Media Res, the studio behind acclaimed series such as The Morning Show and Pachinko, has announced that it will begin the production Summer of 1985, a series co-written by Film alum Melina Maraki '23, later this year, marking a significant milestone for the rising screenwriter. The television adaptation is based on the latest novel by Let the Right One In author John Ajvide Lindqvist of the same name.
Published in 2023, the story centers on a group of friends preparing for an epic summer together in the Stockholm archipelago. When the discovery of a mythic creature with mysterious origins and abilities upends their lives, new experiences and pleasures induce the group at the increasing cost of their psyches. Set to be directed by The Bridge co-creator Bjorn Stein, who most recently directed Whiskey on the Rocks for Disney+ and SVT, the show will be overseen by Media Res’s newly appointed Nordics chief, Anna-Klara Carlsten, further expanding the studio’s slate of internationally driven narratives.
Carlsten said: “Our focus will be on producing high-quality, internationally-oriented scripted content under the umbrella of this highly respected production studio.” Summer of 1985 “perfectly encapsulates what I want to bring to the party,” she added.
Since graduating from Columbia’s MFA program in 2023, Maraki has quickly made a name for herself in the industry. She started out in post-production in Australia working on projects like The Daughter (Venice Film Festival 2015) and Grace Under Water (AACTA award 2015). Her thesis film The Liberation of Harold Kvist (2018), the tale of a girl’s life-altering experience on a summer day in Stockholm, screened at the Zagreb Film Festival.
