{"id":23682,"date":"2025-10-21T10:15:08","date_gmt":"2025-10-21T14:15:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/revisiting-kudamm\/"},"modified":"2025-10-28T09:45:29","modified_gmt":"2025-10-28T13:45:29","slug":"revisiting-kudamm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/revisiting-kudamm\/","title":{"rendered":"Revisiting\u00a0Ku\u2019damm"},"content":{"rendered":"

The stunning German drama Ku\u2019damm 77<\/em>, the fourth installment in the iconic period series, had its world premiere screening at MIPCOM last week in the presence of several new and returning cast members. Following the screening, Annette Hess, creator and showrunner; Maurice H\u00fcbner, director; Marc Lepetit, executive producer at UFA Fiction; and Dr. Markus Sch\u00e4fer, president and CEO of ZDF Studios, took to the stage of the Grand Auditorium to share the story of how the series came to be in conversation with\u00a0World Screen<\/em>\u2019s Mansha Daswani.<\/p>\n

The series returns to follow the trials and tribulations of the Sch\u00f6llacks and their Berlin dance school, first introduced in\u00a0Ku\u2019damm 56<\/em>\u00a0and revisited in\u00a0Ku\u2019damm<\/em>\u00a059<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Ku\u2019damm<\/em>\u00a063<\/em>. The new series picks up the Sch\u00f6llack story in 1977, a 14-year gap since the last installment.<\/p>\n

For Hess, it all started with a desire to talk about what life was like for young women in Berlin in the 1950s. \u201cMy mother told me a lot about her youth\u2014about her girlfriends and how they weren\u2019t allowed to go to rock and roll dances and things like that,\u201d Hess said.<\/p>\n

The significant time jump was central to season four\u2019s raison d\u2019\u00eatre, allowing the series to introduce a third generation of Sch\u00f6llack women as young adults.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a writer, you always have to find a new idea, a new vision,\u201d Hess explained. \u201cI wanted to tell [a story] with a three-generation household where different characters with different opinions are living together, and they want to live together. That\u2019s why it works. We all have a desire to be who we are, live together, love each other and strive with each other. That\u2019s why I needed a younger generation. And Germany\u2014what happened in the second half of \u201977 was unbelievable,\u201d Hess said, referencing the horrific events of the German Autumn. \u201cIt\u2019s also the time of disco and women still struggling for emancipation,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Re-creating the look and feel of 1977 Berlin was no easy feat, Lepetit said. The goal, he noted, was \u201cto bring the \u201970s to life in a way that you can almost smell it. It\u2019s not like just having these moments where you have posters that say, \u2018It\u2019s 1977.\u2019 It is reacting to what happened politically within society. And the team who did the set design, the costuming, makeup, put so much focus on re-creating that time in detail.\u201d<\/p>\n

H\u00fcbner discussed the environment he wanted to create on set among the new and returning cast members. \u201cIt was important for me to create an atmosphere that is free and safe,\u201d he said. \u201cA safe space where they can take risks in their acting. These characters changed a lot in 14 years. We gave them a stage where they felt comfortable to try, or maybe fail. We worked closely with Annette, and she was always on set. There was a new energy in the room, and everyone felt that challenge; it made all of them do their best performances.\u201d<\/p>\n

The series was a tremendous success for ZDF Studios, which licensed the show to 30-plus markets. \u201cIt\u2019s a universal story,\u201d Sch\u00e4fer noted. \u201cWe have themes about identity, love and changes in society. We have three generations, so there is an appeal for every audience group you want to address as a broadcaster or a streamer. The fourth season can also stand alone. You do not need to know of the first three seasons. But, of course, we will also offer you a bundle of all four seasons if you want to have that!\u201d<\/p>\n

Sch\u00e4fer also stressed the importance of \u201clighthouse\u201d productions amid the rising dominance of YouTube and the creator economy. \u201cThis is brand-defining for ZDF but also for other clients we serve. I encourage everybody in the industry to go for strong stories, high production values, lighthouse productions, because this is the kind of show we all remember, that will unite, that will serve as a connection in society and foster discussions across generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lepetit pointed out how the show can attract younger generations to linear broadcasters and catch-up services. \u201cIt\u2019s not just about how YouTube and Instagram are changing the market. We need to have these stories, these themes, these moments in linear storytelling, because people are still watching.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Annette Hess, Maurice H\u00fcbner, UFA Fiction\u2019s Marc Lepetit and ZDF Studios\u2019 Dr. Markus Sch\u00e4fer talk about Ku\u2019damm 77.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":290,"featured_media":23683,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[77,70],"tags":[11544,11254,10283,11546,11545,4932],"class_list":["post-23682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-features","category-top-stories","tag-annette-hess","tag-dr-markus-schafer","tag-kudamm-77","tag-marc-lepetit","tag-maurice-hubner","tag-zdf-studios","pmpro-has-access"],"yoast_head":"\nRevisiting\u00a0Ku\u2019damm - TVDRAMA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/revisiting-kudamm\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Revisiting\u00a0Ku\u2019damm - TVDRAMA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Annette Hess, Maurice H\u00fcbner, UFA Fiction\u2019s Marc Lepetit and ZDF Studios\u2019 Dr. Markus Sch\u00e4fer talk about Ku\u2019damm 77.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/revisiting-kudamm\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"TVDRAMA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-10-21T14:15:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-28T13:45:29+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2025\/10\/Kudamm-Screening-1025.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"640\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"394\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Mansha Daswani\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Mansha Daswani\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/revisiting-kudamm\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/revisiting-kudamm\/\",\"name\":\"Revisiting\u00a0Ku\u2019damm - TVDRAMA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-21T14:15:08+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-10-28T13:45:29+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/#\/schema\/person\/83da304c8bad8bfdb3edd7eb47cfe5ad\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/revisiting-kudamm\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/revisiting-kudamm\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/revisiting-kudamm\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Revisiting\u00a0Ku\u2019damm\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/\",\"name\":\"TVDRAMA\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/worldscreen.com\/tvdrama\/#\/schema\/person\/83da304c8bad8bfdb3edd7eb47cfe5ad\",\"name\":\"Mansha Daswani\",\"description\":\"Mansha Daswani is the editor-in-chief and associate publisher of World Screen. 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