ZDF Enterprises & Red Balloon to Adapt Alea Aquarius

ZDF Enterprises and the German production company Red Balloon Film are set to co-develop and produce an adaptation of the best-selling Alea Aquarius German young adult novels by Tanya Stewner.

Alea Aquarius is planned as a 26×26-minute series and feature film and will be made in English. The series will address issues that are important to young people, such as pollution, and tells the story of the mergirl Alea and her friends from the Alpha Cru, who together want to save the oceans and the Earth from destruction.

Production is due to be completed in 2021/2022. Dorothe Beinemeier, producer and managing director at Red Balloon, has already adapted the books and also took care of the project development and financing on the German side. The first collaboration between ZDF Enterprises and Red Balloon was the young adult series Heirs of the Night, which was launched at a World Premiere TV Screening at MIPJunior.

The Alea Aquarius books are available in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Japan, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and the Czech Republic and are due out soon in Italy. The fifth volume, Alea Aquarius: The Message of the Rain, was published in Germany on October 7.

Arne Lohmann, VP of ZDFE.junior, commented: “In the days of Fridays for Future and Greta Thunberg, environmental issues are a hot topic, especially among young people, and this series could not be more in tune with the times.”

Beinemeier said: “With Alea Aquarius, author Tanya Stewner has succeeded to tell a story that meets the zeitgeist and spirit of an extraordinary generation, as if she had guessed that Greta Thunberg would come. POWER TO THE CHILDREN!”

Julia Bielenberg, managing publisher at Oetinger Publishing Group, said: “Alea Aquarius is one of the most successful children’s book series of recent years and we are very glad to see the bestseller of Tanya Stewner being adapted for the screen now! The exciting adventure series sends out an important and highly topical message: Save the oceans, protect the underwater world from pollution and ensure a more sustainable use of nature. In doing so, the series really strikes a chord with today’s children.”

Stewner added: “I’m really happy that my books are being made into a movie and that there are such great partners on board!”