"Dear Willie" has started filming.

In Moscow started shooting of the series "Dear Willy", which will tell the story of how the secret friendship of the two main geopolitical rivals in Europe - Soviet General Secretary Leonid Brezhnev and West German Chancellor Willy Brandt - allowed to save the world from nuclear war.

The project is being produced by Format TV, Studio Chekhov and REN TV with the support of the Internet Development Institute (ANO IRI). The series will be available for viewing in online cinemas PREMIER and KION. The television premiere will take place on REN TV channel.

Simultaneously with the release of the series will be published a novel - a unique book of the same name, in addition to which will be detailed documentary basis of the project, including unique materials, interviews with participants of the events and additional historical facts that were not included in the screen version.

Author's view on the events of the Cold War. The author of the script was a famous documentarian, writer and host of REN TV channel Igor Prokopenko in co-authorship with Dmitry Novoselov. The plot of the series was created by Igor Prokopenko on the basis of numerous interviews with direct participants of those events and inner circle of both Leonid Brezhnev and Willy Brandt: politicians, intelligence officers. Historical materials were collected over 20 years.

The action of the series unfolds in the 1960s. The world on the brink of nuclear war. Soviet intelligence becomes aware of the upcoming strike from the U.S. military bases located in Germany. Realizing that a retaliatory ultimatum will start a catastrophe, Brezhnev decides to conclude a secret agreement with Chancellor Willy Brandt. Both politicians take a risk: if their contacts become known, one will be expelled from the party and the other impeached. Based on archival interviews with the main participants of the events.

Director of the series "Dear Willie" - Vladimir Shchegolkov, general producers - Igor Prokopenko, David Kocharov, Vladimir Tyulin, Anatoly Tupitsyn.

Roles in the series performed: Sergei Makovetsky, Kirill Kyaro, Sergei Marin, Alexei Rozin, Igor Chernevich, Martin John Cook, Vladimir Konkin, Alexandra Bogdanova, Andrei Gradov, Alexander Shtendler and others.

Igor Prokopenko, general producer, author of the idea, author of the script:

- I have been collecting documentary material for the script for more than 20 years, communicating with real prototypes of the characters. Egon Barr, the architect of Germany's eastern policy, was my friend and visited the grave of Chancellor Willy Brandt, and Markus Wolf, the legendary GDR intelligence officer, hosted me at his home. This story is an example of how even in the face of enormous disagreements, leaders of warring countries can find a way to come to an agreement. This is exactly what Willy Brandt, Nobel Peace Prize winner, and Brezhnev did half a century ago, laying the foundation for European security that is still in place today.

Vladimir Shchegolkov, director:

- The main characters of our series are historical figures - Leonid Brezhnev and Willy Brandt. The characters of scouts Vardanov and Pletnev are also written off from real people - an amazing pair of professional scout and journalist. The first auditions showed that the actors Sergei Marin and Alexei Rozin - a charismatic duo, which is ideal for these roles.

Kirill Kyaro, the performer of the role of Willy Brandt:

- Working on the role of Willy Brandt is interesting for me because of the opportunity to look into the times of post-war divided Germany, which experienced a national catastrophe. To immerse myself in the role, I am studying documentary footage, speeches and speeches of Brandt, which unfortunately are few and far between. Brandt is a man of amazing male charisma, with a unique voice and unhurried, thoughtful manner of communication. For filming in the series, I work every day on the pronunciation of scenes in German. I have to learn the language from scratch.

Alexei Rozin, the performer of the role of journalist Pletnev:

- My character has a prototype, a direct participant in historical events, and the whole story is based on documentary facts. The script is dashing, written in a good syllable, it has a lot of plot twists. Problems in front of the heroes are not serious, but in the series there is irony, and it is good.