HBO Europe commissions new Polish drama

HBO Europe’s latest original drama is Blinded by the Lights, a Polish-originated six-parter about a Warsaw cocaine dealer.

HBO Europe has been pushing more heavily into original programming in recent times and also said today that it has recommissioned Wataha, which was its first ever original series, as reported by our sister title TBI, back in 2013.

Blinded by the Lights is set in Warsaw in the run-up to Christmas, and follows a cocaine dealer working in the Polish capital, who is planning to leave for Argentina but needs to get through a hectic and hedonistic few days in Warsaw’s twilight world of clubs and drugs.

The show will run to six one-hour episodes.

The series is based on a novel by Jakub Żulczyk, who also co-wrote the script. The other co-writer is Krzysztof Skonieczny who will also direct.

“We believe Blinded by the lights, a story set in Warsaw’s demi-monde and showing off the city in a wholly new way, will not only appeal to Polish audiences but also to our subscribers all around the HBO Europe region,” said Antony Root, executive VP, original programming and production HBO Europe. “We are confident it will equally excite audiences internationally.”

Meanwhile, shooting on season two of Wataha, about a border guard unit based in the remote Bieszczady Mountains on the Polish border with Ukraine, is underway.

The series rated well in Poland, and was also on Channel 4’s Walter Presents streaming service in the UK.

“Wataha, set in the rugged Bieszczady Mountains, has already proved its appeal to viewers having achieved huge ratings in Poland for its first season,” Root said.

“It also played extremely successfully in the other HBO Europe territories and has sold in foreign markets.

“We are very excited by this new chapter and the way the writers explore some of the challenges now faced on Europe’s longest border.”