Actress Claudia Michelsen has strongly criticized the decision by the Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk (MDR) to discontinue production of the Dresden-based crime series “Tatort” and the Magdeburg series “Polizeiruf 110” for three years. This news was reported by the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” on Wednesday.
Michelsen labeled the MDR’s plan a “fatal decision.” She noted that this forced her to question what is happening with the Eastern parts of the country, especially since she had long wanted to move past discussions about “the East or the West.” Michelsen has been portraying the lead criminal investigator Doreen Brasch in “Polizeiruf 110” in Magdeburg since 2013.
Sascha Schwingel, a television producer and managing director at UFA, expressed concern that the MDR’s cuts to its Sunday crime shows would result in the loss of a vital platform for the audience. “The ‘Polizeiruf’ from Magdeburg is one of the few remaining fictional settings where East German reality, East German society, and East German characters are told,” Schwingel stated.
The Leipzig production company Ufa Mitte had recently taken over responsibility for “Polizeiruf Magdeburg.” While the first film under the new structure is scheduled to be shot in November, it could potentially be the final one.
Schwingel explained that constructive talks are underway with the MDR, and a meeting with Intendant Ralf Ludwig and Program Director Boris Lochthofen is scheduled for the current week. “And I am a hopeless optimist,” he added. These planned reductions in Sunday crime programming are primarily due to the MDR failing to secure an increase in the broadcasting fee.
