Having previously announced the second edition of its’ Series Mania Buyers Upfront, Laurence Herszberg, Founder and General Director of Series Mania, has announced the ten titles selected to be showcased during this invitation-only event set for March 23 at the Chamber of Commerce (CCI), in Lille’s historic city center.
The event will kick-off with the exclusive BETA Brunch, the well-known industry staple in the international marketplace, and will end with the Buyers Upfront Official Dinner in partnership with Pernel Media, both events by invitation only. The winner of The ‘Buyers Choice Award’, selected by a six-person jury of key buyers, will be presented during the Awards Ceremony on March 24 at the Hôtel Barrière.
“We’re thrilled to bring back the Buyers Upfront following last year’s successful launch. More than 100 top buyers from around the world have already signed up to discover a highly curated slate of premium series. We’re confident the initiative will help distributors accelerate international sales. With the Buyers Upfront, we continue to strengthen our position as the must-attend spring event for the scripted community, from creation to global distribution,” commented Francesco Capurro, Director of Series Mania Forum.
Curated by the Series Mania Festival’s artistic team, the ten selected titles, based on both artistic merit and broad audience appeal, include:
Alice
Format: 6×45′
Country: France, Belgique, Canada
Year of production: 2025
Genre: Drama, Other
International Sales: Wild Bunch TV
Production company: Wild Bunch & Ligne de Front (France) / Panache Productions & La Compagnie Cinématographique (Belgium) / Sphere Media (Canada)
Synopsis: From France to the US, the incredible journey of Alice Guy, a pioneer and the first female fiction filmmaker in cinema history. The series explores the extraordinary life of Alice Guy—a woman who was an artist, entrepreneur, wife, and mother. It delves into her struggles, her thwarted loves, and her quest for freedom and recognition.
Blind
Format: 6×58′
Country: Switzerland
Year of production: 2025
Genre: Thriller, Other
International Sales: OneGate Media GmbH
Production company: OneGate Media GmbH
Synopsis: Bern, today: In the middle of the night, the blind bartender Nathaniel shows up at a police station covered in blood and claims that a pregnant woman has been kidnapped in his bar. At the crime scene, the police finds signs of struggle—and take Nathaniel into custody. While Inspector Sandro Bandini considers him the prime suspect, the investigative journalist Milla Nova takes Nathaniel’s side, having known him since their shared hospital stay…
Counsels
Format: 8×60′
Country: United Kingdom
Year of production: 2025
Genre: Drama
International Sales: All3Media International
Production company: Balloon Entertainment – ZDF NEO – Bbc – Bbc Scotland
Synopsis: Five young lawyers trained together at an elite law school in Glasgow. Six years later, they’ve spread out across the legal profession. This legal environment is ground level, stylish and sexy, weaving the personal stories of the main characters with propulsive defense and prosecution. Business relationships, friendships and love affairs will be tested to destruction as these young and ambitious lawyers and friends lock horns.
Gnomes
Format: 6×30′
Country: Australia
Year of production: 2025
Genre: Comedy, Other
International Sales: Happy Accidents
Production company: Screen Invaders – Total Fiction
Synopsis: Set in a fading small-town on the eve of their first annual Gnome-a-Palooza festival, Senior Sergeant Arnold Kipps is reunited with his ex-partner from the force (and ex-love) Senior Constable Ellie McKay, who has returned to shut down his beloved station. But when the town’s gnome population is brought to life by an ancient evil, the pair must lead a motley crew of locals in a desperate fight to save their home from the coming gnome-apocalypse.
In Vitro
Format: 6×45′
Country: Spain
Year of production: 2026
Genre: Drama, Comedy
International Sales: Beta Film GmbH
Production company: Moiré Films, Rodar y Rodar, and Bullfrog Pictures, in co-production with 3Cat, with the participation of HBO Max
Synopsis: A heartwarming, innovative, and witty look at how babies are made: When 37-year-old microbiologist Blanca takes on a job at a fertility clinic, she is forced not only to get to the bottom of the needs and risks of her clients, but her own, as well.
Lost and Found
Format: 6×48′
Country: Japan, Singapore
Year of production: 2025
Genre: Drama
International Sales: Empire of Arkadia
Production company: Empire of Arkadia – Mocha Chai Laboratories – TV MAN UNION
Synopsis: Introverted Singaporean gamer Richie’s world is turned upside down when his caring online Japanese gamer girlfriend,”Sakura” disappears without a trace. On a whim, Richie decides to head to Tokyo to search for her, enlisting the support of his new-found gamer friend, Yuka, on arrival. Despite their different backgrounds, they are thrown together in their shared mission-finding Sakura-only to become further embroiled in the city’s dark underworld…
Number 10
Format: 6×60′
Country: United Kingdom
Year of production: 2026
Genre: Drama
International Sales: ITV Studios
Production company: Hartswood Films
Synopsis: Multi -award-winning writer Steven Moffat (Sherlock) and the acclaimed team at Hartswood Films deliver a bold, witty take on life at 10 Downing Street. Stars Jenna Coleman, Rafe Spall, and Katherine Kelly.
R91
Format: 6×52′
Country: France
Year of production: 2026
Genre: Thriller, Action
International Sales: SND Groupe M6
Production company: Next Episode
Synopsis: Mediterranean Sea. France’s nuclear aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle (R91) has just set sail on a strategic mission. When a crew member is found dead and another goes missing, military investigator Paul Fischer is rushed aboard. With second-in-command Helena Duval, they must hunt for the truth before the killer strikes again. In a floating fortress of 2,000 souls, suspicion spreads and a murder investigation turns into a global security crisis.
The Dark Book: The Secret of the Egerias (working title)
Format: 6×45′
Country: Spain
Year of production: 2026
Genre: Thriller
International Sales: Studio TF1
Production group: Studio TF1
Synopsis: Unai, a former top criminal profiler, left the police after his daughter was kidnapped and now lives quietly as a professor in Vitoria. His life is turned upside down when two rare book owners are murdered and he receives an enigmatic call: his mother, Ithaca, presumed dead for forty years, is alive. To save her, he must find a legendary medieval book, one that could expose secret societies of obsessive collectors, and ultimately reveal the truth about his own family.
The Traitor Within
Format: 4×45′
Country: Norway
Year of production: 2026
Genre: Drama, Thriller
International Sales: Fremantle
Production company: Miso Film Norge
Synopsis: A gripping WWII thriller based on the true story of Norway’s most notorious Nazi collaborator and the man sent to kill him. In occupied Norway, two young men choose opposing paths. Salesman Henry Rinnan becomes the Gestapo’s deadliest agent, dismantling the resistance through lies, betrayal and murder. Resistance fighter Odd Sørli is tasked with assassinating Rinnan, triggering a relentless cat-and-mouse pursuit.
