Gothic murder mystery series The Kettering Incident, which was shot in southern Tasmania, has won a major award in Paris.

The prestigious international Series Mania festival considered 80 series from more than 20 countries.

Vikki Madden, producer of the eight-part series, said winning the special jury prize was “surreal”.

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“Little Tasmania has just made such an impact,” she said.

“The French … they just fell in love with the imagery of The Kettering Incident, and so definitely Tasmania is the talking point over here.”

Madden said she hoped the award would secure a deal to deliver a worldwide release.

“BBC Worldwide has the distribution rights to the world and they were waiting for this festival to see if we did place anywhere, so it’s going to generate a lot of interest in the European market, so that’s really good to get a worldwide sale.”

The Kettering Incident tells the story of a young doctor who returns and uncovers town secrets around the case of a missing girl.

Doctor Anna Macy finds herself inexplicably linked to the cases of two girls who have mysteriously disappeared in identical circumstances in the wilds of Tasmania 15 years apart.

To clear her name, Dr Macy must delve into her troubled past and face some truths about herself and the otherworldly nature of the landscape and the community.

Labelled Tasmania’s Twin Peaks, the $14 million eight-part series was co-created by Madden, and stars Australian actors Matt Le Nevez (Offspring), Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby) and Sascha Horler.

Shooting for the series began 12 months ago and was based in the town of Kettering, south of Hobart.

Two episodes debuted in June last year in Hobart during Tasmania’s Dark Mofo winter festival, screening simultaneously at nine locations across Hobart.

The full series will air soon in Australia on a pay TV service.

About 300 Tasmanians had jobs on the production.