MIPCOM Spotlight: ZDF Enterprises

ZDF Enterprises’ (ZDFE) catalog features the new series The Window, a drama thriller that focuses on the off-field machinations of professional soccer.

Following one summer in the life of a 17-year-old wunderkind who is on every European club’s wish list, it will reveal the cutthroat schemes that occur behind the scenes.

Agatha Christie’s Hjerson, based on the detective character created by Agatha Christie’s fictional writer Ariadne Oliver, sees Hjerson and a TV producer team up to solve a string of murders. It is “a playful, meta, contemporary whodunit from the producers behind Midsommar,” says Fred Burcksen, president and CEO of ZDFE.

Based on the eponymous Swedish noir series, Before We Die follows Hannah Laing, a police detective who discovers her estranged son is an undercover informant in a brutal murder investigation.

In its ZDFE.junior catalog, ZDFE has a second season of the preschool series School of Roars. The series follows a group of little monsters as they attend school for the first time. Burcksen says, “Our monsters experience life lessons through their adventures such as caring, sharing, friendship and fun, mirroring the social and emotional behavior and group dynamics of our audience who is just starting school.”

Also with a second season available, Scream Street is a stop-motion animation series that features a young werewolf. In the real world, he has trouble making friends and his parents are afraid of him, but on Scream Street, he finds a supportive environment where he can be himself.

In The Muscleteers, a trio of mice living in a bustling port protects their fellow rodent residents from dangers such as cats, exterminators, construction and oblivious, stomping humans. The series “is all about helping and being there for each other,” says Burcksen.

“These stories are understandable for all children around the globe,” he adds.

Leading ZDF Enterprises’ factual catalog, Rescued Chimpanzees of the Congo with Jane Goodall was filmed over 30 years to follow the renowned primatologist and anthropologist’s journey to create the largest chimp sanctuary in Africa, which gives orphaned chimpanzees a chance to recover and eventually return to the wild.

Ancient Superstructures’ second season will continue to reveal the secrets behind the world’s most famous monuments, such as the Louvre, Angkor Wat and the Hagia Sophia.

Ancient Engineering explores the most intriguing feats of engineering from the ancient world, including the Egyptian pyramids, Stonehenge and the Great Wall of China.  Burcksen says, “We shed new light on the techniques, materials and innovative thinking behind each ancient engineering feat and offer a new perspective on their fascinating and important histories.”

“We can’t wait to see our long-standing partners and meet new ones as well,” Burcksen says.

He continues, “Let’s all join forces to get our industry up and running again.”