Elisa Viihde Teams with A+E Networks for New Original

Elisa Viihde’s new original series Next of Kin has started filming, produced in partnership with A+E Networks.

The story is set in the near future in Finland’s capital city of Helsinki. The lead character Liv, played by Nika Savolainen, decides to discover what happened to her DNA sample when it was stolen from a biobank, but unknowingly ends up being dangerously pursued.

This eight-part series will become available next year on the Elisa Viihde Viaplay, a brand-new streaming service launching this fall.

Mark Lwoff, Misha Jaari and Pilvi Kuusrainen from Bufo are producing the series for Elisa Viihde. It is produced in collaboration with A+E Networks, which will also be distributing the series worldwide, as well as with Business Finland and the Finnish Film Foundation.

Ani Korpela, head of Elisa’s content business, said: “We are seeing Finns are increasingly using streaming services to watch new series, and so are keen to continue introducing fresh Finnish content. When Elisa Viihde Aitio and Viaplay join forces this autumn, Finnish, Nordic and international series will be available on one service in the future. It’s great that we can offer the first Elisa Viihde original series to our customers that is the result of stellar talent from both Finland and Denmark.”

Scriptwriter Minna Panjanen added: “It has been particularly interesting to write this script because the series deals with the next stage of evolution, which people themselves have developed. At the same time, Next of Kin is an entertaining family drama in which the characters keep challenging each other.”