Deutschland 83 - General Discussion

DEUTSCHLAND 83 is a gripping coming-of-age story set against the real culture wars and political events of Germany in the 1980s. The drama follows Martin Rauch (Jonas Nay) as the 24 year-old East Germany native is pulled from the world as he knows it and sent to the West as an undercover spy for the Stasi foreign service. Hiding in plain sight in the West German army, he must gather the secrets of NATO military strategy. Everything is new, nothing is quite what it seems and everyone he encounters is harboring secrets, both political and personal.

Deutschland 83, the new spy thriller on Sundance TV, takes up where The Americans left off. Literally. The season three finale of The Americans was named for the date of Ronald Raygun’s infamous “evil empire” speech, and that’s exactly the point at which Deutschland 83 starts—with America’s first Movie-Star-In-Chief trash talking the Soviet Union on television.

More: Deutschland 83 @ Sundance TV

SundanceTV, April 16, 2015

SUNDANCE TV’S HIGHLY ANTICIPATED SERIES ‘DEUTSCHLAND 83’ SET TO PREMIERE WEDNESDAY, JUNE 17 AT 11:00PM ET/PT

Gripping Coming-of-Age Series Will Be the First German Language Television Program to Broadcast on a U.S. Television Network

New York, April 16, 2015 – SundanceTV announced today that “Deutschland 83” will premiere Wednesday, June 17 at 11:00PM ET/PT.  “Deutschland 83” is a coming-of-age spy thriller, which unfolds just as the Cold War between East and West comes to a head.  The eight-part series is written and created by American journalist and author Anna Winger (This Must Be the Place) alongside her husband Joerg Winger, a successful German showrunner (“Soko Leipzig”), who serves as executive producer. The New York Times touted the series as an “ingenious, counterintuitive look at the Cold War.”
SundanceTV SVP of Scripted and Current Programming Christian Vesper said, “‘Deutschland 83’ is quintessential SundanceTV and the kind of out-of-the-box storytelling for which it’s known. From its top of the line writing to its transatlantic point of view, the series is a challenging and bold step into a world in which viewers will lose themselves.”
“Deutschland 83” is a captivating story set against the real culture wars and political events of Germany in the 1980s. The drama follows Martin Rauch (Jonas Nay) as the 24-year-old East German native is pulled from the world as he knows it and sent to the West as an undercover spy for the Stasi foreign service. Hiding in plain sight in the West German army, he must gather the secrets of NATO military strategy. Everything is new, nothing is quite what it seems and everyone he encounters is harboring secrets, both political and personal.
Created by Anna Winger and Joerg Winger, “Deutschland 83” is executive produced by UFA Fiction’s Joerg Winger and Nico Hofmann and directed by Edward Berger and Samira Radsi. The series is a UFA Fiction production for RTL Television in Germany, co-produced by SundanceTV in the U.S. and distributed by FremantleMedia International. The series had its exclusive world premiere during the inaugural Berlinale Special Series at the 65^th Berlinale International Film Festival.
“Deutschland 83” continues SundanceTV’s expansion of original scripted programming, including the critical hit “Rectify” from the producers of “Breaking Bad,” which will return for its third season in July; the thriller “The Red Road,” which is currently airing its second season; and the cult smash “The Returned,” which will return with new episodes in the fall.

About SundanceTV

SundanceTV is making and celebrating television as distinctive as the best independent films. Working with today’s most remarkable talent, SundanceTV is attracting viewer and critical acclaim for its original scripted and unscripted series. Launched in 1996 and owned and operated by AMC Networks Inc., SundanceTV delivers on the spirit of founder Robert Redford’s mission to celebrate creativity.  www.sundance.tv

Deutschland 83 Cast:

International’s 'Deutschland 83' Comes to Sundance TV in U.S.

Jorg and Anna Winger’s new spy drama, about a key year in Cold War history through the eyes of a young East German man, will be the first German-language series to air stateside.

Sundance TV has picked up new German drama series Deutschland 83, marking the first time a U.S. network will air a German-language series.

FremantleMedia International is screening the first two episodes of the eight-part series on Feb. 9 in Berlin as part of the European Film Market’s special focus on high-end television drama.
Deutschland 83 was shot mainly in and around Berlin with a special focus on an exact re-creation of West Germany in 1983, when the country was at the center of the Cold War. “Finding locations hasn’t been easy,” says Jorg Winger, 45, who co-created the show with his American-born writer wife, Anna Winger, 44. “So much has changed since the fall of the Berlin Wall, there are almost no houses left in the East that look like they did back then.”

The production team, which includes UFA Fiction and German commercial network RTL, finally found a sleepy suburb to the east of Berlin and a house where the furniture, and even the wallpaper, hadn’t changed in decades. It plays stand-in for the family home of Moritz, a young East German man (newcomer Jonas Nay) who is recruited to infiltrate the West German military as a spy.
The story draws from Jorg’s own experiences of the time. “For my military service, I worked in the signals department and we listened in on Russian broadcasts from the other side," he recalls. "One night, close to Christmas, the Russians wished all of us a merry Christmas, by name. So we knew we had a spy."

