Sky Arts bolsters its foreign drama strand with Raoul Ruiz’s Mysteries of Lisbon and Romanzo Criminale La Serie 2
Romanzo Criminale La Serie 2 (10 x 60mins) from Tuesday 18 September 9pm, Sky Arts 1 & Sky Go
‘A cult hit’ (Prospect Magazine)
Mysteries of Lisbon (6 x 60mins) from February 2013, Sky Arts 1 & Sky Go
‘It is lavishly, almost operatically, good to watch.’ (London Evening Standard)
Sky Arts today adds two major series to its acclaimed foreign drama strand with the epic mini-series Mysteries of Lisbon by innovative filmmaker Raoul Ruiz and the return of the hugely popular Italian crime drama Romanzo Criminale, described by The Times as ‘The best drama programme of 2011.’
Romanzo Criminale La Serie 2
The eagerly anticipated second series of Romanzo Criminale follows the story of the criminal gang from the intense climax of the season one finale, where Sky Arts viewers saw the dramatic demise of the gang’s ruthless leader Lebanese. Series 2 follows the story of returning characters Dandy, Ice and Patrizia as they seek revenge for the murder of their friend and take on the corrupt powers of Rome's underworld. Set in the early 1980s, the gang’s story unravels as they continue to evade the idealistic police inspector Scialoja, and become increasingly entangled with the corrupt powers of the Mafia and state.
The first series of Romanzo Criminale was a huge success. Leading Italian newspaper La Stampa called it ‘the best television series ever produced in Italy’ and the series was met with equal acclaim by British critics when it first aired on Sky Arts 1 in 2011. Described as ‘a mafioso epic’ by The Independent and ‘compelling’ by The Observer, the series was even touted as and ‘one of the very best TV series ever produced anywhere’ by Saga Magazine.
Mysteries of Lisbon
The Portuguese costume drama, Mysteries of Lisbon is the last complete work from prolific Chilean film-maker Raúl Ruiz before his death in 2011. It is the mesmerising surreal retelling of the 1854 novel Mistérios de Lisboa by Camilo Castelo Branco.
Set at the turn of the 19thcentury, the drama follows the path of a young orphan called Pedro de Silva through a jigsaw of seemingly unrelated stories as he attempts to make sense of his life. As Pedro grows up, he discovers more about his past and the eccentric and bizarre labyrinth of stories that intertwine and link to his destiny. From humble orphanage to 19th century aristocratic high society, Ruiz’s beautiful adaptation sees unique cinematography combine with colourful characters including a reflective priest, vengeful countesses, scheming gypsies and worldly businessmen and pirates.
Described by The Independent as ‘a subtle delirium, and a magnificent late magnum opus from a director who was one of a kind,’ Mysteries Of Lisbon is widely hailed as the summation of Ruiz's career. Sky Arts will screen his epic and intensely captivating drama as a series, as originally conceived by Ruiz.
“Sky Arts is once again at the forefront of delivering unmissable quality foreign dramas. Mysteries of Lisbon is an outstanding seminal piece of work and Romanzo Criminale, as a critics’ favourite, are bastions of storytelling.” comments Lucy Criddle, Senior Acquisitions Manager. “We’re delighted with customer response to the first series of Romanzo; viewers seem to have an unquenchable thirst for foreign drama, so we just had to bring it back to Sky Arts for its second series.”
Sky Arts has recently broadcast several critically acclaimed foreign language dramas including the French language drama Maison Close and the Israeli dramas Be-Tipul and Prisoners of War, the original Homeland. The commitment to foreign drama reflects Sky’s promise to deliver high-quality, exclusive content to customers, supported by a commitment to increase investment in programming to £600 million by 2014, an increase of more than 50% over three years.
Romanzo Criminale La Serie 2 starts Tuesday 18th September 9.00pm Sky Arts 1 HD and Sky Go
Mysteries of Lisbonwill air February 2013 on Sky Arts and Sky Go
For more information or to request interviews or images please contact:
Katherine Solomonkatherine.solomon@bskyb.com 020 7032 0599
Dominic Collett dominic.collett@bskyb.com 020 7032 4892
Notes to Editors
Romanzo Criminale La Serie 2 and Mysteries of Lisbon
Both series were acquired for Sky Arts by Micheal Whelan, acquisitions manager Sky Entertainment.
About Sky Arts
Sky is the only broadcaster in the UK and Ireland with channels dedicated solely to the arts, with 48 hours of the best arts content from around the world across Sky Arts 1 and Sky Arts 2 daily. Recent highlights include the latest season of the Met Opera, Chekhov Comedy Shorts, a season of brand new plays starring the cream of British comedic talent, Tim Marlow on Sculpture 3D and The South Bank Sky Arts Awards.
Sky Arts also seeks to connect with culture on the ground; creating and collaborating with the best of the arts in the UK and Ireland to bring new experiences to life. The flagship show, The Book Show, now goes to four literary festivals including Hay and Cheltenham. Sky Arts Creative Wish is part of Sky Arts Ignition Series which launched in in 2011 to invest in the arts landscape of the UK. The Series will seek to collaborate with six arts organisations over the next three years in the creation of brand new works; Sky Arts Ignition Series: Futures Fund will support five young artists with a bursary of £30,000 each, enabling Sky Arts to back the creation of new works of art as well as nurture emerging talent. Sky Arts also encourages new formats and methods for accessing opera; beaming the world’s first live opera in 3D to cinemas across the UK and Ireland from ENO.
