News
Project updates, festival selections, speaking appearances, and the occasional observation about where storytelling is heading.
Premiere
31 August 2026
City of Blood — world premiere at Kino International
City of Blood had its world premiere at a sold-out Kino International in Berlin, where guests were shown the first two episodes. The eight-part thriller was created by Philipp Kadelbach and our founder Elena Lyubarskaya, who wrote the scripts together with Kim Zimmermann, Daniela Baumgärtl, Martin Behnke, Nicki Bloom and Tillmann Roth. Kadelbach directs and is showrunner.
Berlin plays a city-state on the brink: scarred by climate change and crime, a privileged few living under an air-conditioned dome while the rest of the city sinks into corruption, and vampires who control organised crime reaching for political power. The ensemble is led by Lars Eidinger, Lea Drinda, Soma Pysall, Jördis Triebel, David Schütter, Dagmar Manzel, Franz Hartwig, Mouataz Alshaltouh, Jenny Schily and Melika Foroutan. The series is produced by Amusement Park Film, with Daniel Brühl as executive producer, and is inspired by the graphic novel Berlinoir by Reinhard Kleist and Tobias O. Meißner.
What’s next
- Sep 15 Festival premiere at Seriesly, Berlin
- Sep 16 Series starts streaming on Disney+ and Hulu
Speaking
September 2026
Seriesly x The Difference Machine workshop
Elena Lyubarskaya and Milad Mesof run a workshop for producers and directors at Seriesly. Date and time to be announced.
Awards
2025
SteinbrennerMuller Award for The Last Family on Earth
The Last Family on Earth wins the SteinbrennerMuller Award and receives a Special Mention at Seriesly Berlin 2025. The project, an animated sitcom for adults co-produced with taktlos GmbH, was recognized for its narrative ambition and innovative production approach.
Speaking
April 2026
Elena Lyubarskaya at WAiFF 2026
Elena speaks on narrative architecture and format futures at WAiFF Berlin, April 21-22. The Difference Machine's public debut at a major industry event.
Awards
2025
ONX Studio Award at CPH:FORUM
The Place Beyond receives the ONX Studio Award at CPH:FORUM 2025, supported by the Onassis Foundation. The project is an AI-powered immersive experience exploring agentic storytelling.