Bernd Burgemeister TV Production Awards for outstanding achievement in production are presented at the Munich International Film Festival
Best TV movie: (from left) Peter Kurth, Jan Georg Schütte, Maren Knieling (Florida Film), Lars Jessen (Florida Film), Natalia Rudziewicz, Ulrich Brandhoff © Getty Images/Gisela Schober for VFF
Best TV series or miniseries: (left to right) Henning Falk (Studio Zentral), Havana Joy Josephine Braun, Andreas Prochaska, Artemis Kobra (Studio Zentral), Rick Okon, Oliver Arnold (U5 Filmproduktion), Hannes Höhn (Studio Zentral), Anne Ratte-Polle / Copyright if used: © Gisela Schober/Getty Images for VFF
Munich, July 1, 2024 — Last night, the two prestigious Bernd Burgemeister TV Production Awards for outstanding achievement in production were presented at Munich’s Gloria Palast movie theater. The three-member jury, chaired by producer Dagmar Rosenbauer and including Jan Kruse (Bavaria Fiction) and Martin Richter (Rat Pack Filmproduktion), honored producer Maren Knieling and producer Lars Jessen (Florida Film GmbH) for the comedy “Micha Thinks Big” starring Charly Hübner as best TV movie. The award for best series or miniseries went to producer Katrin Haase and producers Oliver Arnold (U5 Filmproduktion GmbH & Co. KG) and Lasse Scharpen (Studio Zentral) for the vampire-themed series “Love Sucks”.
Best TV movie: “Micha Thinks Big” — a quirky comedy about obtaining sufficient land and water resources
Produced by: Maren Knieling and Lars Jessen, Floria Film GmbH, for ARD Degeto Film GmbH and MDR
Directed by: Lars Jessen, Jan Georg Schütte
Cast: includes Charly Hübner, Natalia Rudziewicz, Jördis Triebel, Ulrich Brandhoff, Peter Kurth
Screenplay by: Lars Jessen, Christian Riedel, Jan Georg Schütte, Charly Hübner
“Water is no longer coming out of the tap. Not just in one household, but in the whole village. No more water for people, animals, or land — the groundwater has dried up. This premise can be rendered as a dystopia or made the theme of a film. Producers Maren Knieling and Lars Jessen have instead opted for a different genre: comedy. This was a bold decision that obviously won over the commissioning broadcasters, ARD Degeto and MDR,” says jury chairwoman Dagmar Rosenbauer. “After ‘green producing’, ‘green storytelling’ is the next challenge our industry faces. How can the climate crisis be related without reverting to preaching and lecturing? How can the dramatic scale of the problem be presented in a way that won’t put off audiences? This production and its outstanding team in front of and behind the camera have shown how this can be done in their TV movie ‘Micha Thinks Big’. For this, they are receiving the Bernd Burgemeister TV Production Award today.”
Best series or miniseries: “Love Sucks” is about a tragic romance between a vampire and a mortal
Produced by: Katrin Haase, Oliver Arnold of U5 Filmproduktion in co-production with Lasse Scharpen of Studio Zentral for ZDFneo.
Directed by: Lea Becker, Andreas Prochaska
Cast: Havana Joy Josephine Braun, Damian Hardung, Rick Okon, Stipe Erceg, Anne Ratte-Polle
Screenplay by: Marc O. Seng, Julia Penner, Thorsten Wettcke
“Thanks to online video archives and streaming services, we producers have an opportunity not only to watch bold productions of different genres, but also to produce them ourselves — given the right touch. In 2024, Katrin Haase, Oliver Arnold, and Lasse Scharpen, working with ZDFneo, created just such a production,” said the jury. “A series like ‘Love Sucks’ necessitates producers who are willing to take risks, a unique way of looking at this world, and a feel for the right creative partners. They rose to the task and found the perfect writers. Giving the directors the liberty to deliver the broadcaster a translation of the script worthy of international distribution worked out perfectly. A genre and a world are created that not only promise, but also deliver, an extraordinary viewing experience. One has the feeling that all the gears mesh perfectly here. And when the jury looks at this series and is unanimous in saying they wish they could have produced it themselves, that’s the perfect reason to honor this work.”
A total of 15 productions were in the running for this prestigious honor.
“Our intent in presenting this award is to turn the spotlight on producers and reward their outstanding achievements — as well as their entrepreneurial fortitude,” Dr. Albrecht Bischoffshausen emphasized in his first speech since becoming managing director of the VFF in April. “In the spirit of Bernd Burgemeister, the foremost criterion when considering films and series in the New German Television Productions section at the Munich International Film Festival is that they address important sociopolitical issues and topics of our age. A further criterion is that superb content be made for the big screen in an innovative and groundbreaking way.”
Following the award ceremony, hosted by Jana Kübel, and the screenings, the award-winners gathered at the Hotel Bayerischer Hof to meet other distinguished guests from the German film and television industry, including actors and actresses Peter Kurth, Rick Okon, Anne Ratte-Polle, Natalia Rudziewicz, Jutta Speidel, Felix Klare, Michaela May, Michael Brandner, Max von Pufendorf and Aglaia Szyszkowitz.