Category: IN FOCUS
High drama
Showrunner Chris Brancato and director Guillermo Navarro invite DQ to stay at Hotel Cocaine, a crime drama set in 1970s Miami at the time of a huge explosion in the drug’s use and where a hotel manager is pitted in a war between federal agents and his drug-lord brother.
Feeling Invincible
Prime Video’s Invincible is flipping the script on animated series – and superhero adventures. Executive producers Robert Kirkman and Margaret M Dean tell DQ about adapting the original comics, breaking animation boundaries and why the series doesn’t shy away from ultra-violence.
Across the board
Director Yan England and producer Bruno Nahon reveal how Garry Kasparov’s famous chess battle with a supercomputer inspired Rematch, a six-part series that blends psychological thrills with sporting spectacle.
Eye of the storm
Writer Peter A Dowling and executive producers Julie Gardner and Lachlan MacKinnon take DQ aboard ITV’s upcoming thriller Red Eye to discuss making this locked-room mystery, filming on a plane and the importance of authentic representation.
Counting the cost
BBC comedy Spent marks the first original series from writer Michelle de Swarte, who also stars as a former model failing to face up to her new reality away from the catwalk. She and executive producer Jack Bayles reveal how they partnered to create the six-part show.
Crossing Boarders
Boarders creator Daniel Lawrence Taylor, director Ethosheia Hylton and executive producer Madeleine Sinclair take DQ back to school to discuss making the BBC comedy drama, how the story is inspired by real life and working with the young cast.
Taking the reins
Dark Horse stars Josephine Højbjerg and Birgitte Hjort Sørensen join writer Sara Isabella Jønsson to tell DQ about this suspenseful Danish drama, in which a teenage girl attempts to break free from her dysfunctional relationship with her rootless, chaotic mother.
Spinning around
South African series Spinners takes viewers into a relatively unknown corner of motor racing for a story about a young man trying to break away from his gangland past. Writer Benjamin Hoffman, director Jaco Bouwer and star Cantona James reveal more.
Sooner or later
The past confronts the present in South African crime drama Soon Comes Night. Executive producer Stan Joseph, writer Paul Rowlston and distribution exec Rodrigo Herrera Ibarguengoytia reveal the background to the series and why its story resonates today.
Blanco canvas
Modern Family star Sofía Vergara joins executive producer Eric Newman and director Andrés Baiz to reveal how she transformed herself for Netflix drama Griselda, the story of a Colombian woman who built one of the most notorious drug cartels in 1970s Miami.
Oder and above
Arend Remmers and Christian Alvart discuss their partnership on German dark crime drama Oderbruch, their inspiration for the series and how they sought to bring originality and personality to the story.
Praising the Messiah
La Mesías (The Messiah) creators, writers, directors and producers Javier Calvo and Javier Ambrossi open up about this standout Spanish series, which blends family drama and psychological thrills to tell a story about a man revisiting his traumatic childhood.
Behind the mask
As Zorro returns to the screen after nearly two decades, DQ dives into the making of this swashbuckling Spanish-language adventure, which sees Élite’s Miguel Bernardeau don the famous mask and cape of the iconic vigilante.
Urgent delivery
ITV’s Mr Bates vs the Post Office dramatises one of the greatest miscarriages of justice in UK history – a scandal that criminalised hundreds of Post Office managers. Writer Gwyneth Hughes, director James Strong and star Toby Jones discuss the importance and difficulty of telling this true story.
Killer adaptation
As Agatha Christie adaptation Murder is Easy arrives on the BBC, director Meenu Gaur and executive producer James Prichard discuss making this two-part murder mystery and why the celebrated author’s work remains timeless.
Raising heart rates
Malpractice writer Grace Ofori-Attah and star Niamh Algar discuss the making of the ITV medical thriller, in which an A&E doctor comes under investigation and spirals into a dangerous conspiracy.
Playing detective
The creative team behind Norwegian comedy Hva skedde med Solveig? (Whatever Happened to Solveig?) reveal how they balanced drama with laughs to send up the ever-popular true crime genre.
Need for Seed
In Norwegian-German coproduction The Seed, the future of food production falls into the hands of two detectives who inadvertently land in the middle of a global conspiracy. DQ meets the cast and creative team to find out more.
Setting the Mood
Channel 4 comedy-drama Big Mood shines a light on mental health from the perspective of two best friends. Writer Camilla Whitehill joins stars Nicola Coughlan and Lydia West to reveal more.
Skate star
Director Amir Chamdin reflects on the long journey behind making biopic sports drama Börje – The Journey of a Legend, and his relationship with the titular Swedish ice hockey star who broke down boundaries to become an NHL legend.