JonnydepOny
Jonnydepony is a small independent Belgian company – founded by showrunner & producer Philippe De Schepper and experienced financing expert and producer Helen Perquy – that focuses entirely on television series.
At the end of 2022 Banijay Benelux BV came on board as shareholder. They are a strong, European company that values own IP just as much as Helen & Philippe.
Jonnydepony aims to work with talented writers and directors to produce strong fiction series in several genres appealing to a broad audience.
projects
Arcadia 1 premiered in March 2023 on Eén (VRT) and NPO (KRO-NCRV). At the moment, Arcadia 2 is in postproduction and will be aired at the beginning of 2025.
Hawa & Adam started shooting in February 2023 and premiered in January 2024.
The shoot of The Big Fuck-up will be finished in December 2024 and the series will be available at the end of 2025.
Several projects are currently in development; among them BOHO, One Week Each, Bloody Mandy, Degens, MaxicriMe and Hawa & Adam 2.
See below for more details.
Format: 8 x 45′
Production company: jonnydepony
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Created by/Written by: Bas Adriaensen & Philippe De Schepper
Director: Wim Geudens
Partners: Streamz, Amazon Prime Video NL
Current phase: production
On air: 2025
The big fuck-up received script and development support from the Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF).
THE BIG FUCK-UP
SHORT SYNOPSIS
We follow the rise and fall of a Belgian Gendarme Unit spearheaded by an American CIA agent. They’re supposed to catch drug dealers but turn into criminals themselves.
Jan Laureys is a gendarme who doesn’t want to be one. He has a history of drug abuse, which is why the American recruits him in the first place. Jan takes advantage of the ethical derailment in his team to slack off. But for how long can you cut corners before it comes back to bite you?
ARCADIA
SHORT SYNOPSIS
After a major catastrophe, a new society arises, Arcadia. Because scarcity prevails, a Citizen Score is introduced. We follow the life of a law-abiding family who, thanks to their high score, can live a good life. Everything changes when the father of the family is deported from Arcadia to the outside world. After all, he has committed fraud with the algorithm and the score of two of his daughters. His wife and four daughters receive penalty points that seriously lower their score.
Will the family survive this setback? What’s it like living with a score?
We further follow the family Hendriks-Jans after the deportation of father Pieter from Arcadia to the Outer World.
When will the citizens of Arcadia, and in particular this one family, revolt against the cold and cruel system they live in? The family takes it up against the System, knowing that if they do: it will be all or nothing.
Title: Arcadia 2
Format: 8 x 45′
Production company: jonnydepony
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Created by: Bas Adriaensen, Zita Theunynck & Philippe De Schepper
Writers: Bas Adriaensen, Zita Theunynck & Philippe De Schepper
Director: Joël Vanhoebrouck
Partners: VRT1, NPO/KRO-NCRV, WDR/SWR, Beside Tax Shelter, VAF, Creative Europe and Screen Flanders
Current phase: postproduction
Sales agent: Wild Bunch
On air: beginning of 2025
Title: Arcadia 1
Format: 8 x 45′
Production company: jonnydepony
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Coproduction company: Big Blue
Coproducer: Fleur Winters
Created by: Bas Adriaensen, Zita Theunynck & Philippe De Schepper
Writers: Bas Adriaensen, Zita Theunynck & Philippe De Schepper
Director: Tim Oliehoek
Partners: VRT/Eén, NPO/KRO-NCRV, WDR/SWR, Belga Films Fund, VAF, Dutch Incentive and Screen Flanders
Current phase: premiered in March 2023
Sales agent: Wild Bunch
Sold in: Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, USA, Australia, France, Spain, Russia, Indonesia, Greece,
German speaking territories
Read more about this European project here.
You can find the trailer here.
Title: Hawa & Adam
Genre/Format: Teen’s drama (13 x 24′)
Production company: jonnydepony
Producer: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Coproduction company: Free Kings & Network Movie
An idea of: Tom Timmerman
Writers: Pieter De Graeve & Philippe De Schepper
Director: Mathias Brouns
Partners: VRT/Ketnet, Network Movies/Kika, Beside Tax Shelter & VAF
Current phase: premiered in January 2024
Sold in: Belgium, Germany
hawa & adam
SHORT SYNOPSIS
What if the world can only be saved by two 17-year-olds, a boy and a girl, who’ve never seen or met each other, but are communicating through a magic diary?
