The Vice Story

"The Vice Story" explores the rise and fall of Vice, a media company that transcended into a global lifestyle phenomenon, reflecting the hedonistic spirit of a whole generation.

Year

2024

Length

3×30 min

Directors

Peta Jenkins & Christopher Kaufmann

Synopsis

Vice wasn’t just a media company – it was a revolution. Emerging in Montreal and Brooklyn, it took over Europe from London and Berlin and turned from a free magazine to a global media powerhouse. Vice pulled back the curtain on taboo topics with unapologetic zeal and captured the unfiltered essence of youth culture with stories on sex, drugs, and the edgy, just before smartphones and social media took over – Gonzo style. Vice’s daring reporting took audiences behind the lines in North Korea and into the heart of the “Islamic State,” pushing the boundaries of journalism beyond mere objectivity. Vice walked the line between editorial and branded content, between embedded journalism and subjective reporting. Its promise to brands enticed millions of advertising revenues. HBO, MTV, Disney and the Murdochs queued up for investements. But by 2024, the empire’s lights dimmed, as media shifts and internal struggles led to its worldwide bankruptcy.

The documentary series assembles former Vice staff from the US, UK, and Germany, like notorious co-founder Gavin McInnes, Canadian singer Peaches, journalists Robert King and Simon Ostrovsky, Thilo Mischke, Martina Kix, and Manuel Möglich, and sales departments insiders such as Eric Conyers, Benny Eichelmann and Ben Dietz. Footage from their private archives as well as professional pics from VICE photographer Christoph Voy replicate the unique millennial style – as does the soundtrack.

Credits

Written by

Peta Jenkin
Nadine Neumann

Directed by

Peta Jenkin
Christopher Kaufmann

Directors of photography

Arsenij Gusev
Tom Bergmann
Michelle Leung
Ayşe Alacakaptan
Danny MacGregor

Sound

Waldemar Bruch
Mark Romaine
Eliza Kamerling-Brown
Artem Funk
James Allen
Anna Brinks

Light
Mario Klapper
Luis Münster
Tim Friebe
Moritz Kerstan

Set decorator

René Riqui
Zarah Bäumler
Karsten Junghans

Editors

Leon Schwarz
Elisabeth Hirsch
Mark Broszeit

Grading

Andreas Teichert

Sound Mix

Pierre Brand
Sascha Prangen

Archive Producer

Florian Tropp

Research

Claire Wilisch
Julia Nölker

Production management ARD

Sibylle Essig

Production management Beetz Brothers

Marcel Rechten
Christina Münster
Ferdinand Freising
Franziska Blohm

Producer

Nadine Neumann

Executive Producer

Reinhardt Beetz

Commissioning Editors

Kai Winn (ARD Kultur)
Kristian Costa-Zahn (ARD Kultur)
Beate Karch (SWR)
Susanne Schmaltz (SWR)
Joanna Gawronska (SWR)
Christine Gerberding (NDR)
David Gern (HR)
Mariska Lief (HR)
Christine Thalmann (RBB)
Marie Röder (RBB)