Sigmund Freud is at the centre of the series project developed by Satel Film an Bavaria Fiction and filmed in Prague and Vienna for ORF and Netflix. Almost 80 years after the death of the inventor of psychoanalysis, Robert Finster slips into the role of the young Sigmund Freud – but not on the couch between theory and analysis, but restless, dazzling and wildly on the hunt for murderers.

The young Sigmund Freud drops from one professional crisis to the next. The time is simply not yet ripe for his theories – until a murderous conspiracy begins in the dark alleys of turn-of-the-century Vienna and makes him delve into the most hidden corners of human consciousness. Finster is assisted by Ella Rumpf as the notorious medium Fleur Salomé and Georg Friedrich in the role of the war veteran Alfred Kiss.

The debauched Vienna of around 1890, famous for its decadence and the abysses of illustrious society, sets the stage for mysterious murders and political intrigues in the eight episodes of this Austrian-German production. The director is Marvin Kren, who has already won several awards, and who is also responsible for the scripts together with Stefan Brunner and Benjamin Hessler.

“Freud” is a co-production of Satel Film (Heinrich Ambrosch) and Bavaria Fiction (Moritz Polter) for ORF and Netflix, with support from Filmfonds Wien, Fernsehfonds Austria, the Creative Europe – Media Programme of the European Union and the Czech State Fund of Cinematography. ZDF Enterprises is responsible for international distribution.

The world premiere took place at the invitation of BERLINALE SERIES as part of the 70th Berlin International Film Festival. The TV premiere followed on ORF on 15 March 2020. Since 23 March 2020, the series can be seen on Netflix’s streaming service.

In May 2020, “Freud” was awarded the ROMY Academy Prize in Gold as “Best Production TV Fiction”. At the “Storytellers Gala” of the “New York Festivals TV & Film Awards”, the production was recognised in three categories in autumn 2021. A gold award was given in the category Entertainment Program “Crime Drama”, a silver award for “Best Direction” (Marvin Kren) and a bronze award for “Best Production Design/Art Direction” (Verena Wagner).