– The 8×30-minute Videoland series, starring Holly Mae Brood, Priscilla Delgado and Greta Fernández, has wrapped shooting in Barcelona and is now moving to Amsterdam
Holly Mae Brood in La Vida Barcelona (© Millstreet Films/Mark de Blok)
Beta Film, Videoland and Millstreet Films have unveiled La Vida Barcelona, a new romantic dramedy series set in the Catalonian capital. The 8×30-minute, female-driven show has just wrapped shooting in Barcelona and is now moving on to Amsterdam.
Produced by Rachel van Bommel, of Millstreet Films, for Videoland in the Netherlands, the series marks the third collaboration between Millstreet Films, Videoland and Beta Film, following Maxima and the upcoming spin-off The Other Royals – A Maxima Story (see the news). Beta Film is handling the world sales. The news was first reported by Variety.
In detail, La Vida Barcelona follows Julia, a young Dutch designer sent to Barcelona by her powerful mother with a secret mission: to undermine a rival agency. Once there, however, she is drawn into the city’s energy, her new job and a tangled romantic life involving two men, forcing her to rethink her ambitions, loyalties and sense of self.
Dutch actress Holly Mae Brood stars as Julia, alongside Priscilla Delgado (Euphoria) and Greta Fernández (The Walking Dead). The cast also includes Martiño Rivas (El Internado) and Agustín Della Corte (Society of the Snow). The scripts are penned by Emily Reekers, Jikkie Schelling and Alix van der Goes. The series is helmed by Katina Medina Mora (Emily in Paris, The Summer I Turned Pretty, XO, Kitty), Charlotte Scott-Wilson (whose short Hold On won at Tribeca) and Ayla Spaans (Rakhi & Peppe, When We Were Strangers).
“With La Vida Barcelona, we are taking our collaboration with Millstreet to the next level of internationalisation,” said Justus Riesenkampff, EVP Nordics and Benelux at Beta Film. “With top talents attached such as Emily in Paris director Katina Medina Mora and Euphoria’s Priscilla Delgado, the show is set to compete with premium English-language productions in the genre. Barcelona provides the perfect backdrop to attract younger audiences from around the world. Who could resist following Julia as she plunges into an adventure filled with ambition, romance, intrigue and friendship?”
Rachel van Bommel, producer at Millstreet Films, described the project as “a feel-good series, emotionally grounded in a modern mother-daughter relationship”. She added: “It’s a story about ambition, identity and the courage to find your own voice. At the same time, it is a truly female-driven project, in front of as well as behind the camera, which is important for us at Millstreet Films.”
For Medina Mora, the series is, “at its core, a story about identity”. The director said: “It explores what it feels like to move to another country and have to prove yourself, only to realise that what begins as a mission slowly becomes a journey of self-discovery. Barcelona becomes much more than a backdrop; its energy, culture and sense of possibility transform Julia’s journey and allow her to discover parts of herself she didn’t know were there.”
Nestor Hernandez serves as executive producer for Beta Film. La Vida Barcelona is supported by the Netherlands Film Fund Production Incentive, the Spanish tax rebate and the Creative Europe – MEDIA programme.
