British hit comedy series the Office makes its way to Finland. Popular comedian Sami Hedberg will star in the Finnish version of the Office.
Elisa Viihde, Nelonen, Solar Republic and BBC Worldwide bring the Office, a globally successful TV series which has won a number of entertainment awards, to Finland.
Around the world, the Office is particularly known for Ricky Gervais who played the leading character of the cult series, David Brent, the eccentric general manager of a paper company. Gervais was also one of the writers of the series.
Being a giant success, the Office was made in the UK in 2001–2003. The series has also been made into US, French-Canadian, French and Swedish versions. In the highly popular US version, the boss was played by Steve Carell.
Sami Hedberg as the leading star
Popular comedian and actor Sami Hedberg will star in the Finnish version of the Office.
“Elisa Viihde has for long made significant investments in Finnish films and original series. We want to provide our customers with programmes to match their preferences, and Finnish entertainment raises significant interest. We are constantly working with different parties to the TV and film industry, and this is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to make the Office, an original Elisa Viihde series, together with Nelonen and BBC Worldwide. Updated to the present day, the Finnish version of the Office is an excellent addition to entertain our customers,” says Ani Korpela, head of content users at Elisa Viihde.
“Nelonen invests in Finnish quality and notable TV personalities, and Sami Hedberg fits perfectly in this profile. There is no better David Brent in this country. It is a pleasure to engage, for the first time, in this type of cooperation with Elisa Viihde and BBC Worldwide, and to try new ways to broadcast high-quality television entertainment through various channels,” says Unne Sormunen, head of domestic programming at Nelonen Media.
“One of the highlights of my career”
Solar Republic will produce the series for Elisa Viihde and Nelonen.
“Having the opportunity to take part in this project is one of the major highlights of my career. Performing in a comedy series has been my childhood dream, but playing the leading role in the Office of all series is a true pleasure and honour to me,” Sami Hedberg says.
“We had long talks of what the Finnish version of the Office could be like, after all, it ultimately consists of profoundly Finnish elements: misunderstandings stemming from shame and timidity,” adds producer Jesse Fryckman.
The filming of the Office will begin on 22 August.
The Finnish version of the Office will premiere on Elisa Viihde next March, at will be aired on Nelonen in autumn 2017.
Additional information:
Elisa Corporation: Ani Korpela, head of content users, Elisa Viihde, tel. +358 50 566 3858, [email protected]
Elisa Viihde is the most popular entertainment service in Finland. Elisa Viihde has everything you need to be entertained – the most extensive range of TV programmes, the greatest films, a wide variety of sports and the largest selection of Finnish films. In addition to original Finnish Elisa Viihde series, the service offers a diverse range of video-on-demand services and TV channel bundles. Elisa Viihde has more than 200,000 consumer customers, and its personal mobile app has more than 500,000 downloads. www.elisa.fi/viihde
Elisa is a data communications, ICT and online service company with 2.3 million customers, consisting of consumers, companies and public administration organisations. Elisa provides eco-friendly communication and entertainment services, as well as tools for improving the functionality and productivity of organisations. In Finland, Elisa is the market leader in mobile subscriptions. Cooperation with Vodafone and Telenor allows internationally competitive services. Elisa is listed on the NASDAQ OMX Helsinki Major Companies list, and it has approximately 200,000 shareholders. In 2015, Elisa’s revenue was EUR 1.57 billion, and the company employed 4,100 people. www.elisa.fi
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