. The series, which stars Rotem Sela (“The Baker and the Beauty”) and “Fauda’s” Lior Raz, tells the story of a couple struggling with infertility who enlist a surrogate.
Season 2 will pick up directly after the last season, with Ellie (Sela) and Ido (Yehuda Levi) separated and co-parenting their son, who was delivered via surrogate Chen (Gal Malka). Raz plays a love interst.
Sela and Malka jointly won Series Mania’s best actress award at last year’s festival for their roles in the series.
All four leads return for the six-episode second season along with the creative team, comprised of director Shay Capon (“The Writer”) and executive producers Shira Margalit and Elad Koperman.
“Relationships and love will once again...
“A Body That Works” (titled “Goof Shlishi” in Hebrew) was Israel’s highest rating drama of 2023. The series, which stars Rotem Sela (“The Baker and the Beauty”) and “Fauda’s” Lior Raz, tells the story of a couple struggling with infertility who enlist a surrogate.
Season 2 will pick up directly after the last season, with Ellie (Sela) and Ido (Yehuda Levi) separated and co-parenting their son, who was delivered via surrogate Chen (Gal Malka). Raz plays a love interst.
Sela and Malka jointly won Series Mania’s best actress award at last year’s festival for their roles in the series.
All four leads return for the six-episode second season along with the creative team, comprised of director Shay Capon (“The Writer”) and executive producers Shira Margalit and Elad Koperman.
“Relationships and love will once again...
- 2/27/2024
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
“Shtisel” star Ayelet Zurer is set to lead a new Israeli drama titled “The Best Worst Thing.”
In the new show Zurer plays Dr Amalia Levi, a breast cancer specialist who finds a suspicious lump in her chest. As she begins her own breast cancer journey, this time as a patient, she is unexpectedly joined by Micha Hadad (Amos Tamam), a male politician who has also just been diagnosed.
“As they embark on a shared treatment journey together, fuelled by hope and fear, they discover they have more in common than a disease,” reads the logline. “Under the shadow of a ticking clock, Amalia and Micha discover that the worst thing that could possibly happen to them is also the best thing that has ever happened to them.”
The eight-part series, which will premiere on Feb. 19 in Israel on local network Keshet 12, was created by Rona Tamir, Tal Granit, and Sharon Maymon.
In the new show Zurer plays Dr Amalia Levi, a breast cancer specialist who finds a suspicious lump in her chest. As she begins her own breast cancer journey, this time as a patient, she is unexpectedly joined by Micha Hadad (Amos Tamam), a male politician who has also just been diagnosed.
“As they embark on a shared treatment journey together, fuelled by hope and fear, they discover they have more in common than a disease,” reads the logline. “Under the shadow of a ticking clock, Amalia and Micha discover that the worst thing that could possibly happen to them is also the best thing that has ever happened to them.”
The eight-part series, which will premiere on Feb. 19 in Israel on local network Keshet 12, was created by Rona Tamir, Tal Granit, and Sharon Maymon.
- 2/14/2024
- by K.J. Yossman
- Variety Film + TV
Exclusive: The Israeli producers and writers guilds have been in talks with Series Mania bosses after the festival’s chief said it was “impossible” for a show from the country to be included in its official selection this year.
Sources from the Israeli sector reacted with alarm and contacted Deadline after reading the quote from Laurence Herszberg. Since then, we understand the Israeli Producers Association (Ipa) and Screenwriters Guild of Israel have sought clarification, after a local Israeli news site reported that Israeli broadcasters and producers had, in fact, submitted numerous shows.
The issue began when, unveiling the competition participants earlier this week, Herszberg claimed that “in Israel, many ongoing projects were shut down, making it impossible for Series Mania to include an Israeli production” for the first time in the fest’s history. She added that the festival had been affected by “several international crises” including the Israel-Hamas War and Russo-Ukrainian War.
Sources from the Israeli sector reacted with alarm and contacted Deadline after reading the quote from Laurence Herszberg. Since then, we understand the Israeli Producers Association (Ipa) and Screenwriters Guild of Israel have sought clarification, after a local Israeli news site reported that Israeli broadcasters and producers had, in fact, submitted numerous shows.
The issue began when, unveiling the competition participants earlier this week, Herszberg claimed that “in Israel, many ongoing projects were shut down, making it impossible for Series Mania to include an Israeli production” for the first time in the fest’s history. She added that the festival had been affected by “several international crises” including the Israel-Hamas War and Russo-Ukrainian War.
