It is a commonly accepted fact among professionals that Vienna, Austria, is and has long been the world capital of espionage. A team of documentary filmmakers asked internationally renowned experts to prove or disprove this claim. The results exceeded all expectations.
The experts: Dr Boris B. Volodarsky, Intelligence Historian and writer, Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, London; Gert Rene Polli, former head of the BVT, the Austrian equivalent of MI5; Professor Gerhard Mangott specializing in International Relations and Security in the post-Soviet region; General Oleg Kalugin (ret.), former head of foreign counterintelligence of the KGB’s foreign intelligence arm; Christo Grozev, leading investigative journalist, 2023 Oscar for Best Documentary Feature ‘Navalny’, and others.
Filmed in a modern style with many computer effects and meticulous re-enactment of spy episodes in real places based on original documents and footing, the documentary traces the 150-year-long history of international espionage between 1873 and the present using Vienna as a hub. The original musical theme ‘Undercover’ composed by Peter Sax was written especially for this film.

Credits

  • Boris Volodarsky: Director, Secrets of the Salisbury Poisonings
  • Valentina Dewall: Writer
  • Dennis Dewall: Producer, The Vienna Procedure
  • Christo Grozev: Key Cast, “Self”, Navalny
  • Boris Volodarsky: Key Cast, “Self”, Secrets of the Salisbury Poisonings
  • Oleg Danilovich Kalugin: Key Cast, “Self”, Spycraft: The Great Game
  • Gert Rene Polli: Key Cast, “Self”, Talk im Hangar-7
  • Gerhard Mangott: Key Cast, “Self”, Phoenix Runde
  • Dennis Dewall: Key Cast, “Time Traveller”, The Vienna Procedure
  • Christian Ortner: Key Cast, “Self”
  • Peter Sax: Theme Song, Undercover
  • Yurii Radko: Music Composer, Roadkill

Specifications

  • Project Type: Documentary, Feature
  • Runtime: 1 hour 13 minutes 32 seconds
  • Completion Date: February 20, 2024
  • Production Budget: 250,000 EUR
  • Country of Origin: Austria
  • Country of Filming: Austria, Germany, Slovakia
  • Language: English
  • Shooting Format: Digital
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Film Color: Black & White and Color
  • First-time Filmmaker