Beta Film picks up upcoming high-end drama series ‘Westend Girl’ starring Helena Zengel
Helena Zengel is Germany’s young Hollywood darling, Golden Globe nominee, and the youngest German Film Award winner ever. She worked with Tom Hanks, Emily Watson, as well as Willem Dafoe, and now stars in the coming-of-age drama series Westend Girl. Beta has picked up world-wide distribution rights for the Flare Film/ WDR/ARTE co-production. The highly anticipated six-hour thriller series is part of this year’s Berlinale Series Market and will be featured in the showcase Up Next: Germany (16 February at 11AM at CinemaxX). In Westend Girl, Helena Zengel stars as teenager Ronja, who is forced to grow up overnight when her parents are suddenly arrested for drug trafficking, and her picture-perfect life is about to crumble.
Helena Zengel (The Legend of Ochi), who recently starred next to Tom Hanks in News of the World, is on high demand ever since her mesmerizing performance at the age of eleven in her breakout leading role in Nora Fingscheidt’s multi-awarded Berlinale competition entry System Crasher, sold throughout the world by Beta Cinema. For her work, Zengel was honored with the German Film Award and became the youngest actress ever to win it. Ever since, she has garnered a series of prestigious international awards and nominations.
Based on a true story, Westend Girl (6x1h) follows Ronja (Helena Zengel), who is about to turn 18 and on top of the world. Raised in a sheltered, wealthy neighborhood, she’s just moved into her first apartment and is about to begin medical school. But the day after her birthday party, everything changes: Her picture-perfect parents are suddenly arrested and accused of running the largest cocaine ring in the region. What’s more, Ronja slowly realizes that the police don't just see her as a witness, but also as a potential accomplice. But who can she still trust?
Shot in and around Marseille, Düsseldorf, and Berlin, Westend Girl is co-created by Richard Kropf (Kleo, 4 Blocks) and Pola Beck (Breaking Horizons, Druck). Richard Kropf also serves as head-writer, with Luisa Hardenberg (Push), Katharina Brauer (Para – Wir sind King), Alexander Lindh (A Better Place), and Julian Gaupp-Maier (How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast)) completing the writers' room. Pola Beck is also directing the series with Stefan Schaller (Five Years). Director of photography is Yoshi Heimrath (Berlin Alexanderplatz, How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast)).
Alongside Helena Zengel, the cast includes Maxton Hall’s Frederic Balonier, Lucas Gregorowicz (Call My Agent Berlin, Pagan Peak), Luise Heyer (Sound of Falling, Black Box), Alexander Scheer (From Hilde, with Love, House of Promises), Samirah Breuer (Shadow Leaks), and Hanna Heckt (Sound of Falling).
Martin Heisler (Flare Film, Forget Me Not, Funeral for a Dog) produces the show; Maxim Juretzka (Flare Film, Funeral for a Dog) and Jan Wünschmann (Beta Film, The Swarm) are executive producers. Commissioning editors are Frank Tönsmann (WDR) and Uta Cappel (ARTE).
Westend Girl is produced by Flare Film in co-production with WDR and ARTE, in collaboration with Beta Film. The series is funded by Film- und Medienstiftung NRW, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, and the German Motion Picture Fund. Beta Film handles worldwide distribution rights.
Helena Zengel (The Legend of Ochi), who recently starred next to Tom Hanks in News of the World, is on high demand ever since her mesmerizing performance at the age of eleven in her breakout leading role in Nora Fingscheidt’s multi-awarded Berlinale competition entry System Crasher, sold throughout the world by Beta Cinema. For her work, Zengel was honored with the German Film Award and became the youngest actress ever to win it. Ever since, she has garnered a series of prestigious international awards and nominations.
Based on a true story, Westend Girl (6x1h) follows Ronja (Helena Zengel), who is about to turn 18 and on top of the world. Raised in a sheltered, wealthy neighborhood, she’s just moved into her first apartment and is about to begin medical school. But the day after her birthday party, everything changes: Her picture-perfect parents are suddenly arrested and accused of running the largest cocaine ring in the region. What’s more, Ronja slowly realizes that the police don't just see her as a witness, but also as a potential accomplice. But who can she still trust?
Shot in and around Marseille, Düsseldorf, and Berlin, Westend Girl is co-created by Richard Kropf (Kleo, 4 Blocks) and Pola Beck (Breaking Horizons, Druck). Richard Kropf also serves as head-writer, with Luisa Hardenberg (Push), Katharina Brauer (Para – Wir sind King), Alexander Lindh (A Better Place), and Julian Gaupp-Maier (How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast)) completing the writers' room. Pola Beck is also directing the series with Stefan Schaller (Five Years). Director of photography is Yoshi Heimrath (Berlin Alexanderplatz, How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast)).
Alongside Helena Zengel, the cast includes Maxton Hall’s Frederic Balonier, Lucas Gregorowicz (Call My Agent Berlin, Pagan Peak), Luise Heyer (Sound of Falling, Black Box), Alexander Scheer (From Hilde, with Love, House of Promises), Samirah Breuer (Shadow Leaks), and Hanna Heckt (Sound of Falling).
Martin Heisler (Flare Film, Forget Me Not, Funeral for a Dog) produces the show; Maxim Juretzka (Flare Film, Funeral for a Dog) and Jan Wünschmann (Beta Film, The Swarm) are executive producers. Commissioning editors are Frank Tönsmann (WDR) and Uta Cappel (ARTE).
Westend Girl is produced by Flare Film in co-production with WDR and ARTE, in collaboration with Beta Film. The series is funded by Film- und Medienstiftung NRW, Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg, and the German Motion Picture Fund. Beta Film handles worldwide distribution rights.
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