WorldScreenings: Global Screen Flies High on Turbulent Skies

Alexandra Heidrich, Global Screen’s head of acquisitions and sales for international TV and SVOD, gathered the company’s sales team for a video interview with Turbulent Skies producer Idse Grotenhuis and director Joram Lürsen. Together, they offer exclusive insights into the creation of the series and share some of the secrets to bringing this historical drama to life on the screen.

Set in the early days of Dutch aviation, the eight-part drama series Turbulent Skies is embedded in the history of the Roaring Twenties and Dirty Thirties. The story portrays the feud fought between Albert Plesman (director of KLM) and Anthony Fokker (a famous pilot and aircraft manufacturer) between 1919 and 1939.

Although both men shared a passion for flying, they couldn’t have been more different. Born to humble means, Plesman was an honest, hard-working family man who was happily married all his life. Fokker came from a wealthy family and was a notorious playboy and womanizer who didn’t play by the rules. The two men were intrinsically tied together, though: Plesman needed airplanes to keep the ailing KLM afloat, and Fokker needed a big customer to buy his planes. Despite their differences, they jointly ensured that the Netherlands became a global player in the field of aviation.

The series is in line with the state-of-the-art drama that’s so popular with TV audiences today. It depicts a historical setting with dynamic camera work, cutting-edge visual effects and high-end art direction. Turbulent Skies is scheduled to broadcast on Dutch national television, NPO1, this fall. The 8×50-minute drama is produced by Topkapi Series, in co-production with Avrotros.

See Global Screen’s Summer 2020 Showcase here.