Koncern from the Beginning
Marriages between Thai women and men from the rural south of Zealand. Retired pimps in conflict about territories in downtown Copenhagen. Open warfare between the girls in the 4th form. These were the type of documentaries, which defined the identity of Koncern, when the company surfaced on the Danish television scene in 1995.

At Koncern the intention was to tell stories with the focal point on individual characters. This meant cultivating a new field at a time, when a documentary as a rule was a rather formal program about the big issues in society. But now Koncern decided not to enlighten the viewers on the gross domestic product of the Nation. Koncern wanted to give a picture of ordinary people’s everyday life. The life of the stripper, the life of the seeker of political asylum and the teenage mom’s.

Prior to Koncern Thomas Heurlin had been working in the business for a number of years. He was the provider of documentaries for “Reportageholdet” at TV2 (major Danish network). The critics called the programs nosey camera television, but the Danish viewers were so pleased, that the programs on several occasions could boast of better ratings than even the Friday flagship of TV2, “Eleva2eren”.

Koncern Emerges
That’s why TV2 were not afraid to let Heurlin have a big order, when he chose to start his own company, “Thomas Heurlin TVproduktion”. Here he continued to produce programs, which got very close to ordinary people, and the viewers absolutely did not let him down. After a short while however it was evident that Thomas Heurlin did not have a gift for business that could match his talent for making television. He therefore sold 51 percent of the company and Jens Ulrik Pedersen and Anders Riis became co-owners.

Reluctant Business Men
The company now altered its name to Koncern TV and Filmproduktion, and the home address was changed from Heurlin’s apartment in central Nørrebro to new offices in Esrum Street 15. This has been the headquarters of Koncern ever since. But from starting humbly with two cutting rooms and five employees, the company has expanded widely since.
The people in Koncern had a common past on the left wing surrounding the Danish Communist Party’s youth movement. But they certainly also had a common passion for documentaries that got close to people. This infatuation gave the drive to the entire company. They were more idealists than business men. Later the partners realized that the more effort they put into the business part, the more resources they would have for the programs.

Good Ratings and Risking it All.
It was this knowledge, which much later made Koncern produce the popular programs about entrepreneurship like “Springet” (The Leap) and “Alt på Spil” (Risking It All) on TV2. Here the viewers could follow ordinary Danes, who risked their homes, cars and savings to start their own business.

Initially it was mostly people on the fringes of society that Koncern followed closely. They were behind a number of programs, which brought the viewers deep into the criminal world. Koncern came close to people, no matter if it was a junkie, a pusher or a major drug dealer. There was neither filter nor any moralizing comments, when the camera team sat in the rear seat with a car thief at the wheel, or when a junkie had his next fix. Everything was shown in primetime and was follow by fervent discussions in newspapers as well as around Danish kitchen tables.
How far was it acceptable to go? Quite far, thought Koncern. So did the viewers, if the ratings are worth anything as a benchmark. And the programs were not only popular in the public. The participants were so comfortable, that Koncern after each program acquired more and more trust in criminal circles, which normally clam up at the sight of a camera.

Toasts in Champagne on the Brink of Disaster
Koncern were strong, when it came to realism in television. But the company was fragile, when business was concerned. Fragility showed for earnest in 2001 just as everything was coming along fine at the surface. Koncern had experienced so great a growth in the previous years that they were awarded the “Gazellepris” (award for rapidly growing business) from Børsen (leading Danish business daily newspaper). And that was not the whole story. The award had influenced Ernest and Young to nominate Koncern to the title of Entrepreneur of the Year in Copenhagen.
But meanwhile Koncern was fighting for its life. All capital was lost. A good business can quickly face ruin, when you only rely on a single costumer; TV 2. It was costly, when TV2 suddenly no longer where placing so many orders at Koncern.

Thieves Make Fine TV-Hosts
Koncern survived and thanks to the crisis they learnt that it is much too risky only to sell programs to a single purchaser. Now Koncern broadened their activities more and more. DR showed Koncern productions such as “Sorte Holger”, which was about “Edderkoppesagen” (famous case from the underworld of Denmark) and was told by living people from the case.
For a production intended for TV Danmark’s “Extrem”, Koncern followed very different people. The span went from Jønke (infamous Danish biker) to wild single girls in night life.
It was also while producing for TV Danmark that Koncern found a good use for their connections into the criminal world. For the series “Stop Tyven” (Stop Thief) they hired a couple of former burglars to act as hosts. They must be experts in that field of work! On the other hand they had a very relaxed attitude concerning showing up for work. Often as not the whole team would stand there waiting for the hosts to come on set. It has its consequences to use unconventional hosts.

Koncern in Europe.
Realism from Koncern was also sold abroad. English, German and French networks bought the documentary “Pigerne fra Toi’s Place,” which showed Thai prostitution seen through male eyes. On several occasions the BBC ran the film “Dømt som far” (Convicted as a Dad), which was Thomas Heurlin’s own private story about his meeting with his unknown daughter.
On TV3 Koncern really broke through with the series “Par på Prøve”, where two women from very different families switch homes and lives for a week. This was a big order, which demanded many employees, and Koncern had to face the challenge: How to produce “assembly line television” without losing compassion.

“Par på Prøve” ran through five seasons and was TV3’s most popular program next to The Robinson Expedition. Right from the beginning Koncern has also produced documentaries for another target group: The children. This proved to be a good field, which added to the list of TV-prizes. Since then Koncern has produced most of TV2’s children’s television, and over a period of three years they made the daily youth program “Rundfunk”.

With the Lens Focused on Happiness
Koncern has basically gone away from making stand alone documentaries. Instead they are concentrating on series. But they have maintained the close realistic style. This could be seen in “Løsladt” (Released), where the viewers week after week could follow four convicts in their struggle to get back into a normal life. In “Hjem, Kære Hjem” (Home, Sweet Home) you could follow four families moving, and in the humorous series “Sådan er Kvinder” (Women), female celebrities as well as unknown women each week told about new sides of being a woman.

Glamour and Facials
In the last couple of years an element of glamour has entered the Koncern programs. In the past Koncern focused on Danes in bad neighborhoods. Now they also point the cameras at real estate agents, as they display very expensive bungalows at the posh seaside of the Sound in “Liebhaverne”. (exclusive real estate)
Koncern have also demonstrated that real men can have a facial in front of the camera under the supervision of beauty-guru Ole Henriksen, a Dane who has great success in Hollywood.
It was also Koncern that was behind the programs about the millionaire couple Erik and Anni. This was a series which made more front pages and headlines, than anybody would have imagined. The press coverage resulted in a so large amount of consequences for the couple that Koncern probably would not have started the project, if they could turn back time.

For Koncern it is imperative that a program is good for all involved parties. Even though the company is one of the largest privately owned production companies in Denmark today, they are still idealists. As time has passed, they have become professional idealists. Presently the company has divisions for television, documentaries and drama. But it is still very important for them to have the right feeling, just like when they were only five people. There is no reason to make noise, if you don’t have anything to say. That is also why Koncern is the production company, which is best at creating their own concepts. Where others throw themselves in the arms of foreign formats, Koncern develop them themselves.