- 2/9/2024
- by Max Goldbart
- Deadline Film + TV
Apple TV+ thriller “Suspicion” is set to hit the sales block in Cannes at this year’s MipTV market.
Keshet International has revealed that the eight-part series starring Uma Thurman will headline its drama slate at the spring TV market in France, which kicks off on April 17. The Israeli TV distributor will shop linear rights for the series.
Apple TV+ commissioned Keshet U.K. to produce “Suspicion,” which is based on the popular Israeli series “False Flag” and launched on the service in February 2022. Its sales foray marks one of the rare instances where an original on a streamer (that’s still available globally on the platform) has been sold on the open market for linear rights.
In recent years, major SVODs have been focused on keeping originals on their own platforms for extensive periods in order to drive subscribers. However, in this case, it’s Keshet International that holds...
Keshet International has revealed that the eight-part series starring Uma Thurman will headline its drama slate at the spring TV market in France, which kicks off on April 17. The Israeli TV distributor will shop linear rights for the series.
Apple TV+ commissioned Keshet U.K. to produce “Suspicion,” which is based on the popular Israeli series “False Flag” and launched on the service in February 2022. Its sales foray marks one of the rare instances where an original on a streamer (that’s still available globally on the platform) has been sold on the open market for linear rights.
In recent years, major SVODs have been focused on keeping originals on their own platforms for extensive periods in order to drive subscribers. However, in this case, it’s Keshet International that holds...
- 4/6/2023
- by Manori Ravindran
- Variety Film + TV
With Series Mania 2023 coming to a close, the event’s founder and general director Laurence Herszberg announced the winners of the Series Mania Festival today.
”We would first like to thank the public and the professionals who attended this edition, which brought together more than 85,000 participants for the Festival and 3,800 participants from 64 countries for the Forum. We are delighted to announce our prize list and figures that have far exceeded our expectations,” said Herszberg.
With the rise of streaming across the world, Series Mania has become one of the most attractive events in the global TV calendar. It’s largely looked at as a place where writers, distributors and producers can liase with each other in a less formal setting than compared to a TV sales market. It includes not just the festival, the Forum, key conferences, keynotes, and pitching sessions.
This year the festival screened 54 unreleased series, with 32 world premieres and 10 international premieres.
”We would first like to thank the public and the professionals who attended this edition, which brought together more than 85,000 participants for the Festival and 3,800 participants from 64 countries for the Forum. We are delighted to announce our prize list and figures that have far exceeded our expectations,” said Herszberg.
With the rise of streaming across the world, Series Mania has become one of the most attractive events in the global TV calendar. It’s largely looked at as a place where writers, distributors and producers can liase with each other in a less formal setting than compared to a TV sales market. It includes not just the festival, the Forum, key conferences, keynotes, and pitching sessions.
This year the festival screened 54 unreleased series, with 32 world premieres and 10 international premieres.
- 3/24/2023
- by Tom Tapp
- Deadline Film + TV
The Iranian series The Actor from director Nima Javidi picked up the top Grand Prize jury award at Series Mania, the international TV festival that wrapped in Lille, France on Friday night.
The drama from Iran is led by the Venice best actor winner Navid Mohammadzadeh and follows two down and out actors struggling to make ends meet as they run a derelict theater in Tehran with wealthy Iranians as patrons.
The international jury, led by screenwriter and producer Lisa Joy, also gave its best actor trophy to Michael Sheen for his performance the U.K. series Best Interests, while the best actress prize went to Margot Mancilhon for her star turn in the French series Haven of Grace.
The Series Mania international jury also gave the best writing trophy to John Kâre Raake for The Fortress series from Norway.
In other prize giving, the International Panorama jury, led by French writer Herve Le Tellier,...
The drama from Iran is led by the Venice best actor winner Navid Mohammadzadeh and follows two down and out actors struggling to make ends meet as they run a derelict theater in Tehran with wealthy Iranians as patrons.
The international jury, led by screenwriter and producer Lisa Joy, also gave its best actor trophy to Michael Sheen for his performance the U.K. series Best Interests, while the best actress prize went to Margot Mancilhon for her star turn in the French series Haven of Grace.
The Series Mania international jury also gave the best writing trophy to John Kâre Raake for The Fortress series from Norway.
