Netflix's Geek Girl begins production in the UK

Waterside Studios, Nelvana, Ruby Rock Pictures, and Aircraft Pictures produce the teen series

By Priyanca Rajput 7 Jun 2023

Netflix's Geek Girl begins production in the UK — Geek Girl book cover. Credit: HarperCollins

Production on Netflix's teen series Geek Girl, based on the best-selling books by Holly Smale, has started in the UK.

The series is based on a six-book series by British writer Holly Smale, published by HarperCollins between 2013 and 2017.

The six book entries include: Geek Girl (2013), Model Misfit (2013), Picture Perfect (2014), All That Glitters (2015), Head Over Heels (2016) and Forever Geek (2017).

According to What's On Netflix, filming officially started on June 6 and will run until September 11, 2023. The production is primarily taking place in the UK, but some locations will be used in Toronto, and Ontario in Canada.

A synopsis of the first book entry on Good Reads is as follows: “Harriet Manners knows a lot of things.

"She knows that a cat has 32 muscles in each ear, a “jiffy” lasts 1/100th of a second, and the average person laughs 15 times per day. What she isn’t quite so sure about is why nobody at school seems to like her very much. So when she’s spotted by a top model agent, Harriet grabs the chance to reinvent herself. Even if it means stealing her Best Friend’s dream, incurring the wrath of her arch enemy Alexa, and repeatedly humiliating herself in front of the impossibly handsome supermodel Nick. Even if it means lying to the people she loves.

"As Harriet veers from one couture disaster to the next with the help of her overly enthusiastic father and her uber-geeky stalker, Toby, she begins to realise that the world of fashion doesn’t seem to like her any more than the real world did.

"And as her old life starts to fall apart, the question is: will Harriet be able to transform herself before she ruins everything?”

Jeff Norton heads up Waterside Studios, notable for bringing best-selling books to the screen. The studio regularly teams with Corus Entertainment's animation studio Nelvana for animated or live-action content.

RubyRock Pictures are producing the Netflix show, alongside production executive Josh Harris. Aircraft Pictures, based in Canada, are also behind the show.