Olivier Dahan’s Period Drama ‘Nana’ Kicks Off Marvelous Productions, Kapa Studios Pact (EXCLUSIVE)

French production company Marvelous Productions and Greek production outfit Kapa Studios are joining forces on a cross-border partnership that will begin with a feature film and expand into television series and additional projects.

The collaboration, which will be announced Thursday at the Thessaloniki Intl. Film Festival, will see the two companies developing and producing projects that can travel across European and international markets while connecting creative talent from France and Greece.

The first project under the partnership is the period drama “Nana,” by Olivier Dahan, known for biographical feature films including “La Vie en Rose,” which earned Marion Cotillard an Academy Award for her portrayal of French chanteuse Edith Piaf, and “Simone: Woman of the Century,” a biopic of Auschwitz survivor Simone Veil.

An adaptation of the classic novel by Émile Zola, “Nana” is supported by France Télévision, Canal+ and the CNC and co-produced and distributed by ARP in France and internationally. Arthur Cohen, of Momentum Entertainment, brokered the deal and serves as executive producer.

According to the producers, the film will be a stepping stone toward a broader collaboration. Following the historical drama, Marvelous Productions and Kapa Studios are developing plans to work together on a series, with additional film and television projects potentially to follow.

“We are very excited about the prospect of partnering with Kapa on ‘Nana,’ our flagship project,” said Marvelous Productions founders Romain Le Grand and Vivien Aslanian. “Giannis and his team will help us strengthen the European and international dimension of our current and future productions.”

“France and Greece have strong and distinctive filmmaking traditions, and there is an exciting opportunity to work with Romain and Vivien to combine power and bring those perspectives together while developing projects with international reach,” added Giannis Karagiannis, producer and CEO of Kapa Studios.

The partnership will tap into Greece’s growing popularity as a production hub, thanks in part to its 40% cash rebate, as well as the expanded facilities at Kapa Studios, which recently added two new 20,000-square-foot sound stages.

Marvelous Productions was launched in 2017 by Romain Le Grand and Vivien Aslanian, who spent 19 years together at the helm of Pathe. Since signing a first-look deal with Warner Bros., the company has produced or co-produced 15 films, including Dahan’s “Simone: Woman of the Century,” which was among the biggest hits at the French box office in 2022, and the biographical comedy “Bernadette,” starring Catherine Deneuve, which was nominated for a César in 2024. They also produced “BDE,” a comedy directed by Michaël Youn, for Prime Video.

Boasting over 50 years of experience in the film industry, Kapa Studios is an independent production company that offers the largest sound stage facilities in Greece. Its facilities include 12 sound stages totaling 250,000 square feet across 25 acres, as well as backlots, existing sets and 100,000 square feet of supporting spaces used as production offices, costume shops and workshops.

The Thessaloniki Film Festival runs Nov. 5 – 15.