We are pleased to announce that Serial Eyes graduate Dennis Schanz has taken on the roles of head writer and producer to realise his series idea SKYLINES with Netflix. SKYLINES is the first project developed within Serial Eyes that will be screened on the largest internet entertainment service.
The series is about a talented hip-hop producer who lives in Frankfurt am Main and receives the offer of a lifetime. It will run exclusively and worldwide on Netflix from 27 September 2019. In addition to the renowned main actors, the series will feature many talented artists from the Frankfurt/Offenbach area, including Azad, Nura, and many others. “The rappers, producers, and DJs […] have given the project the necessary level of quality and authenticity,” says Dennis Schanz about the actors.
Dennis Schanz (Serial Eyes 2015/16) developed the idea for the series within the programme Serial Eyes. He was supported by various lecturers (including US showrunner Frank Spotnitz and dramaturge Nicola Lusuardi) and by his mentor and producer Klaus Zimmermann, and then followed up on the project. With Netflix, Schanz – taking on the positions of head writer, producer, and showrunner – finally found a partner with whom to realise this unusual project, which is set between the hip-hop and criminal worlds.
“Dennis Schanz joined the Serial Eyes programme with a very ambitious idea for his project. He always listened attentively but didn’t allow himself to be swayed by others and he implemented his good idea consistently and radically. After four years of hard work, he now has the last word, and is the youngest, most successful writer-producer in Germany. Well done!“ – Klaus Zimmermann, Managing Partner Dynamic Television
Dennis Schanz also enlisted three of his Serial Eyes colleagues to be on the writers’ team: Oliver Karan (2015/16), Kim Zimmermann (2015/16), and Arne Ahrens (2016/17) have contributed to scripts for the six-part SYKLINES season.
“We’re happy that with SKYLINES, Dennis has succeeded in becoming a series creator and producer. And, of course, that he has moved his Serial Eyes colleagues and the Writers’ Room system – on which our Serial Eyes teaching is decisively based – from the seminar room to his own production.” – Benjamin Harris, Head of Serial Eyes.
The DFFB is also delighted by the participation of other DFFB alumni in the production: Luis Singer (producer at StickUp Filmproduktion) and Jonas Dornbach and David Keitsch (producers at Komplizenfilm) are the lead producers of the series, and DFFB alumunus Max Erlenwein (STEREO, SCHWERKRAFT) directed episodes 1–3.
About SKYLINES
Frankfurt, Mainhattan. Talented hip-hop producer Jinn is given the chance of a lifetime when legendary label Skyline Records makes him an offer. But success has a price. While Jinn is forced to choose between his career, his friendships, and his family, Skyline Records also faces turbulent times, which sees the worlds of music, finance, and organised crime collide head-on with one another.