NRK Orders Marianne Ihlen & Leonard Cohen Drama

Buccaneer Media and Redpoint Productions have been commissioned by the Norwegian state broadcaster NRK to produce the new drama series So Long, Marianne.

The eight-part English/Norwegian-language series is based on the lives of Marianne Ihlen and Leonard Cohen. It’s a story of two equally lonely people falling in love during a period of their lives when they are still trying to figure out who they are and what their place in the world is.

The stories take place across the world, traveling from Marianne’s home in Oslo to London, New York and Montréal, with the majority of the series set on the Greek island of Hydra, where Marianne and Leonard lived during the 1960s.

So Long, Marianne will be co-produced with Cineflix Media-backed Connect3 Media, which will facilitate the Canadian elements of the production. The series will start production in February 2023.

It is being developed by Ingeborg Klyve, Øystein Karlsen and Tony Wood and written for the screen by Redpoint’s Karlsen (Dag, Lilyhammer, Exit, Whitstable Pearl).

Buccaneer Media’s joint CEOs, Tony Wood and Richard Tulk-Hart, said: “We’re delighted to be building on our long-standing relationship with Redpoint. Developing this series has created a world [that] audiences will love diving into. NRK has supported us from the very beginning, and it’s fantastic to be producing with them. We look forward to announcing the cast in the very near future.”

Karlsen added: “It feels like the way the world is right now, a series that celebrates life and love, with a core about finding your way in life, is needed more than ever.”

Marianne Furevold-Boland, executive producer, and Petter Wallace, head of content commissioning and sales in NRK, said: “Øystein Karlsen has shown in his previous projects that he can create original dramas that are both exciting and emotional. We believe this project has the potential to become a timeless drama with a universal appeal—it is about life and the pursuit of happiness.”