Anna Winger says 1983 was a key year in the history of the Cold War, when both America and Russia were edging toward nuclear war. Germany was their battleground, with spies from both sides engaging in espionage and counterespionage. It also was the year that Germany, for the first and last time in recent history, became the center of the pop-music world, with Nena’s “99 Red Balloons” and the music of the New German Wave topping the charts. It’s that music that graces the Deutschland 83 soundtrack.

“There was so much that came together in that one year in Germany, so much in pop culture and politics that still resonates today,” Anna Winger says. “In a way the world from 1983 is the world we are living in today.”

Cast & Characters

Jonas Nay as Martin Rauch / Moritz Stamm

Martin, born in East Germany, is sent to West Germany as a spy under alias Moritz Stamm.

Maria Schrader as Lenora Rauch

Martin's aunt/boss, Lenora is the Cultural Attaché at the East German Embassy.

Alexander Beyer as Tobias Tischbier

Martin's mentor in the HVA (Foreign Arm of the East German Secret Service).

Sonja Gerhardt as Annett Schneider

Martin's fiancée and childhood sweetheart back home in Kleinmachnow.

Ludwig Trepte as Alex Edel

General Edel's rebellious son who is forced into a military career against his will.

Lisa Tomaschewsky as Yvonne Edel

General Edel's talented daughter Yvonne rebels by joining the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh cult.

Ulrich Noethen as General Wolfgang Edel

Martin's boss in the Bundeswehr, General Edel is a West German official with top secret intel.

Sylvester Groth as Walter Schweppenstette

Lenora's boss, Walter is high up in the HVA (East German Secret Service) hierarchy.

I read above about the sundance shows, and I tried "Rectify", and it is a slow paced show, but fairly
interesting.
I have 2 seasons to go thru !
About done with S-1 which was 6 eps, on # 6 now.

I am going to try "the red road" next.
I guess when they air the german show, it will have eng dub or subs.
Dont know when that will be.

T5000 wrote:

...
I guess when they air the german show, it will have eng dub or subs.
Dont know when that will be.

Well, the first three have already been aired (just take a look at the opening posts of the ep threads).
And they use English subs (hardcoded). Obviously for the few foreign shows that are aired in U.S. TV they don't make the effort of dubbing them.
Whereas in Germany dubbing English speaking shows is absolutely standard. By far the most viewers prefer dubbing in German to German subtitles.
To some point I can understand that. For those, who don't understand English at all or well enough, having to constantly read the subs, especially when there's much and fast talking, is kind of distracting and easily causes the missing of details.
I for one don't use German subs for English speaking shows anymore. But I usually let the English subs run just in case something is difficult to hear out because of some weird slang or bad pronunciation.

BTW, it's funny. Deutschland 83 will air in Germany only in (late?) fall, so the U.S. market seems to be really worth a try for the showrunners and the German commercial broadcaster RTL, who is the main producer of the show.

"Rectify" is  a pretty good show!
strange but compelling.

I am about done with S-2, S-3 starts tonight, it will be a drag to now have to wait for the ep each week!

But the show is very serial, and very well written, and acted, and everything fits together.
That makes the side storys so much better, when they develop those characters and these storys
sort of add to the main one which does move slow, but it is well done.

In fact I would say this is so far one of the best written shows I have seen.
Stuff that happens in S-1 seems like just filler, but later it ties back in to the central story.
And also the acting is so good, it makes the writing seem better.

Definitely a show I recommend.

T5000 wrote:

"Rectify" is  a pretty good show!
strange but compelling.

I am about done with S-2, S-3 starts tonight, it will be a drag to now have to wait for the ep each week!

But the show is very serial, and very well written, and acted, and everything  fits together.
That makes the side storys so much better, when they develop those characters and these storys
sort of add to the main one which does move slow, but it is well done.

In fact I would say this is so far one of the best written shows I have seen.
Stuff that happens in S-1 seems like just filler, but later it ties back in to the central story.
And also the acting is so good,  it makes the writing seem better.

Definitely a show I recommend.

Sounds interesting. If I have some spare time, I'll give it a try.

BTW, you then might like to read this:

Rectify - Renewed for a 4th Season

Thanks , read that and
· “Television’s wisest, deepest drama.” -Jeff Jensen, Entertainment Weekly
· “Beautiful, brilliant, and unlike anything else on television.” -Libby Hill, Vulture
· “A master class in nuance.” -Brian Lowry, Variety
· “Terrific slow-burn drama.” -James Poniewozik, TIME

“Rectify” was created and written by Ray McKinnon (writer and director of the Oscar®-winning short film The Accountant; actor in “Deadwood,” “Sons of Anarchy”). It is executive produced by McKinnon, as well as Mark Johnson and Melissa Bernstein, the award-winning producers behind AMC’s “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul.”

