SKAM France

Skam France/Belgique is a French-Walloon adaptation of the Norwegian series SKAM, created by Julie Andem, which itself was inspired by the storytelling vein of the British series Skins.

The Norwegian original became an international phenomenon thanks to the storyline of Isak Valtersen in season 3, prompting NRK P3 to greenlight remakes; in 2017 France (paired with Belgium) was the first country announced to produce its own version, followed by the US, Germany, Italy, Spain and the Netherlands.

Unlike most foreign adaptations which stopped after four seasons like the Norwegian original, Skam France became the first adaptation of the Norwegian series to go beyond four seasons, eventually running for twelve seasons and creating entirely original storylines from season 5 onward.

The show is broadcast through short video clips posted online in real time throughout the week, which are then compiled into a full episode released at the end of the week; characters also have in-universe Instagram accounts featuring their text conversations.

Assa Sylla, who played Imane Bakhellal in season 4, was reported to be the first Black Muslim woman to lead a French television series.

The show's seasons were filmed in pairs (e.g. seasons 1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8) as a financial balancing strategy; Sened Dhab, director of digital fiction at France Télévisions, explained that filming two seasons together was part of Skam's budget equilibrium formula.

Filming for the first two seasons took place between October and December 2017, while seasons 3 and 4 wrapped by the end of 2018, seasons 5 and 6 were shot in late 2019, and seasons 7 and 8 began filming in November 2020.

Skam France's audience grew massively over its run, from about 4 million views after season 1 in April 2018 to more than 420 million views by season 11 in May 2023.

On 18 June 2019, Skam France received an Out d'Or award in the 'artistic breakthrough' category for its third season, which dealt with Lucas's coming out and his relationship with Eliott.

A week after the series finale aired on 7 July 2023, France.tv Slash released a retrospective special looking back on the making of seasons 11 and 12, featuring cast and crew reflecting on the show's impact.