LOS ANGELES – Continuing to bolster its line-up of original series in development, Dynamic Television has partnered with Australia’s Essential Media, with the assistance of Screen Queensland, to develop and distribute Troppo. The crime drama series is based on the critically acclaimed novel Crimson Lake by The New York Times #1 bestselling author Candice Fox.
Daniel March and Holly Hines of Dynamic will serve as executive producers along with Chris Hilton and Simonne Overend from Essential Media.
The television adaptation of Troppo (8x1hr) is being written by award-winning screenwriter and director Yolanda Ramke. In 2013, Ramke wrote, performed in and co-directed the Tropfest finalist film, Cargo, with Ben Howling. A viral success online, it garnered rave reviews, over 14 million views on YouTube, and an international festival run including several Academy Award accredited events.
Ramke made her feature co-directing debut in 2016 alongside Howling with an expanded take on Cargo which stars BAFTA and Emmy Award winning actor Martin Freeman, and premiered internationally at the Tribeca Film Festival in April 2018. It is currently available on Netflix in 189 countries around the world and blazed a trail overseas as Australia’s first Netflix Original feature film.
“As we continue to expand our development slate, we look for the best creative talent and partners worldwide,” said Hines, Senior Vice President of Original Content for Dynamic. “Crime drama is a genre we know very well. Yolanda Ramke is an incredibly prolific writer and Essential Media is uniquely suited for this exciting series. With these terrific partners on board, I’m confident that Troppo will be a fantastic addition to our line-up of distinct and original programming.”
Essential Media CEO Chris Hilton added: “Supporting home-grown creative talent like Yolanda Ramke is a real focus for us and our collaboration on Troppo with Dynamic creates an exciting opportunity to bring original, and authentic Australian stories to international audiences.”
An Australian slang word for going crazy by the tropical heat, Troppo follows an ex-cop falsely accused of a disturbing crime and a human whirlwind female private investigator, who also did time for murder, as they set out to unravel the truth behind the strange death of a local inhabitant. A partnership which seemed doomed from the outset, it slowly begins to take on another dimension, and in the process, both wayward souls are offered the chance for redemption.
Crimson Lake, upon which Troppo is based, is written by award-winning Australian author Candice Fox. She regularly collaborates with crime legend James Patterson and was co-writer of Never, Never, the #1 New York Times bestseller in February of 2017, and its sequel, Fifty Fifty.
