FIREGLORY PICTURES UNVEILS EIGHT ORIGINAL PRODUCTIONS HEADLINED BY

"NOTHING TO LOSE" FROM AUDREY SCHEBAT

Fireglory Pictures, the U.S. and Europe-based film and TV production company founded by veteran producers Christine Guenther and Chevy K. Chen, has announced today eight new projects in the company's development lineup. The bold and wide-ranging slate of series and film projects is led by writer-director Audrey Schebat's ("Life," TV Series "Victoire Bonnot") English language feature film debut, "Nothing To Lose," a deep and satirical exploration of the fragility of human empathy.

Other feature films in the Fireglory slate include "The Procreators," written by Daniel Y-Li Grove, and "Sockpuppets," directed by Alisa Berger ("The Astronauts' Bodies"), and written by Will Evans. Feature documentaries include "Film1/ASAP: As Slow As Possible," written and directed by Patrick Shen ("In Pursuit of Silence") and Brandon Vedder ("Strange Negotiations"), executive produced by Philip Gröning ("Into Great Silence"), "Falling Into Vali," written and directed by Chiara Centioni ("Sansone"), and the unique hybrid-feature documentary, "Music And The Machine," a mesmerizing Variety-Show hybrid live and documentary production.  Series titles include "Oval" written by Janna Maria Nandzik ("The Empress") and Stefan Titze ("How To Sell Drugs Online Fast"), and "The Babes," based on the life story of Madeleine Altmann, founder of Babes4U, one of the internet's first women owned-and-run adult web site.

"Think of our slate as a campfire kitchen - where you feel the warmth and the aroma of something being cooked with love. Regardless of where you are from or who you are - we all know this feeling and it translates," said Guenther.  "Although very diverse in themes and form, all our dishes are very much connected to our "why" - the reason we choose to tell stories for a living and all dishes test the limits of staple genre recipes by adding elements of spicy and tangy surprise."

"The stories that drive us edge between World Cinema and Hollywood, where fun merges with meaning and depth that creates conversations after the credits. We aim for stories to take audiences on an entertaining ride but also fulfill their - our- need for making sense of ourselves and the world around us," added Chen.

Fireglory's Guenther has worked on award-winning projects across genres and platforms including Liz Garbus' Emmy-nominated "The Fourth Estate," Netflix's "Abstract: The Art Of Design" and "Ugly Delicious," 'Killing Eve,' directed by Jon East and Emily Atef, and the Max series, "The Flight Attendant," directed by Silver Tree, featuring Kaley Cuoco, Zosia Mamet and Rosie Perez. Chen is an international unit producer and 2nd unit director/DP who has worked on notable TV and film projects including the ABC TV Series Marvel's "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.," created by Joss Whedon, USA Network's "Royal Pains" and "Suits," HBO's "Westworld," starring Evan Rachel Wood, Ed Harris and James Marden, Syfy's "12 Monkeys," and the Starz original series, "Counterpart," created by Justin Marks and starring J.K. Simmons.

Guenther and Chen met while working on Doug Liman's series "Covert Affairs" in 2011 and started collaborating professionally across the pond on international productions.  In 2016 they officially joined forces and formed Fireglory Pictures with an original slate from the ground up. They are joined by long-time collaborator and Partner Nicola Kropp, who is also a development executive for the EU and UK incarnations of The Writers Lab.

Fireglory Pictures' completed feature films include "Kiss Me Kosher," the debut feature from by Venezuelan-born, Israel-raised and German-based Shirel Peleg.  Shot entirely in Israel, "Kiss Me Kosher" is a romantic misadventure about crazy families and even crazier love stories.  The film stars Moran Rosenblatt ("Fauda," "Wedding Doll"), Luise Wolfram ("Mathilde," "Das Boot"), Juliane Köhler ("Tatort," "Munich Games"), Bernard Schuetz ("Barbians"), John Carroll Lynch ("Fargo," "The Trial of the Chicago 7") and Rivka Michaeli ("Shakshouka").  Most recently, Fireglory Pictures made the difficult decision to postpone the U.S. theatrical release in light of the tragic events unfolding in Israel, deciding instead to release in 2024.

Additional completed films include "Nasima," co-produced with PhotoSF and Bigtop Studios, and "Cassette: A Documentary Mixtape" featuring Henry Rollins, and "Home" starring Kathy Bates, both released by Gravitas Ventures.

Guenther and Chen are also founders of the global production collaborative, groundcontrol_ conceived and launched in 2023.  groundcontrol_ is an alliance of seasoned producers and production companies in over 50 cities and countries worldwide that provide production resources for film and TV productions.  groundcontrol_ links films and TV shows with the quality collaborators they need. Some notable productions groundcontrol_ members have worked on include FX Hulu's "Atlanta" (France, Netherlands), HBO Max's "The Flight Attendant" (Germany), Netflix US's "The Diplomat" (France), Sony Pictures' "Alex Rider" (Romania) and BBC America's "Killing Eve" (Germany, Romania).

