Trace (
Russian: След,
romanized: Sled) is a Russian
crime dramatelevision series about employees of Federal Expert Service ('FES'), the fictional organization.
It was broadcast on the
Channel One Russia from September 3, 2007 till August 25, 2011 (Monday – Thursday, night TV broadcast).[2] According to Alexander Levin, Producer, the idea of the TV-series belonged to
Konstantin Ernst.[3] From September 5, 2011 premiere episodes are broadcast on
Petersburg – Channel 5. The show continues to have high ratings.[4][5]
FES
The show tells the story of new governmental body created in
MVD to solve X files and high crimes cases. FES (
Russian: "Федеральная экспертная служба") is Federal Expert Service, bringing together specialists in various areas: software development, ballistics, forensic and investigators. FES is doing the whole range of expertise and researches, and it is investigating the most complex and intricate crimes. Launched as an experiment, FES trains young professionals and it assists to other special organizations as
FSB and
MVDs branches in solving crimes. Any investigator or detective, people from the Prosecutor's Office and a police officer can ask FES for a help.
There was futuristic office created especially for shooting: laboratory, a meeting room, a morgue, interrogation room and so on.[6] There was number of cases when Russian citizens complained to FES, because they were not aware that the organization shown in the TV-series was fictional. Press Service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Primorye Territory asked residents to beware of scams that have long posed as employees of FES.[7][8]
The filming process is very intensive: six episodes in one time. In the first months of the project, shooting could be up to 18 hours per day, then - up to 12 hours.[9][10] Many actors, including leading actors, did not survive the rhythm of the shooting and left the project. At the time of filming an Episode 450 there were already 3500 actors.[11]