Ute Biernat
STERN CRIME (original title)
UFA SHOW & FACTUAL GmbH • Documentary & Factual • TVNOW • End of 2021True crime formats have enjoyed great popularity for years. Under the umbrella of the Bertelsmann Content Alliance, UFA Show & Factual, TVNOW and the true crime magazine STERN CRIME, which is published by Gruner + Jahr in Hamburg, film Germany’s biggest criminal cases.
STERN CRIME: DER MASKENMANN marks the start of the series. The case of the so-called ‘Masked Man’ caused a sensation across Germany. The three-part documentary can be seen exclusively on TVNOW from March 1, 2021.
After DER MASKENMANN, STERN CRIME: DER FALL FRAUKE LIEBS is the second true crime format that UFA Show & Factual is producing for TVNOW based on the extensive research and interviews of the true crime magazine STERN CRIME and will be shown exclusively on TVNOW at the end of 2021 and later on VOX.
Bertelsmann Content Alliance
Mediengruppe RTL Deutschland, UFA, RTL Radio Deutschland, Penguin Random House Verlagsgruppe, Gruner + Jahr and the music company BMG inspire many millions of people in Germany every day with their creative content. Together they form the Bertelsmann Content Alliance. With this alliance, Bertelsmann is creating new formats and unique marketing opportunities in Germany. This makes the Bertelsmann Content Alliance an innovative and powerful partner for all creatives. Bertelsmann invests around €6 billion annually in creative content worldwide.
The case of Frauke Liebs
“Frauke lived for another week. I would like to know who was with her and who then decided that she should not be allowed to continue living and why they made that decision” – Ingrid Liebs, mother of the murder victim
The documentary STERN CRIME: THE FRAUKE LIEBS CASE, produced by UFA Show & Factual, sheds light on the still unsolved murder of nursing student Frauke Liebs. Fifteen years ago, on a summer evening during the 2006 soccer World Cup, the then 21-year-old disappeared in Paderborn. For days after her disappearance, Frauke sent messages to her family and friends and even called them. But the young woman never returned alive. The documentary about the still unsolved murder case will be shown exclusively on TVNOW at the end of 2021 and later also on VOX.
Ralf Jühe, Executive Producer at UFA Show & Factual: “The disappearance and murder of Frauke Liebs remain unsolved to this day, which has been a tremendous burden for Frauke’s family – and has been for 15 years. The documentary STERN CRIME: THE FRAUKE LIEBS CASE allows Frauke’s family members and friends to have their say. They are all united by the desire to finally get clarity about what happened in the summer of 2006. The determination and strength with which Frauke Liebs’ mother ensures that the unsolved murder of her daughter is not forgotten is truly admirable.”
Giuseppe di Grazia, Editorial Director of STERN CRIME: “The Frauke Liebs case continues to move and engage our readers to this day. Our reporter Dominik Stawski first reported on it in 2015. Since then, he has remained in contact with Frauke Liebs’ family and friends. He has a relationship of trust with those close to her like no other journalist, which is also evident in the numerous interviews for this documentary.“
Frauke Liebs disappeared without a trace in Paderborn on the night of June 20/21, 2006 after a public viewing during the World Cup. For seven days after her disappearance, she repeatedly sent text messages to her friends and family and even called them several times, most recently on the night of June 27. Then there is silence. Finally, on October 4, 2006, her body was found. To this day, nobody knows what happened to Frauke. The documentary STERN CRIME: THE FRAUKE LIEBS CASE shows what the investigation has revealed and gives Frauke Liebs’ family members a voice.
The masked man
“The masked man”
It is one of the most gruesome and unbelievable criminal cases in Germany: for more than a decade, the so-called “masked man” has terrified parents and children in northern Germany. At night, masked in a black balaclava, he breaks into school dormitories, boarding schools and homes and abuses at least 40 boys. In the course of this series, he commits three murders. To this day, his crimes have not been fully solved.
The multi-part documentary “The Masked Man” examines the circumstances of this case, which is probably unique internationally, in unprecedented detail and, with exclusive insights from case analyst Alexander Horn, the then head of Soko Martin Erftenbeck, psychiatrist Norbert Nedopil and many others directly involved, tells how Germany’s most famous pedophile serial offender was caught, but also what consequences his actions had for victims and relatives.
Henning Tewes, Co-Managing Director of TVNOW: “We focus on diversity at TVNOW. That’s why we’re delighted to be able to offer our users another new genre from 2021 with True Crime. With ‘The Masked Man’, we are making the first outstanding journalistic work by our colleagues from STERN CRIME and UFA Show & Factual available to them in streaming. We also want to significantly expand the true crime genre in the future. Because if something is a hot topic in Germany, it is also a hot topic for TVNOW – this also applies to criminal cases.”
Giuseppe Di Grazia, Editorial Director of STERN CRIME: “There is a lot of potential in the STERN CRIME brand and in our stories. We always had the goal of turning the best cases from the magazine into films. In TVNOW and UFA, we have found the perfect partners for this. Our meticulously researched and excellently written stories, which are told in a restrained yet gripping manner, such as the case of the Masked Man, are an excellent match for TVNOW’s quality standards.”
Ralf Jühe, Executive Producer at UFA Show & Factual: “When we heard about the opportunity to turn the exciting and disturbing cases from STERN CRIME into a documentary, we didn’t hesitate for long. It’s a great task to approach the stories with all due journalistic diligence and also to find a visual language that meets the high standards. The case of the so-called ‘Masked Man’ has occupied and gripped us for months, the cooperation with the editorial teams of TVNOW and STERN CRIME works excellently and offers great opportunities for a new color of the trendy genre of true crime, which we would like to serve more strongly in the future.”
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