• UFA reorganizes documentary division: Ute Biernat takes over overall responsibility

• Development & production of documentaries with Dirk Steffens in the field of nature & sustainability

Potsdam/Cologne, May 27, 2024: UFA, the leading production company in the German-speaking world, is streamlining its structures and reorganizing its documentary division. In future, purely documentary formats will be created from the UFA Show & Factual network, while documentary-fiction material will be developed in even closer cooperation with the sister unit of UFA Fiction. In addition to her function as Managing Director of UFA Show & Factual, Ute Biernat will also assume overall responsibility for the expansion of the documentary genre under the existing UFA Documentary label. Marc Lepetit, who has helped build up the UFA Documentary unit as Managing Director since April 2021 and is responsible for formats such as ICH BIN! MARGOT FRIEDLÄNDER and ALL OR NOTHING: DIE NATIONALMANNSCHAFT IN KATAR, will return to work as a producer under the UFA umbrella after handing over the reins.

At the same time as the organizational restructuring, UFA has agreed to collaborate with Dirk Steffens in the documentary sector. The renowned and multiple award-winning science journalist and bestselling author will develop and produce high-quality documentaries for TV stations and streamers with UFA.

Sascha Schwingel, CEO of UFA, comments on the changes: “I am very pleased that we will be working together with Dirk Steffens on exciting material in a very relevant and growing genre. I know that Ute Biernat, who has produced internationally award-winning documentaries with ARCTIC DRIFT in addition to long-running and self-developed show and factual program brands, is in the very best hands to manage the entire documentary division. I would like to thank Marc Lepetit for the fact that we can continue to rely on his production expertise following the establishment of UFA Documentary. The current changes are a further step towards aligning UFA even more consistently with creativity and top-class talent.”

Ute Biernat, CEO of UFA Show & Factual: “I am delighted to be able to further expand the documentary division within UFA and to drive forward the content with a focus on ‘People & Places’. With science journalist Dirk Steffens on board, we will start with GEO documentaries and are also working on documentaries with excellent dramaturgical editing in the areas of music, sports, crime, nature and politics. So we have a lot of plans to position the documentary sector for the future.”

Dirk Steffens: “The cooperation with UFA, one of the leading production companies in the German-speaking world and part of Fremantle’s global network, opens up completely new horizons for our high-end documentaries, both nationally and internationally. In close cooperation with our partners at Bertelsmann, we can now develop and realize material in line with our topics from nature and science: Sophisticated content, sophisticated dramaturgy and at an internationally competitive level. We look forward to working with streamers and broadcasters at home and abroad.”

The press release as pdf for download: