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Ms. Laurence Herszberg, founder and general director of Series Mania, and professional jury president Caroline Hollick (United Kingdom), Head of Drama, Channel 4, announced on Tuesday, March 21, the winning project of Series Mania Forum’s annual Co-Pro Pitching Sessions. Of the 15 projects selected and pitched on the first day of Series Mania Forum, the industry arm of the Series Mania Festival, the jury team selected the Ukraine/Poland war thriller drama Unspoken (6 X 30’) as winner of the Series Mania Forum Best Project Award. A war thriller series based on current events in Ukraine. It tells the heart-rending story of a man who is trying to save his family from the grave danger of the Russian invasion.

Along with Hollick, the jury included Michele Zatta (Italy), Commissioning Editor, RAI; Françoise Guyonnet (France), Executive Managing Director TV Series, StudioCanal; Jarmo Lampela (Finland), Head of Drama, YLE - Finnish Broadcasting Company; and Lindsey Martin (United Kingdom), VP, Development & Co-Productions, CBS Studios International. Together they had the honor of presenting a check to Dmytro Sukhanov, Natalia Libet and Anna Rożalska for €50,000.

Unspoken is produced by Dmytro Sukhanov, Toy Cinema (Ukraine), Natalia Libet, 2Brave Productions (Ukraine) and Anna Rożalska, Match&Spark (Poland). Written by Zhanna Ozirna and Filip Syczyński.

“The winning project united the judges unanimously with the raw, emotional intensity of the storytelling. The powerful, relatable tale of a father prepared to go to any lengths to save his family was a bold and original take on the most urgent subject matter of our time,” commented Hollick.

“The Co-Pro Pitching Sessions are one of the most anticipated part of the Series Mania Forum and we are delighted to be giving the €50,000 prize to Unspoken. We are extremely pleased that our illustrious jury chose to give the award to a Ukrainian project which is very much connected with what is going on in Ukraine today. And despite this war, Ukraine, its creators, and its culture, is still very much alive and another reason to admire the courage of the Ukrainian people,” commented Herszberg.

The Forum has been the launchpad for the release of such series as No Man’s Land (France), Banking District (Switzerland), Eden (France), Keeping Faith (Great Britain), Manor House (Czech Republic), Stella Blomkvist (Iceland), Tabula Rasa (Belgium), Trepalium (France), Warrior (Denmark), Devils (Italy), The Head (Spain), Ever After (Italy), The Last Socialist Artefact (Slovenia, Finland) and We Got This (Sweden)