Skam is a Norwegian teen drama web series about the daily life of teenagers at the Hartvig Nissen School, a gymnasium in the wealthy borough of Frogner in West End Oslo. It was produced by NRK P3, which is part of the Norwegian government-owned NRK. Skam follows a new main character each season. While airing, a new clip, conversation or social media post was published in real-time on the NRK website on a daily basis. Each season has focus on particular topics, ranging from relationship difficulties, identity, eating disorders, sexual assault, homosexuality, mental health issues, religion, and forbidden love. Despite no promotion ahead of its 2015 launch, Skam broke viewership records. Its premiere episode is among the most-watched episodes in NRK's history, and by the middle of season two, it was responsible for half of NRK's traffic. With season three, it broke all streaming records in Norway, along with viewership records in neighbouring countries Denmark and Sweden, and attracted an active international fanbase on social media, where fans promoted translations to aid in understanding. The show repeatedly made international headlines for its popularity surge across the world, and the show's actors became famous worldwide. However, the international popularity was not expected, with the music industry requiring geoblocking of NRK's website due to music license contracts only supporting the Norwegian public. The series ended after its fourth season in 2017, reportedly due to high production stress. Skam received critical acclaim and significant recognition for its portrayal of sexual abuse in the second season and homosexuality in the third. The series was also praised for its contributions to promote Norwegian language and culture internationally, as well as for its unique distribution format, adopting a new strategy of real-time, high-engagement, snippet-based distribution rather than rigidity and television schedules. It received multiple Norwegian awards throughout its run, being honored for its dramatic narrative, innovative storytelling format, writing, directing, and actors' performances. The series' popularity has led to an American adaptation run by Skam showrunner Julie Andem, local remakes in multiple European countries, and the release of four books containing original scripts and behind-the-scenes material, with international distribution to some markets.
Continue reading...From
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.