The director of Netflix series Baby has distanced the show from the real life scandal of an underage prostitution ring in Italy.
The Italian series is described as “a coming-of-age story that explores the unseen lives of Roman high schoolers”.
Netflix has said it is “loosely inspired by a true story, the baby squillo scandal,” adding it “will follow a group of Parioli teenagers as they defy society in their search for identity and independence against the backdrop of forbidden love, family pressures, and shared secrets.”
Speaking at a press conference in Rome, director Andrew De Sica said the series was “not a social study”.
He added: “The true story opened a focus in the rich neighbourhood in Rome and a mood a teenager could have.
“It is not a show about sex trafficking and prostitution, it’s about six teenagers. The big issue of the show is 16 and 17-year-olds facing important challenges.
“It is not the real story of baby prostitutes.”
De Sica said he hoped to follow in the footsteps of hit show 13 Reasons Why, saying: “That was something that really inspired us in a way that it has this real close-up to the teenagers.
“It is a claustrophobic way of seeing school and teenagers.
“What our aim is, is to go deeply into something girls and boys are looking for – love – but it is hard so they get lost.”