‘Severance’ EP Nicholas Weinstock to Co-Produce ‘Masquerade’ With Iceland’s Glassriver (Exclusive)

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The Icelandic film and television production company Glassriver will team up with Nicholas Weinstock, a key executive producer of the popular Apple TV+ series “Severance”, and his Los Angeles-based studio Invention Studios, along with Marc Lorber’s Art of Coproduction, to jointly produce the scripted series titled “Masquerade“.

The story revolves around a young American journalist who visits a secluded Icelandic hamlet. Initially, she’s probing an old, unsolved kidnapping case involving a four-year-old girl, the granddaughter of the town’s wealthiest and most influential resident, who disappeared during a vacation in Florida 25 years earlier. As she delves deeper into the mystery, she gradually peels back the layers of the village’s hidden past, eventually understanding that those responsible for the kidnapping may well be still residing within the village itself.

Andri Ómarsson, Glassriver’s CEO, along with the project’s originator Andri Óttarsson, are set to showcase their project at this year’s Series Mania joint production pitching session.

As a cinephile with an impressive resume, I’ve had the privilege to work on projects like “Severance,” but my filmography extends to comedies such as “Bridesmaids,” indie favorites like “Thelma,” romantic comedies including “Alex Strangelove” and “Plus One,” and quirky dramas such as “Dinner in America” and “Queenpins.” In addition, I’ve delved into television with series like “Escape at Dannemora,” “In the Dark,” and “High Desert.

Lorber, a previous executive at Lionsgate, has been involved in projects such as “Motherland”, “Population 11”, “The Pact”, “Northern Lights”, “Mix Tape”, and “The Ridge”.

The makers behind the show “Masquerade” are Andri Óttarsson and Baldvin Z, known for their work on “Case” and “Life in a Fishbowl”. The scriptwriters include Óttarsson, Elísabet Hall, Urður Egilsdóttir, Karen Björg Eyfjörð Þorsteinsdóttir, and Elías Helgi Kofoed-Hansen. Notably, Baldvin Z is the main director of this series. Andri Óttarsson has previously created and written the Netflix original series “Case”, co-developed and co-wrote the first season of “Stella Blomkvist”, and was one of the creators of “Black Sands”.

Ómarsson, CEO of Glassriver, stated: “Masquerade represents a significant leap for us, uniting talent from both the Atlantic and the European sides – much like the narrative itself. We’ve put in tremendous effort to create a series that bridges the gap between East and West, and having such remarkable collaborators on board serves as a testament to our dedication.

Weinstock stated: “Masquerade is an exceptionally imaginative and visually stunning tale that we believe could revolutionize television. Kudos to Andri and the talented writers for creating something so exceptionally impactful, and we’re thrilled and eager to collaborate with Glassriver and my knowledgeable friend Marc Lorber to share it globally.

Lorber remarked: “The Glassriver project I read was incredibly engaging. It’s one of the most natural co-productions I’ve encountered, with the advantage of an entire season’s worth of episodes already scripted.

Glassriver’s programming encompasses a wide range of genres from comedy to sci-fi, and they are also producing “Cold Haven,” an eight-episode crime thriller being co-produced with Portugal’s SPi SA, which is currently in post-production. Their recent releases include the eight-episode drama titled “As Long as We Live” and the medical drama “Fractures“. The company announced that both “Black Sands” and “Fractures” have been sold to various countries including all Nordic regions, USA, Spain, Portugal, Netherlands, Belgium, and are still being distributed globally.

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2025-03-04 17:24