ZDF Studios Takes on Eco-Thriller Lume

ZDF Studios has secured the international distribution rights to Lume, an eco-thriller set against the wildfire crisis on the northern Portugal-Spain border.

Produced by Lisbon’s Coral Europa and Setemedia in Santiago de Compostela, Lume is set in a hamlet called Seara, which is on the Portugal-Galicia border. A massive forest fire is blazing there, and journalist Lucía is investigating. She starts to uncover the powerful economic interests behind the forest fire.

The six-part suspense drama will be streamed on Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max in Spain and Portugal. It will air at the same time on RTP and Televisión de Galicia (TVG), the public broadcasters of Portugal and Galicia, respectively.

The series was executive produced by Setemedia’s Alberto Domínguez and Coral Europa’s José Amaral and was created by Irene Pin and co-written by Pin and Sara Rodi.

The cast includes Lúcia Moniz (Love Actually, Uma Vida à Espera), Albano Jerónimo (The Domain) and Ricardo Pereira (Amor Amor), along with Cristina Castaño (La que se avecina), Xúlio Abonjo (Sin plomo) and Alfonso Agra (Serramoura).

“We were sold on the subject matter and the partners involved right away,” said Susanne Frank, director of drama at ZDF Studios. “We’ve been working with Spain and Portugal for decades, and we’re really happy to be able to build on that and work together more and more on joint projects and co-productions.

Lume is directed by International Emmy-winning and two-time nominated Sérgio Graciano (Laços de Sangue) and Giselle Llanio (Pazo da familiar).

Alberto Domínguez, executive producer at Setemedia, said: “Lume is a thriller, which is one of the best commercial vehicles out there, but it’s the first TV series to portray wildfires as a social issue. It’s not just Spain and Portugal that are seeing more and more wildfires. Germany and Canada are also affected. It’s a global issue, and we’re shooting it with a lot of respect.”

Bruno de Lima Santos, managing director of Coral Europa, added: “The secret is also in two words we’ve used to describe its genre from the beginning: eco thriller. Ecological issues concern all societies, and thrillers are in market demand. Combining the two, our series is a curious hybrid, attracting attention from broadcasters and society at large.”