I am now caught up,so it will be slow watching now lol , but at least no hiatus!!
I never heard of sundance, and apparently it is affiliated with AMC.
Every channel needs 1 good show, and this is the one for sundance.
It was compelling show to watch.
S-1 is only 6 eps long so give that a try.
I think they did not think people would like the show.... only 6 eps.

Milo MJ wrote:

Deutschland 83 Review: "If You Like The Americans, You Need to Watch This"

Posted by Milo MJ  at Tuesday, September 13, 2016


If you're a fan of FX's hit The Americans then the German series Deutschland 83 is the perfect show for you. It has a similiar Cold War setting (you can easily imagine Elizabeth and Phillip in the same period only in America and it wouldn't feel out of place), and to put you in more familiar territory Reagan's infamous "Evil Empire" speech that ends Season 3 of The Americans takes place at the start of Deutschland 83. It also follows spies from the East going into the West undercover. But the biggest difference is that it is not set in America, in fact, aside from a couple of American characters, it's its set almost entirely in Germany, starring Jonas Nay as a young East-German named Martin who experiences a culture shock when he's send over the Berlin Wall to West Germany in order to collect intelligence for the East German Secret Service.

However, Martin doesn't have much of a choice in the matter and after finding out his current location, he instantly runs away from his aunt Lenora Rauch (who is responsible for selecting him in the first place). He runs into a supermarket and finds himself in unfamiliar new territory - compared to East Germany, there's just so much choice available. It's not the first time that the differences in culture between the East and the West will confuse Martin, as this drama that also doubles as an effective coming of age story proves to be an effective and realistic look into the differences between the two societies. It's also not the first time that the differences will confuse the East German secret service as well, because after Martin retrieves a floppy disk, the show demonstrates its humor by having the East German intelligence left befuddled by the fact that it won't work on their computer, which is the latest model that they have. This is something that once again is a consequence of real-world events that factor quite heavily into Deutschland 83, which revolves around the Able Archer incident and borrows its eight episode titles from real-world NATO Military access from that year.

The performances are pretty good even if the cast themselves may not be that familiar particularly to American audiences, and that's understandable because they're not even well known amongst German audiences. For example, Nay himself has stated in an interview that he's actually more popular in Britain than his own country Germany, thanks to the fact that Deutschland 83 was a massive hit in the UK and the first episode was the most watched foreign drama in UK TV History. It also means that there are plenty of subtitles for you to follow, but you shouldn't be put off by them. The show even uses American characters as well who feature in prominent roles, meaning that there are times when subtitles aren't needed.

The soundtrack is one of the best parts of the show and if you love 80s music then this will be a real nostalgia trip. It's very on the nose but really helps set the mood of the show, for example, Eurythmics' "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" will be playing as Martin enters the supermarket for the first time in one of the series' strongest moments, and other songs include Nena's excellent 99 Luftballons, as well as Tears for Fear's Mad World. The show also manages to nail the period setting as well and the era itself, with counter-culture movements also being explored. Romance is indeed in the air as well, even if it doesn't play a big focus in the plot. There's both a variety of straight and same-sex relationships over the course of the series, with Martin himself caught in a difficult situation when he has to, despite having a girlfriend back in East Berlin, seduce an analyst's secretary in order to plant a bug. Regardless of any romantic developments the tension is always high and the drama is constant throughout, with several unpredictable moments where you never quite know what's going to happen next. Given the short eight episode length, Deutschland 83 is perfect for a quick binge over the weekend and thanks to its fast-moving pace and serialized storyline, the show fits the binge-watching model perfectly as you'll find it hard to turn away.

Deutschland 83 is currently one season long but there is currently a second season in development, entitled "Deutschland 86", which would switch the action to 1986 as opposed to 1983. Regardless of how long we have to wait before it airs, the first season has an ending that's satisfactory enough that can be watched as a standalone eight episode event, with no real cliffhanger even if the ending does feel a bit rushed. But if you put that aside - and it's only a minor flaw, the majority of Deutschland 83 is an engaging drama that really deserves your attention. If you haven't seen it already then it's something that comes recommended as essential viewing.

Deutschland 83 is currently available to stream in the USA on Hulu, having aired last year on SundanceTV, and can be watched on All 4 in the UK through Walter Presents.

Watch This If You Like: The Americans, Allegiance, Fargo, Narcos, The Bridge & The Killin

Well done review. I fully agree and I'm looking forward to a second season!!!

I saw the entire series of Deutschland 83 too. What was portrayed and quite likely true, was the paranoia in high places.
I say people need psychiatric evaluations before getting top jobs.

I thought it was a good series - coincided with Homeland.