Barcelona-based production-distribution-sales studio Filmax, producer of the original “The Red Band Society,” has taken on international sales on its own production “Dating in Barcelona,” which is backed by Amazon Prime Video and Catalan public network TV3.
An exclusive promo of the six-episode series will be unveiled at MipTV, underscoring how Filmax has consolidated in a matter of years on Spain’s independent production of scene whose ecosystem has solidified during the so called Golden Age of the streamers. Filmax now intends to keep up its momentum despite more general slowdown.
Minimalistic in concept, the series does what its title promises, delivering in 50-minute episodes a deep exploration of modern day dating using a multifaceted Barcelona as its background, capturing not only its plush architecture but nooks and crannies.
This means a lot given the top-tier roster: the ever wonderful Carmen Machi (“Piggy”) and also Manuela Vellés (“Guilt”), Carlos Cuevas (“Smiley”), Gonzalo de Castro (“The Innocent”), Iván Massagué (“The Platform”), Belén Cuesta (“The People Upstairs”), Laia Costa (“Victoria”), David Verdaguer (“Summer 1993”) among other instantly recognizable Spanish actors.
Co-written by Pau Freixas, a driving force on “The Red Band Society,” Èric Navarro, Ivan Mercadé), Clara Esparrach and Eduard Sola, each episode takes in two dates, jumping from one to the other finding depth and contrast in its pointed structuring.
The show draws its edge from a poignant writing that doesn’t shy away from the complexities that dating in the Tinder era implies, adding shades of grey to prickly topics that are often dealt with stupefying simplicity.
In its self-contained episodic format the creative team behind the project has found a playful freedom as Ivan Díaz, head of international at Filmax, noted:
“Given the proliferation of platforms and the higher number of series offered, there is an increasing demand for shorter series that can quickly captivate the viewer and leave them with the expectation of more seasons,” he said.
“Also, the series’ high-quality script required a large number of top actors of very different age groups. This format has allowed us to benefit from fewer shooting sessions that has made it easier to fit into the increasingly tight schedules of the actors while also streamlining the production,” Díaz added.
Although the show will be available to stream on Prime Video for Spain, its two first episodes will be broadcast on TV3.
