NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC: ORIGINAL PROGRAMMING FOR NORDIC AUDIENCES
To launch the international broadcast series Car SOS across Northern Europe, I led the concept development, narrative strategy, and end-to-end production for an original four-part native video series. Replacing standard syndicated trailers, we created a short-form programming format centered on regional experts solving engineering challenges using local materials. From initial concept to final cut, we scripted, filmed across four countries, edited, and localized 16 video assets into four languages in a 10-day sprint. The campaign became National Geographic Nordics’ best-performing video campaign ever.
Editorial Lead, Scriptwriter & Production Lead
2018
Delivered via Spoon Finland, the creative & strategic communications agency
WHERE WE STARTED
Launching a global broadcast format across four Nordic countries presented four key narrative and production challenges:
- Promotional trailers vs regional affinity
Standard syndicated TV trailers delivered broad reach, but lacked the cultural texture needed to spark genuine local conversation across Nordic markets.
- Disconnected global formats
Global television series frequently struggle to build deep regional connection without narrative content tailored specifically to local cultural heritage.
- Multi-language footprint
Reaching audiences across Finland, Sweden, Denmark, and Norway meant adapting every story into four languages without losing narrative quality or local nuance.
- Extreme turnaround window
Delivering a four-country video campaign alongside the broadcast launch required executing strategy, multi-country filming, post-production, and localization under tight deadlines.
HOW I HELPED
I led the narrative direction while managing end-to-end production and multi-country localisation:
- Concept & narrative strategy
Conceived an original video format documenting automotive icons built from locally recognised materials: Finnish lake ice, Swedish flat-pack parts, Danish bicycle steel, and Norwegian timber.
- Scripting & on-location direction
Wrote the narrative scripts and story arcs, collaborating directly on set with regional craftspeople, engineering specialists, and film crews across all four countries.
- 10-day production lead
Managed the entire production pipeline from blank page to final cut—scripting, filming on location in four countries, and editing four hero episodes within a ten-day window.
- Localisation & post-production
Led the post-production editing workflow, managing translation and voiceovers to localize the four main episodes into 16 distinct video assets for Nordic distribution.
Original Nordic video series (4 parts)
The Buick in ice
Documenting the creation of a 1969 Buick Electra sculpted from natural Finnish lake ice by an engineer and an expert craftsman.
The IKEA Messerschmitt
Assembling a vintage microcar from flat-pack furniture components, tapping into iconic Swedish design culture.
The bicycle-part Opel
Retrofitting a classic chassis through the lens of Danish urban cycling heritage and precision steel craft.
The timber Renault
Crafted from raw Norwegian timber to honor local woodworking legacy and Scandinavian material design.