14/03/2022 - The show, in which “nature resists human intervention”, will be directed by Catalina Molina and Esther Rauch, with Brigitte Hobmeier leading the cast

Brigitte Hobmeier and Laeni Geiseler on the set of Snow (© Primary Pictures/Martin Rattini)

Germany’s Beta Film has boarded the mystery-thriller series Snow, consisting of six one-hour episodes and starring Brigitte Hobmeier. As Cineuropa found out, shooting has just started in the Dolomites, with Catalina Molina and Esther Rauch sharing director’s credits.

“Snow touches on the timely topic of the climate crisis and its consequences, when humans push too far. It’s a perfect theme for a mystery-thriller, which is led by a very powerful and talented female crew and cast,” said Koby Gal-Raday, chief content officer at Beta Film. “We are happy to be partnering with Gabriela Bacher and Uwe Schott, as well as ORF, BR, NDR and Arte, and can’t wait to share it with our international clients in the near future.”

The story revolves around the winter resort of Rotten, threatened by a lack of snow. When the melting glacier releases a corpse, old secrets and new desires come to light, and Lucia (Hobmeier), the newly arrived doctor, gets caught up in a maelstrom of strange occurrences that cause a rift in her family. Little by little, she unearths the village’s secret surrounding the corpse they discovered. She believes neither in fate nor in the supernatural, but when her daughter disappears, Lucia is forced to accept her mission: to save Alma, she must face the mystery of the mountains.

Alongside its two directors, Snow also features DoP Leah Striker in the crew, as well as production designer Veronika Merlin and Eva Roth, responsible for the casting. Apart from Hobmeier, Marie Luise Stockinger, Maria Hofstaetter, Robert Stadlober and Karl Fischer will round off the cast.

“I am grateful to have had the opportunity to join my late producing partner Ursula Wolschlager and Barbara Albert to develop this evocative series and be able to realise it now, with Barbara’s input and two very exciting directors at the helm,” said executive producer Gabriela Bacher, while Katharina Schenk, head of Fiction at ORF, added: “The mystery genre often conceals very tangible themes and real threats. In the case of our miniseries Snow, nature resists human intervention, which the latter deems necessary to avoid the consequences of climate change – and to increase profits. It’s a burning issue and an exciting story presented by an outstanding team of Austrian female filmmakers.”

The screenplays, based on an idea by Michaela Taschek, are written by Taschek, Kathrin Richter and Jürgen Schlagenhof. Snow is a German-Austrian-Italian co-production being staged by Primary Pictures and X-Filme Productions in cooperation with Beta Film and with Mestiere Cinema, and in co-production with ORF, BR, NDR and Arte. The series is being produced by Gabriela Bacher and Uwe Schott, and is sponsored by IDM South Tyrol-Alto Adige and supported by the Veneto Film Commission.