Fireglory Pictures' full development slate here:

NOTHING TO LOSE

Narrative Feature

Written & Directed by Audrey Schebat (English language feature debut)

Synopsis: In a not-so-distant future, individuals in debt to society are put up for auction as a final kindness by the state or rather as a last try to make good use of them before meeting death by 'liquidation.'  A resourceful creative purchases 10 lives for her live-streamed psychological game show, Nothing To Lose, in which the audience votes who may stay and live, and who must die. When one involuntary participant realizes that she really has nothing to lose, the rules of the game change.

THE PROCREATORS

Narrative Feature

Written by Daniel Y-Li Grove

Synopsis: Thanks to a genetic scientific breakthrough a newlywed couple are expecting their first baby. When a Transhumanist convinces them to go the extra mile and "design" their unborn child, Wilhelmina & Kate's relationship is threatened and their dream family "disrupted".

SOCKPUPPETS

Narrative Feature

Directed by Alisa Berger ("The Astronauts' Bodies"); written by Will Evans

Synopsis: SOCKPUPPETS is a dark and acerbic comedy that recounts the extraordinary true(-ish) story of how Anna, a young American 'content provider' winds up working at a Russian troll farm where she inadvertently helps bring the demise of Western Democracy.

FILM 1/ ASAP - AS SLOW AS POSSIBLE

Feature Documentary

Written and Directed by Patrick Shen ("In Pursuit of Silence") and Brandon Vedder ("Strange Negotiations"); Executive Producer Philip Gröning (Into Great Silence)

Status: In Production

Synopsis: FILM 1/ASAP: AS SLOW AS POSSIBLE is an immersive and meditative film that explores the elastic intersections of human, geological, and cosmic time. Through the interwoven stories of multiple characters and their expansive connection with time, the film encourages viewers to reexamine their relationship with the urgency of the modern age and consider the world we are leaving behind. Film1/ASAP creates a space for the audience to rest in the intersection of past, present, and future and divorce themselves from the ticking clock of the machine and its implications on our lives and the lives of the generations to come.

FALLING INTO VALI

Feature Documentary

Written and Directed by Chiara Centioni ("Sansone" short film)

Synopsis: The fascinating story of visionary, wild, queer and long deceased artist Vali Myers, and how following her footsteps led a young Italian woman - former QVC TV host and the director of this documentary - from Italy's Amalfi coast to New York and Australia's Gold Coast, but most importantly on a crazy, serendipitous journey of discovering her own true self. FALLING INTO VALI is not just a love letter of a director to her muse, it's a love letter to everyone struggling to find themselves in a society conditioned to strive towards conformity.

MUSIC AND THE MACHINE

Hybrid Live Show / Feature Documentary

Directed by Jacob Kornbluth ("Inequity for All")

Currently in Pre-Production

A mesmerizing Variety-Show hybrid live and documentary production that explores the entangled web of technology, economy, music, and humanity in the digital age, seeking to answer some of the biggest questions of our time through the lens of music. Through dynamic live discussions, comedy skits, quirky economic explainers, and electrifying live music performances, this one-of-a-kind "special" production invites a live audience on a thought-provoking journey into the clash of man versus machine. Set within a legendary venue in Las Vegas, this immersive production pushes the boundaries of form and mixes the urgency and unrepeatability of live events. With its built-in weirdness, anarchic fun, and handmade feel it is the exact polar opposite of AI generated art.

OVAL

Limited Series: Based on the novel by Elvia Wilk.  Genre-bending 6 × 60 minutes series mixing dark comedy drama with surreal satire and dashes of thriller.

Adapted and written by Janna Maria Nandzik ("The Empress") & Stefan Titze ("How To Sell Drugs Online Fast")

Synopsis: While the streets of a tropical Berlin are filled with excitement for her boyfriend's empathy pill, biotech researcher Anja realizes too late that Oval is becoming the pinnacle of the capital's ego trip instead of a cure for its social disconnect.

THE BABES

Series: Based on the life-story of Babes4U founder Madeleine Altmann

Synopsis: Before Zoom, before TikTok, and way before OnlyFans...there was Babes4U. THE BABES is based on the true story of how the internet was pioneered by babes in fishnets, not bros in hoodies. Fed-up with handsy bosses and sexist disrespect, a broke art student decides to shake things up and make a buck with high tech sex...and in the process revolutionizes the internet.

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ABOUT FIREGLORY PICTURES 

Fireglory Pictures is a transatlantic production company with offices in Los Angeles and Berlin headed by veteran producers Christine Guenther and Chevy K. Chen. Fireglory Pictures produces bold subject matter stories that inspire, empower, entertain, and provoke. They have produced nonfiction works including the feature documentaries "Nasima," based on the story of Nasima Akter, Bangladesh's first female surfer; "Cassette: A Documentary Mixtape," featuring Henry Rollins, and "Jealous of the Birds." They have also produced foreign unit segments for Showtime's "The Fourth Estate", Netflix's "Abstract: The Art of Design" and "Ugly Delicious". Their fictional producing credits include festival charmers "Salomea's Nose", the indie feature "1/1", the romantic comedy "Kiss Me Kosher," and the drama "Home," starring Kathy Bates.