Wink, the online cinema, has received a record-holder certificate from the Russian Book of Records for the biggest film and series premiere in the country. The new spy drama “GDR” was shown in 30 cinemas across Russia, from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok. The first episode was seen offline by a total of over 5,000 individuals. Online for the first weekend the project was watched by more than 1 million viewers. Also, today “GDR” took the first line in the ranking of popular series according to Kinopoisk, overtaking the Turkish hit “You Knock on My Door” and “The Boy’s Word: Blood on the Asphalt”. We are pleased to share new footage from the show and character posters featuring the main characters.
“It is crucial for us to ensure that our content is accessible to all audiences across the country. We are striving to eliminate the fourth wall between the viewer and the art, which is why we have organised a series of premiere screenings of the series “GDR” in various locations,” said Alexander Kosarim, Content Director of the online cinema Wink.
“I had the opportunity to attend three premiere screenings in Moscow, Kaliningrad and Krasnoyarsk. Given the limited timeframe, I regret that I was unable to visit all the locations I would have liked to. But I am glad that Wink made a similar action with the “GDR” series and I think that this is a great start for the project,” shared Yuri Sapronov, the Producer of the series.
All 14 episodes of the new project became available to subscribers on 16 February exclusively on Wink. The project will be available exclusively on Wink until 26 February, after which it will begin airing on the NTV channel. The series was created by the film company World Russian Studios in collaboration with NTV, Wink, NMG Studios and the support of the Institute for Internet Development (IID).
The story is set in the autumn of 1989 in the USSR. A huge empire is cracking at the seams, about to break the glacier dam of diplomacy and military alliances and rush down, sweeping away everything in its path. The protagonist is Captain Nechaev, forced to return to action after a failed special operation. In Moscow, a colleague requests that Nechaev monitor the activities of the Berlin music hall artists, who are capable of transmitting encrypted information to an American journalist. This simple assignment sets in motion a big story that will begin in the GDR, Berlin, where intelligence agencies from various countries will engage in a clash.
The main roles in the series were played by Alexander Gorbatov, Daria Ursulyak and Linda Lapins. Filming took place in Moscow, Kaliningrad and the region, also in Vyborg, Berlin, Minsk, Grodno, Brest and Istanbul. More than 7,5 thousand people were engaged in the production of large-scale drama, 98 actors of the main cast and more than 6.8 thousand actors in mass scenes. A total of 363 stuntmen were engaged to perform in 167 stunt scenes, while over 100 artists and decorators were involved in creating the visual elements of the project. Additionally, the production team utilised over 10 aircraft and 816 vintage cars, along with distinctive special vehicles such as the armoured car Mikhail Gorbachev and 9 motorbikes, including a model from 1939.