Faits Divers Lands in the Americas

All four seasons of the Québec drama series Faits Divers (Crime Stories) have been acquired by Olympusat for Latin America and the U.S.

First broadcast on Radio-Canada, Faits Divers is written by Joanne Arseneau, directed by Stéphane Lapointe and stars Isabelle Blais, Émile Proulx-Cloutier and Patrick Hivon. The series, whose adaptation rights have been acquired in France, is currently available on ICI Tou.TV Extra and on CBC Gem with English subtitles.

Encore Télévision-Distribution, Videoplugger and production house Sovimage confirmed the pick up of Faits Divers by Olympusat.

John Baghdassarian, VP of content acquisitions at Olympusat, said: “The television industry is transitioning; we are no longer limited by our borders. At Olympusat, we understand that great content transcends all cultures and languages, which is why we continue to invest in movies and series with high production value and great stories from all over the world. We pride ourselves in our international offerings, and we are eager to share it with our audience.”

Chrystine Girard, head of international distribution at Encore Télévision-Distribution, said: “Thanks to this agreement signed in close collaboration with Videoplugger, Faits Divers will make inroads in these territories. All of the seasons will be offered with subtitles and dubbed into Spanish, Portuguese and English.”

Emanuele Galloni, CEO Videoplugger, said: “We fell in love with Crime Stories at the GIFF festival in Geneve 2018, when its first season premiered in the old continent. It’s great to see after four years its four seasons landing on the screens of our long-time partner Olympusat across North and South America. We’re proud of the collaboration with Encore Télévision-Distribution and Sovimage, with whom we share this success.”

Sophie Deschênes, president and producer at Sovimage, said: “The strength of Faits Divers lies in its writing and directing. Its unusual characters, well-crafted investigations and its totally mad world always surprise—it’s pure pleasure.”