German production company Traumfabrik Babelsberg is doubling down on its investment in international film production, with more than just its first series in the works.
The company was founded in 2017 by Tom Zickler and Christoph Visser, who at the time was also managing director of its parent company, Babelsberg, a major film studio outside Berlin. Until 2016, Mr. Zickler was best known as a producer of films with German star Til Schweiger. The company’s name comes from its first film in 2019, “Traumfabrik” (translated as “Dream Factory”). Unfortunately, Mr. Zikler passed away in 2019 at the age of 55 due to cancer.
After Visser left Babelsberg early last year, Traumfabrik Babelsberg was reborn as an independent organization led by Visser and Sebastian Frühner, who had been with the company since its inception. He was later joined by Konstantin Mayer, former COO of Veronica Ferres’ company Construction Film Produktion. Since then, the company has been revitalized, with a number of high-profile projects planned.
Fleuner told Variety that meeting Mayer in Cannes was “a match made in heaven.” The two producers had the same desire to create an ambitious project with the potential to reach an international audience.
One film has already gone through production and post. The film, co-produced with Kreisfilm, is directed by Robert Gwisdek and stars Christian Friedel, known for his work on “Zone of Interest” and “White Lotus,” and Corinna Harfouche, whose credits include “Downfall” and “Never Look Away.”
The film does not have a title at this time, but is described as a “philosophical drama.” The film was partly inspired by the death of Robert Gwisdek’s father, but it’s also interesting because Harhoosh is the director’s mother. The film is scheduled for release next year, and Froehner is hoping for film festival success, with an eye toward a premiere in Berlin or Cannes. Discussions with potential German distributors are underway.
According to Traumfabrik Babelsberg, the film marks the beginning of a long-term collaboration with Kreisfilm, with two more major international films currently being packaged and seeking financing.
Another project is the teen horror film “Bali Demons.” It is based on an idea by Mayer, and the screenplay was written by Sophia Wester. The film is “about the conflict between cultural tradition and mass tourism,” Meyer says. He points out that in the past year or so, the issue has become a bigger issue due to public protests against mass tourism in several tourist destinations, including Venice, Mallorca and Barcelona.
Meyer said the film will be the first in a series, to be followed by “Venice Demons” and “Tokyo Demons.” He said it was about “tourists misbehaving in a sacred place”, adding: “No one wears a bikini and has sex in a church in Munich, but in Bali it’s commonplace. It’s disrespectful to their culture, their ancient traditions.”
In the movie, he says, “there’s a group of young, beautiful tourists.” “I call it ‘The Scream’ in Bali, and ‘The Scream’ in exotic places, because people are being killed one by one by figures wearing traditional masks,” Mayer added. “People are starting to think, ‘Maybe the devil wants their island back.'”
He says some people have described the film as a cross between “Scream” and “Midsommar.”
The film stars Indonesian singer Adriana Raisa, German actress Helena Zengel (“Legend of Punchlines,” “News of the World,” “System Crasher”), and American actor Gianni Paolo (“Ma,” “Power”). The big American star and director will be revealed soon.
The film is likely to be shot in Bali next year and was produced in collaboration with Bo Holmgreen of Viking Sunset Studios and Orlando Bassi of Movie Studio Bali.
Traumfabrik Babelsberg also plans to produce its first series, the young adult romance “Because of You,” based on Nadine Kerger’s best-selling novel of the same name. The showrunner was Martin Schreier, whose “Maxton Hall” was the most successful Prime Original outside the United States worldwide. The series, set in a boat club on the island of Malta, is scheduled to film in March 2027 with support from German public broadcaster SWR.
The company also produces “Himmel, Hergott, Hirschgewei,” a crime comedy set in Bavaria, southern Germany. It was developed in collaboration with German distributor Tobis Film and will be released in theaters. We are considering franchising.
Mayer said Traumfabrik Babelsberg is also developing a parody comedy with David Zucker, with a partner yet to be announced, and is expected to be released worldwide.
Traumfabrik Babelsberg also experimented with AI in “Einstein – Bringing a Legend Back to Life.” They used cutting-edge AI to bring Einstein to life using Einstein’s own words, based on a performance by actor Heiner Lauterbach. The film is 2 hours and 22 minutes long and consists entirely of AI-generated content. It was released on the Meet Your Master platform last month. Traumfabrik Babelsberg is currently developing the fictional feature Einstein using the same technology.
