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Copenhagen-based sales and aggregation outlet LevelK has boarded the Norwegian psycho-thriller “Anathema” by promising directing duo Ea Johanne Sandberg and Alpha Nord.

One of 21 projects in development to be pitched today at the Nordic Co-Production Market in Haugesund, “Anathema” is being shepherded by the seasoned Janne Hjeltnes (Netflix’s “Royalteen,” “Midsummer Night”) and Anne Borgaard Sørensen (“Camino”, “Bullshit”), also credited respectively as producer and executive producer of the Venice-bound “No Paradise If You Are Killed by a Woman.”

Penned by Sandberg and Nord, “Anathema” is billed as a “visceral, unsettling exploration of repression, denial and collective madness.” The central character Dafne, lives in a valley with her mother and Bror. When he vanishes, she begins to question if she or her community is falling apart. His eventual return, drowned and dead, pushes the town into full‑scale delusion: no one admits his zombie-like state and everyone insists on celebrating his wedding, even if it means sacrificing his fiancée.

“Dafne combines the truth-telling clarity of the boy in “The Emperor’s New Clothes” with the reluctant awakening of Neo in “The Matrix,” said the co-directors whose graduation short “Liminal Space” was selected for the New York City Independent Film Festival in 2025.

“What excited us about the project was the fresh take on a known genre and the guts of the two young female directors to approach taboo subjects in an unconventional manner and thereby mark their debut with a clear ‘what the f***’ film which will have people do a double take,” commented Natascha Degnova, LevelK’s head of PR and marketing. She added: “This is the kind of project that fits very well into our strategy of including more genre titles to our slate, as well as of getting involved in projects before production, having a full journey and collaboration with the filmmakers from script to worldwide release.”

“Anathema” is also the first feature under Hjeltnes and Sørensen’s banner Empathitude Pictures, set up in 2025 between Oslo and Copenhagen. “It’s exactly the kind of film we want to champion: character-driven, boundary-pushing and emotionally resonant, with a strong creative vision at its core,” said the producers, adding: “What makes the project particularly exciting to us is that it represents an extraordinary Gen Z approach to storytelling and filmmaking: instinctive, genre-fluid and unafraid of breaking with convention. It is the kind of filmmaking that does not simply work within an existing cinematic language but actively pushes it forward and expands what contemporary cinema can be.”

The project’s film financing is being structured so far as a three-way co-production between Empathitude Pictures in Norway and Denmark and Junafilm in Germany, with funding from the Norwegian Film Institute. “It’s a low budget film [around $1.7 million] but it needs the right partners as we want those trailblazing Gen Z filmmakers to fulfil their vision,” the former Viaplay and The Global Ensemble Drama top executive Sørensen told Variety.

At the Norwegian Film Festival’s industry sidebar New Nordic Films, currently underway, the Empathitude Pictures co-heads are looking for further co-financiers and distributors for “Anathema” and for their overall film and series slate.

“With Anne, since launching Empathitude Pictures, we’ve been working relentlessly on our development slate, which was awarded Creative Media support this summer, so it feels like we have taken some good choices. Starting a new company these days is not easy, but we’re optimistic,” offered Hjeltnes who’s also thrilled to attend the Venice Film Festival with the world premiere – out of competition – of Halkawt Mustafa’s “No Paradise if You Are Killed by a Woman,” produced by Hene Films.  

“I have been a producer alongside Halkawt for a decade, having produced as well his previous film “Hiding Saddam Hussein” [an IDFA world premiere in 2023]. “This is a dream come true,” she said.
New Nordic Films closes Aug. 27 and the Norwegian Intl. Film Festival in Haugesund on Aug. 28. 

Indonesian streaming platform Vidio has partnered with ReelShort, the microdrama platform owned by Crazy Maple Studio, marking ReelShort’s first entry into the Indonesian market.

Hundreds of ReelShort titles will become available on Vidio starting Sept. 1.

The content will stream through a dedicated Short Drama tab, accessible to subscribers on Vidio’s TV Extra, Platinum, Platinum Extra and Ultimate packages. The catalog spans genres such as fantasy, family drama, romance and billionaire romance, told in episodes running 60-90 seconds. More than 200 titles will launch with Indonesian dubbing, with a wider slate available in Indonesian subtitles.

Beyond distribution, the deal includes a co-production slate between ReelShort and Indonesian production houses, with resulting series set to appear on both platforms. The partnership is also framed as a skills exchange, giving Indonesian creative talent exposure to ReelShort’s production pipeline. The agreement was brokered by AR Global Media Network.

The Vidio tie-up extends ReelShort’s Southeast Asian expansion after earlier partnerships in Thailand with AIS and in the Philippines with Globe. According to Media Partners Asia (MPA), ReelShort holds an estimated 29% share of global short-form drama revenue.

Vidio’s Short Drama section has existed on the platform since last year. Vidio closed the second quarter of 2026 with 5.8 million paying subscribers in Southeast Asia, the third-largest total in the region. MPA data cited identifies Indonesia as Asia-Pacific’s biggest market for short-form drama viewership, representing 39% of the region’s audience, while mobile ad company Mintegral has recorded quarterly growth of 50%-200% for short-form drama apps since the third quarter of 2023.

