Das Netz (lit. The Net) is the title of an international project that assembles different series in several European countries all having as a main topic the football industry. Following the idea of German theatre director Matthias Hartmann and Swiss screenwriter Plinio Bachmann (One-Way to Moscow, The Foster Boy [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Max Hubacher - Shooting St…
scheda film]), four series in total are planned. Each one is an independent production but with storylines and characters that can be interwoven. Shot so far is the Austrian segment Das Netz – Prometheus by father and son director-duo Andreas and Daniel Prochaska. In eight episodes, they tell the story of a former professional football player, played by Austrian actor Tobias Moretti, who wants to train a new generation of athletes. 

While the series is now in post-production, the shooting for the German part of the project, which took place in Germany, Switzerland and Ghana, has just ended. The director of Das Netz – Ein Wintermärchen (lit. The Net – A Winter's Tale) is German director Rick Ostermann (The House [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Rick Ostermann
scheda film]). The plot of this high-end series unfolding across eight episodes has been developed by a collective of four writers, namely Bernd Lange (Home for the Weekend [+leggi anche:
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In the main roles are the acclaimed Austrian actress Birgit Minichmayr (Daughters [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Stefan Ruzowitzky
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intervista: Barbara Albert
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intervista: Jasmila Žbanić
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The series follows criminal defence attorney Lea Brandstätter (Birgit Minichmayr) who sees her boyfriend David (Itay Tiran), a successful football scout, die after he is run over by a car. She meets the hooligan Marcel Fork (Max von der Groeben), whose best friend dies exactly on the same day, just a few metres away, stabbed to death by strangers in the football stadium. It seems to be a weird coincidence, one which Lea and Marcel want to get to the bottom of, with the help of Lea's mentor Christina (Eva Mattes). The more they investigate, the deeper they get into the ruthless machinery of the football industry. The trail leads up to the highest circles: the president of the World Football Association (WFA), Jean Leco (Raymond Thiry).

The principal funding body for the entire series is the German public broadcasting company ARD with its film production company ARD Degeto. The production is organised by Sommerhaus Serien GmbH in co-cooperation with Das Netz GmbH, which is a joint company of Red Bull Media House and Beta Film. Besides the Austrian series and the German series, the shooting for the Italian part of the project with the title Das Netz – Power Play (produced by Cross Productions in collaboration with Das Netz GmbH) will start in March in Italy. A fourth series with a plot set in Portugal and South America is planned as well, but not yet in production. Das Netz – Das Wintermärchen will be screened on ARD in autumn 2022.