Title: Hawa & Adam 2
Genre/Format: Teen’s drama (13 x 24′)
Production company: jonnydepony
Producer: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
An idea of: Tom Timmerman
Writers: Pieter De Graeve, Zita Theunynck & Philippe De Schepper
Director: Mathias Brouns
Partners: VRT/Ketnet
Current phase: development
Title: Transport
Genre/Format: Crime drama (8 x 50′)
Created by/Written by: Auli Mantila
Director: Auli Mantila
Production company: Tekele Productions
Producer: Miia Haavisto
Production company: jonnydepony
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Sales agent: Reinvent
Sold in: Belgium, Spain, Portugal, USA, France, Switzerland
Transport is part of the Scandinavian N12 project. It aired on YLE (Finland) in March 2022.
Since May 2022, Transport is available on Streamz.
Watch the trailer.
Auli Mantila, the director, was nominated for the Nordisk Film & TV Fond Prize 2022. Read more about the nominations. Transport was nominated in the international competition at Series Mania and for the prestigious Prix Europa 2022.
TRANSPORT
SHORT SYNOPSIS
Transport is a story about a microchip that is found in the mouth of a toddler and a border control veterinarian who has disappeared for more than a year.
A world in which money laundering and horse smuggling are central to the food trade. Transport tells the story of ordinary people who are under enormous pressure. This could happen to all of us.
Title: Blackout
Genre/Format: Crime (10 x 42’)
Created by: Philippe De Schepper, Geert Verbanck & Bas Adriaensen
Writers: Bas Adriaensen & Philippe De Schepper
Director: Joël Vanhoebrouck
Showrunner: Philippe De Schepper
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Partners: VRT/Eén, Telenet, Screen Brussels, Belga Films Fund & Mediawan (France)
Sold in: Belgium, Canada, USA, Russia, Australia, Asia, Turkey and the Netherlands.
Blackout was selected for multiple international festivals: Serial Killer, Seriencamp and the prestigious Prix Europa 2020.
Since September 2020, Blackout is available on Streamz. At the end of 2020, the series aired on VRT/Eén on Sunday evenings. Watch the trailer here.
Here, you can watch the interview Helen & Philippe gave about Blackout to C21 Media.
BLACKOUT
SHORT SYNOPSIS
A nuclear plant in Belgium gets sabotaged during winter, and causes a nationwide blackout. The Belgian power grid is down and the nation relies on its prime minister Annemie Hillebrand to handle this crisis. Moments before the blackout the prime minister received footage of her daughter who appears to be held captive. The video comes with a message: “If the lights turn back on, your daughter dies.”
Annemie decides to prolong the blackout and let one person in on her secret. A man she can trust: Michael Dendoncker, who is in charge of the Counter Terrorism Unit and who is investigating the sabotage of the nuclear plant. His police inquiry will take place in a special world, in the cold dark winter.
upcoming projects
BOHO
BOHO is a comedy series about three thirtysomething friends from Borgerhout. We follow the ups-and-downs of Kima, her sister Nawal and their friend Alex as they try to navigate their lives between all the expectations that their environment has: work hard, get married and have children.
Every week, they gather at Kima’s during Fuzzy Fridays, where they pour their hearts out over bad weed and night shop wine – and to brainstorm about the musical Kima wants to make about their lives.
Format: 6 x 30′
Production company: jonnydepony
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Created by: Abbie Boutkabout
Written by: Abbie Boutkabout, Zita Theunynck & Philippe De Schepper
Director: Olympia Allaert
Partner: Streamz
Shoot: Spring 2025
Delivery: Winter 2025
BOHO received script and production support from the Flanders Audiovisual Fund (VAF).
BLOODY MANDY
When her sister suddenly disappears, a young woman hatches a crazy plan to infiltrate a criminal family as a home nurse. There, she takes care of the demented paterfamilias, who seems to be the only one who knows more about her sister’s disappearance. But will he remember what happened before he forgets everything?
Format: 8 x 45′
Production company: jonnydepony
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Created by/Written by: Ruth Mellaerts & Boris Kuijpers
Bloody Mandy received script support from the Flemish Audiovisual Fund (VAF).
ONE WEEK EACH
What would you do if you’ve grown up fatherless but suddenly discover you might have a dad after all? Or rather, there are three candidates. So which one of the three is it?
What would you do if you’re a man who suddenly learns you might have a 16-year-old daughter?
Those are the questions Holly, Jokke, Bart, and Felix come to face.
Format: 8 x 45′
Production company: jonnydepony
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Created by/Written by: Philippe De Schepper & Pieter De Graeve
Partners: DPG Media, Streamz
DEGENS
(Abbrev. for ‘Degenerate’ gambler. A gambler who makes foolish bets.)