In other prize giving, the International Panorama jury, led by French writer Herve Le Tellier,...
- 3/24/2023
- by Etan Vlessing
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Lille, France — Headed by a commanding performance from Navid Mohammadzadeh, superbly shot and packing arguably the best opening scene of any series in Series Mania main competition, Navid Javidi’s “The Actor” won the Grand Prize at Series Mania on Friday night.
The top Series Mania award for the “The Actor” also proves vindication for the Festival which this year has broadened its geographical reach in an effort to discover new narrative modes and styles. Consistently subordinating narrative to mood, “The Actor” certainly wins on that score.
Main scribe John Kåre Raake (“The Quake”) and co-scribe Linn-Jeanethe Kyed (“Bø”) scooped best writing for “The Fortress,” a banner upcoming Viaplay title produced by Norway’s Maipo Film and sold by TrustNordisk, which delivers a telling political cautionary tale for our times, a chic isolationist parable thriller set in an alternative Norway which has built a wall to keep foreigners out. When a virus strikes,...
The top Series Mania award for the “The Actor” also proves vindication for the Festival which this year has broadened its geographical reach in an effort to discover new narrative modes and styles. Consistently subordinating narrative to mood, “The Actor” certainly wins on that score.
Main scribe John Kåre Raake (“The Quake”) and co-scribe Linn-Jeanethe Kyed (“Bø”) scooped best writing for “The Fortress,” a banner upcoming Viaplay title produced by Norway’s Maipo Film and sold by TrustNordisk, which delivers a telling political cautionary tale for our times, a chic isolationist parable thriller set in an alternative Norway which has built a wall to keep foreigners out. When a virus strikes,...
- 3/24/2023
- by John Hopewell
- Variety Film + TV
Event wrapped in Lille against backdrop of nationwide unrest in France.
Navid Javidi’s The Actor starring Navid Mohammadzadeh was awarded the International Competition grand prize at 2023 Series Mania in the first year in which content from Iran participated in the event in Lille, France.
Series Mania founder and general director Laurence Herszberg summed up the event as it came to a close, noting that this year’s edition drew more than 85,000 festival participants – representing a significant increase on last year’s 70,000 – and around 3,800 from 64 countries for the industry forum.
Besides Iran, debutant participating countries included Japan, Argentina, UAE, Turkey,...
Navid Javidi’s The Actor starring Navid Mohammadzadeh was awarded the International Competition grand prize at 2023 Series Mania in the first year in which content from Iran participated in the event in Lille, France.
Series Mania founder and general director Laurence Herszberg summed up the event as it came to a close, noting that this year’s edition drew more than 85,000 festival participants – representing a significant increase on last year’s 70,000 – and around 3,800 from 64 countries for the industry forum.
Besides Iran, debutant participating countries included Japan, Argentina, UAE, Turkey,...
- 3/24/2023
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Israeli surrogacy drama series “A Body That Works” has an international trailer, shared with Variety by Keshet International, which handles distribution, in the run-up to the title’s Series Mania international premiere.
Created by Shira Hadad, Dror Mishani and Shay Capon, who also directs, the series shows one couple’s struggle to get pregnant. After suffering another miscarriage, Ellie and Ido make a life-changing decision: it’s time to consider surrogacy.
The eight-episode show is produced by Kuma Studios and broadcasted by Keshet 13 where it has proved a big hit in Israel, building ratings episode-by-episode, a rare TV phenomenon in the country.
“In Israel, surrogacy has been legal since 1997. However, unlike the U.S., it’s monitored by the state. You can’t do it just because you don’t want to get stretch marks. You have to prove there is a medical problem that prevents you from getting pregnant,...
Created by Shira Hadad, Dror Mishani and Shay Capon, who also directs, the series shows one couple’s struggle to get pregnant. After suffering another miscarriage, Ellie and Ido make a life-changing decision: it’s time to consider surrogacy.
The eight-episode show is produced by Kuma Studios and broadcasted by Keshet 13 where it has proved a big hit in Israel, building ratings episode-by-episode, a rare TV phenomenon in the country.
“In Israel, surrogacy has been legal since 1997. However, unlike the U.S., it’s monitored by the state. You can’t do it just because you don’t want to get stretch marks. You have to prove there is a medical problem that prevents you from getting pregnant,...
- 3/21/2023
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
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