AGO: The Epic Series Bringing King James I to Life, with a German Creator and a Money Heist Director at the Helm

Jesus Sans, Markus L. Stern, Birgit Stern y Javier Quintas, in Mercat del Grau de València. Photo by Francisco Calabuig

A landmark moment for Valencian history. A genuinely international production. And one very unexpected origin story.

2026 marks 750 years since the death of Jaume I, one of medieval Europe's most consequential monarchs, a king who conquered Mallorca, Valencia, and the Balearic Islands, and forged a multicultural realm that balanced Christian, Arab, and Jewish communities under a single crown. And yet, for all his historical significance, the screen has largely ignored him. Until now.

AGO is the ambitious international series set to change that. Created by German historian and researcher Markus L. Stern, developed in collaboration with Sea Camel Europa, the production company co-founded by producer Jesús Sans, director Javier Quintas, and Pepón Sigler, and with Javier Quintas (a veteran director from La Casa de Papel / Money Heist) attached to direct, this is a project that carries the weight of serious creative ambition behind every frame.

Why a German creator? Why Jaume I?

Stern's connection to the subject began during his university studies in History, when he first encountered Jaume I and became captivated by what he found. For Stern, the king's lasting appeal lies not simply in military conquest, but in the remarkable cultural balancing act he sustained throughout his reign, a Valencia where Arabs, Jews, and Christians coexisted, where intellectual and spiritual life flourished across traditions. "I love Valencia," Stern has said simply. "There is so much history to tell here."

Equally compelling to Stern is the role of Jaume I's second wife, Violante of Hungary, a figure he describes as far more politically involved and strategically intelligent than history has typically acknowledged. "This kind of relationship was very powerful, very modern," Stern notes, "and it needs to be told." The result of years of deep research, running to thousands of pages of source material, is a project with genuine intellectual foundations beneath its cinematic ambitions.

A different kind of medieval epic

Producer Jesús Sans frames AGO as something the screen has been missing entirely: a medieval epic rooted not in Viking sagas or Crusader mythology, but in the specific, rich, and largely untapped world of the Iberian Peninsula. "For once, you would bring to screen something international about the Middle Ages where neither Vikings nor Templars are the central axis," Sans has explained, "and where there's a perspective on that Arab culture that spent 800 years with us."

Director Javier Quintas reinforces this: AGO is designed to be full of adventure and action, but crafted with an international lens, accessible and compelling to audiences who may never have heard of Jaume I, but who will find themselves drawn into his world regardless.

Production ambitions to match the story

This is not a project cutting corners. The production model is explicitly cinematic: shorter seasons of six episodes, filmed at the pace of cinema rather than television, with a budget philosophy closer to Game of Thrones than to a conventional Spanish drama series. Investment backing from the UAE and India provides a degree of creative independence the team considers essential to protecting the project's vision.

The first season is conceived to open as Jaume I approaches Valencia with his forces, a natural entry point into one of history's great sieges. Scripts are being adapted into English by Birgit Stern, Markus's wife, ensuring the series is built from the ground up for international audiences.

Shooting locations across the Valencian Community, including the potential use of Ciudad de la Luz studios, will ground the production in authentic geography. The team has identified numerous historically significant and visually spectacular sites that remain largely unknown to the wider world.

Where things stand

AGO is currently in development, without a fixed production start or broadcast date. The team's stated approach is to arrive at market with a finished product, independent of platform or broadcaster influence, and sell from a position of creative strength. "We prefer to go with a finished product and then sell it to whoever it corresponds to," Sans has said, "whether that's a platform or a broadcaster, but without them really influencing what we intend to do with this story."

For Sea Camel Europa, for the Valencian film industry, and for anyone who believes that medieval Europe's most cosmopolitan kingdom deserves its moment on the world stage, AGO represents something genuinely new.

Sea Camel Entertainment is the production company behind AGO. Stay updated on the latest news from our projects at seacamelentertainment.com.