GTST producer gone after 21 years | TV

entertainment">Gottschalk was involved with GTST in various roles for 21 years. First as a screenwriter, then as a lead writer and the last eight and a half years as a creative producer. Under his creative direction, the soap experienced peak years, but it also alienated itself from its audience.

entertainment">In recent years, the seire has therefore been struggling with falling viewing figures. “We are going to place more emphasis on empathy and recognition,” he promised in the summer of 2019. “I think that we as makers have taken a step back to the GTST that people have come to love for the past thirty years.”

entertainment">Since the end of last year, the series has indeed recovered a bit. For example, a study commissioned by RTL Boulevard showed that viewers were satisfied with the new course, in which the Verduyn family does not live in a luxurious villa but in a small apartment and the dog Dolly entered.

Horizon

entertainment">Yet Gottschalk appears to have closed the door behind him two months ago. “Now that GTST has celebrated its 30th birthday on October 1, I have decided that it is a good time for me to broaden my horizons and to say goodbye to the series and the team with which I will always remain attached,” he said in a statement. statement.

entertainment">Since Gottschalk’s departure, his duties have been taken over by Idse Grotenhuis, who was already the director of the soap series in the 1990s. In recent years he has been responsible as a creative producer for major series such as Flying Dutchmen (AvroTros), which will be shown on NPO1 this fall.

entertainment">Grotenhuis’ most important task will be to chart a course ‘that will hopefully keep the series attractive to a large audience for years to come’. He will remain creative and productionally responsible for GTST until a long-term successor is found.

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