“Vidio continues to evolve alongside the changing ways Indonesians consume entertainment,” said Sutanto Hartono, CEO of Vidio. “As audiences increasingly look for content that fits seamlessly into their daily lives, we want to ensure they can find every type of entertainment they love on a single platform, from live sports, local originals, global entertainment to now, the rapidly growing format of short dramas. Our partnership with ReelShort not only responds to this emerging audience demand but also strengthens Vidio’s position as Indonesia’s most comprehensive entertainment platform, offering more choice, greater convenience, and an even richer viewing experience for our subscribers.”

Crazy Maple Studio founder and CEO Joey Jia called the deal a milestone for the company’s regional strategy, saying it reflects a shift in how audiences consume entertainment as microdramas move toward the mainstream. “Indonesia is one of the region’s most dynamic entertainment markets,” Jia said. “We see tremendous potential not only to expand access to our global catalogue, but also to create original stories for Indonesian audiences. Through our planned local productions with Vidio and Indonesian production partners, we look forward to combining ReelShort’s global experience in developing high-performing short-drama IP with local creative talent to build stories and franchises that resonate locally while reaching audiences across the region and beyond.”

Vidio’s move builds on its existing lead in Indonesia’s subscription video market. Per the MPA and AMPD Online Video Consumer Insights: Southeast Asia Q2 2026 report, Vidio holds the largest share of Indonesia’s SVOD subscriptions, at 20.7%.

MPA CEO and executive director Vivek Couto pointed to that scale as central to Vidio’s standing in a crowded field. “Indonesia is one of the most competitive streaming markets in Southeast Asia, with strong demand for both local and international content,” Couto said. “Vidio’s position as the platform with the largest share of SVOD subscriptions in Indonesia, at 20.7%, reflects its ability to build scale through a deep understanding of the local market, supported by strong local content and engagement across categories. This position also highlights the increasingly important role of local platforms in shaping the streaming landscape across Southeast Asia.”

Thousands of ReelShort episodes will be accessible on Vidio’s Short Drama tab starting Sept. 1.

Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird wrote in an op-ed for The Daily Wire that she is suing California for leading the charge in the lawsuit against the Paramount–Warner Bros. merger.

“California is once again trying to be the country’s regulator. And once again California is defying common sense to raise costs around the country,” Bird wrote. “That makes this a dispute between states, and the Constitution says those can only be heard in the U.S. Supreme Court.”

It’s unclear if Bird has filed any paperwork for her lawsuit or if there’s any legal authority that the state of Iowa could invoke. However, the threat of taking California to the Supreme Court may be enough to bring the state’s AG Rob Bonta back to the bargaining table.

Bird argues that “any Iowa family” would tell you the cost of streaming is too high and that there are “fewer quality shows” to choose from. She says these are symptoms of one company getting “too far in front,” and the competitors being “too small to catch up.”

A merger between Paramount and Warner Bros., she writes, would remedy this.

“Netflix dominates the market for streaming,” Bird wrote. “Paramount+ and HBO Max together are smaller than Netflix, smaller than Disney, and smaller than Amazon. The merger could create a company to compete: an estimated $6 billion in savings to reinvest, and a public commitment to release at least 30 movies in theaters every year. More movies mean more entertainment — and more competition means lower prices.”

She called Paramount’s promise to release 30 theatrical films a year a “big deal,” adding, “That means more real choice for the family deciding which subscription to keep and which to cancel; more entertainment for small-town theaters to put on the marquee; and even more work for the crews who build sets and run cameras. Iowans do not need an economist to explain that.”

In addition to hurting consumers, Bird asserts that the uncertainty, along with Paramount’s $7 million ticking fee, will pull down an industry that’s just starting to get back on its feet.

“Two storied American companies are frozen,” she added. “Warner Bros. cannot confidently green-light a film, upgrade its technology, or sign a long-term contract without knowing whether it will exist as an independent company next year. Paramount cannot execute its plans without a merger either. Employees cannot plan careers. And a movie that does not get made this year may never get made at all. Financing expires, talent moves on, and production slates are abandoned. No court ruling in 2027 can go back and produce the film that was never shot. And no Iowan will ever get to see that movie either.”

Bonta, along with 11 other state AGs, sued to stop the Paramount-Warner Bros. merger in July after the DOJ pushed the deal through. Progress toward a settlement seemed in motion after the AGs and Paramount agreed to a sit-down on Monday. However, Bonta called off the meeting at the last minute accusing the studio of leaking information about their settlement discussions.

Paramount denied having anything to do with the leaks, writing in a statement that they “share AG Bonta’s concerns about the public discussions and misreporting that has surrounded this deal.” Still, Bonta doubled down. He said the AGs and Paramount “don’t have anything scheduled,” and that they won’t return to settlement talks until the studio puts a “lid on their lying leaks.”