We’re honoured to welcome Saverio Costanzo to this year’s Copenhagen Masterclasses for an exclusive masterclass on the making of My Brilliant Friend - one of the most ambitious and emotionally resonant television series of recent years.

Based on Elena Ferrante’s globally acclaimed Neapolitan novels, the series is a sweeping portrait of friendship, class, and female identity, set against the backdrop of post-war Naples. Across four seasons, it follows the complex and evolving relationship between Lenù and Lila - shaped by affection, rivalry, and the struggle to break free from one’s origins.

Saverio Costanzo, who created the series and wrote and directed its first two seasons, has been central to shaping the series’ distinctive tone. From intimate performances to a striking visual language, the series stands as a rare example of a literary adaptation that expands its source material for the screen.

But how do you translate such an interior, deeply psychological work into compelling television? How do you sustain emotional intensity and narrative depth across multiple decades of storytelling? And what does it take to maintain an artistic vision within an international co-production?

In this masterclass, Costanzo will take us inside the creative process; from adapting Ferrante’s novels and casting non-professional actors to building a world that feels both historically precise and emotionally immediate.