Imagine the following situation. Either you study your butt off for five years to earn a solid degree, which gives you a comfortable life—as long as you keep working hard. Or you apply that same work ethic and ambition to master poker, which gives you the life of a millionaire, including fun with crazy friends: jet-setting from country to country, from casino to casino, from party to party. What would you prefer?
Format: 8 x 48′
Production company: jonnydepony
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Created by/Written by: Philippe De Schepper & Zita Theunynck
Director: TBD
Partners: DPG Media, Streamz
MAXICRIME
MaxicriMe is a 10 x 48-minute police series, with a completed story per episode. It is the classic policier in a new look and with a light-hearted tone. A special feature is that not the police, but a newly assembled family solves the week’s crime, and the “policeman” on duty is a 20-year-old Youtuber.
Format: 10 x 48′
Production company: jonnydepony
Producers: Helen Perquy & Philippe De Schepper
Created by/Written by: Bas Adriaensen & Philippe De Schepper
TALENT WE WORK WITH
Joël Vanhoebrouck
Joël directed several series; among them various seasons of Missing Persons Unit, Homegrown and Double Life. He also directed the film Brasserie Romantiek.
Mathias Brouns
Known to all of his colleagues as Mathy, he directed the 3rd and 4th season of the immensely popular musical series #LikeMe.
Wim Geudens
Wim is a director who is known for his dry & dark sense of humor, subtle storytelling, a keen eye for art direction and with a strong visual style, but also for his work on Studio Tarara.
Tim Oliehoek
Bas Adriaensen
Bas was one of the writers for several seasons of Missing Persons Unit. He also wrote for other programmes and films; among them The Infiltrator, Homegrown and Double Life.
Abbie Boutkabout
Abbie is a screenwriter, podcast producer and non fiction writer. She is part of the video collective De Fatima’s. In her writing, she focuses on migration, identity and polarisation.
Ruth Mellaerts & Boris Kuijpers
Ruth & Boris are a writing couple. They both studied at RITCS, where Ruth still teaches dramaturgy & creative writing. Boris works as a director for videoclips & commercials. Their short film The Day the Dogs Disappeared (2018), won several awards at international film festivals.
Olympia Allaert
Olympia is a Brussels based director who has been active in the field for several years. In the past, she has already made Season of Sex, Panna and Hoodie. Her expertise makes her suitable for a wide variety of genres.
Zita Theunynck
Zita is a junior writer. She worked as a copywriter at an advertising agency in Antwerp, and wrote the well-received novel “Het wordt spectaculair. Beloofd.”
Pieter De Graeve
Pieter created the series The Bunker and was writer on Undercover (season 3), Witse, Missing Persons Unit, Double Life and Homegrown.
Frauke Heyde
Frauke is a journalist with a Masters degree in Film studies. She is a writer and has published two books. In the past, she wrote for Safety First, 13 Commandments, and others.
Geert Verbanck
Geert created the series Blackout with Philippe & Bas. He was a writer on multiple projects: Albatros, Café Derby, 13 Commandments and more.
JOBS
We currently have no vacancies.
Still convinced you would fit in with the jonnydepony team?
In that case, send an email with your CV and cover letter to: info@jonnydepony.be.
INTERNS
Have you always wanted to take a look behind the scenes of a big production? Then this is your chance!
We are currently shooting a new fiction series and for this we are looking for multi-talented and motivated intern(s) (M/V/X) to join our production team.
Shooting period: August to December 2024.
Your profile:
– You are motivated and pragmatic
– You are communicative and solution-oriented
– You are proactive
– You are a teamplayer, but you can also work independently and conscientiously
More information:
Would you like to work on our new fiction series? Then send an email with your CV and cover letter to: info@jonnydepony.be.
WHO WE ARE
Helen Perquy
Owner/producer
Helen has a career in television and drama. She was producer on the short film The Day the Dogs Disappeared and the series Quiz Me Quick. She was executive producer on Tabula Rasa.
Helen’s favourite method of working? Be brief, be bright, be gone.
Philippe De Schepper
Owner/showrunner
Philippe has over more than 10 years of service at Eyeworks Film & TV Drama, and created the series Missing Persons Unit (7 seasons), Double Life, Lucky Number Six, Homegrown (3 seasons), and The Infiltrator.
Good luck getting him on the phone, after all, he is often missing.
Laura Brewaeys
Finance & Control
Laura has been with jonnydepony since the shoot of Blackout. She’s the beating heart of the company and just one e-mail or call away.
But not when she’s eating.
laura@jonnydepony.be
+32 474 34 37 05
Fleur Janssens
Assistant producer
Even though Fleur belongs to generation Z, she is always available by phone or e-mail.
+32 479 91 85 22