Post by George WK Newman on Mar 25, 2010 8:27:40 GMT -5
One of the most popular Icelandic sitcoms to date, Naeturvaktin (The Night Shift) is set to be remade for American audiences.
The programme follows the story of three graveyard shift employees at a petrol station and centres on their boredom tackling antics and the succession of weird and wonderful customers who frequent such late night shopping emporia.
The rights to the series were acquired by Reveille Productions back in June of 2009, the company behind the successful US remakes of comedies Ugly Betty and The Office.
It was announced yesterday that Liberty Television has signed a deal with Reveille to produce a pilot episode. It is unlikely there is enough time to get Night Shift onto the 2010 Fall schedule, and Liberty does not have places for January 2011 starts. If the show is given the greenlight then it will either find a spring-summer run on Liberty or wait until the 2011-2012 Television season.
“‘The Nightshift’ is that rare international format that has American sensibility, and we’re eager to tackle another workplace comedy after the success of ‘The Office,’” Howard Owens, managing director of Reveille said to Reuters. “The show has a smart, ironic point of view, which we know will translate well in the U.S.”
In January 2010, the screenplay for the American adaptation was completed by screenwriter Adam Barr. The screenplay includes American adaptations of the characters. Ólafur Ragnar's name has been changed to Tommy, but otherwise his character is the same. The other two main characters have undergone more significant changes, however. The character of Daníel keeps his name and is still a drop-out of medical school, but his introverted personality has undergone a complete inversion and - according to Iceland Review - he will be "a hunk playing the field". Georg Bjarnfreðarson's character has undergone a complete transformation, into a survivalist.
The Night Shift was produced by Saga Film and premiered on Stod 2 in 2007 to rave reviews. The programme spawned a second series called Dagvaktin, or the Day Shift, which follows farm workers and also proved popular. The third part, Fangavaktin (English title: The Jail Shift) is now in the making and will be shown on Stod 2.
The programme follows the story of three graveyard shift employees at a petrol station and centres on their boredom tackling antics and the succession of weird and wonderful customers who frequent such late night shopping emporia.
The rights to the series were acquired by Reveille Productions back in June of 2009, the company behind the successful US remakes of comedies Ugly Betty and The Office.
It was announced yesterday that Liberty Television has signed a deal with Reveille to produce a pilot episode. It is unlikely there is enough time to get Night Shift onto the 2010 Fall schedule, and Liberty does not have places for January 2011 starts. If the show is given the greenlight then it will either find a spring-summer run on Liberty or wait until the 2011-2012 Television season.
“‘The Nightshift’ is that rare international format that has American sensibility, and we’re eager to tackle another workplace comedy after the success of ‘The Office,’” Howard Owens, managing director of Reveille said to Reuters. “The show has a smart, ironic point of view, which we know will translate well in the U.S.”
In January 2010, the screenplay for the American adaptation was completed by screenwriter Adam Barr. The screenplay includes American adaptations of the characters. Ólafur Ragnar's name has been changed to Tommy, but otherwise his character is the same. The other two main characters have undergone more significant changes, however. The character of Daníel keeps his name and is still a drop-out of medical school, but his introverted personality has undergone a complete inversion and - according to Iceland Review - he will be "a hunk playing the field". Georg Bjarnfreðarson's character has undergone a complete transformation, into a survivalist.
The Night Shift was produced by Saga Film and premiered on Stod 2 in 2007 to rave reviews. The programme spawned a second series called Dagvaktin, or the Day Shift, which follows farm workers and also proved popular. The third part, Fangavaktin (English title: The Jail Shift) is now in the making and will be shown on Stod 2.