My favourite Danish filmmakers
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One of the most important Danish directors of the last three decades and one of Danish cinema's few acknowledged auteurs, Malmros took his inspiration from the french new wave and Truffaut in particular. He started as a self taught director and debuted with En mærkelig kærlighed (1968) which is an amateur film that has not been in distribution since its premiere. His career got going with the largely selffinanced Lars Ole, 5c (1973) which, like his next films, was based on his own childhood experiences in Aarhus. His flair for depicting the pains and bittersweet troubles of early adolescence raised him to the status of a leading director in Denmark. Drenge (1977) ("Boys") was a description of the evolvement of male sexuality from the early pre-puberty experimentations to the grown man's sexual ventures. Tree of Knowledge (1981) delved into the group dynamics and the first love experiences of teenagers in an Aarhus public school and is widely praised as a masterpiece and his finest work. Beauty and the Beast (1983) ("Beauty and the Beast") told the tale of a father's protectiveness of his teenage daughter with only the sligtest incestous undercurrents. _Århus by night (1989)_ is a meta-film about a director from the province meeting the cynical Copenhagen crew inspired from the making of Drenge. Pain of Love (1992) ("Pains of love") is about a lively young high school girl who falls in love with her teacher. They become a couple and when she becomes pregnant the dark sides of her personality begin to appear. Barbara (1997) is his first film based on a literary work and a departure from the highly personal tone in his other films.- Writer
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Probably the most ambitious and visually distinctive filmmaker to emerge from Denmark since Carl Theodor Dreyer over 60 years earlier, Lars von Trier studied film at the Danish Film School and attracted international attention with his very first feature, The Element of Crime (1984). A highly distinctive blend of film noir and German Expressionism with stylistic nods to Dreyer, Andrei Tarkovsky and Orson Welles, its combination of yellow-tinted monochrome cinematography (pierced by shafts of blue light) and doom-haunted atmosphere made it an unforgettable visual experience. His subsequent features Epidemic (1987) and Europa (1991) have been equally ambitious both thematically and visually, though his international fame is most likely to be based on The Kingdom (1994), a TV soap opera blending hospital drama, ghost story and Twin Peaks (1990)-style surrealism that was so successful in Denmark that it was released internationally as a 280-minute theatrical feature.- Writer
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The illegitimate son of a Danish farmer and his Swedish housekeeper, Carl Theodor Dreyer was born in Copenhagen on the 3th of February, 1889. He spent his early years in various foster homes before being adopted by the Dreyers at the age of two. Contrary to popular belief (perhaps nourished by the fact that his films often deal with religious themes) Dreyer did not receive a strict Lutheran upbringing, but was raised in a household that embraced modern ideas: in his spare time the adoptive father was an avid photographer, and the Dreyers voted for The Danish Social Democrates. When he was baptized the reasoning was culturally, not religiously motivated. Dreyer's childhood was an unhappy one. He did not feel his adoptive parents' love (especially the mother), and longed for his biological mother, whom he never knew.
After working as a journalist, he entered the film industry, and advanced from reading scripts to directing films himself. In the silent era his output was large, but it quickly diminished with the arrival of the talkie. In his lifetime he was recognized as being a fanatical perfectionist amongst producers, and thus difficult to work with. His career was dogged by problems with the financing of his films, which led to large gaps in his output - and after the critics, too, denounced Vampyr (1932), he returned to journalism in 1932, and became a cinema manager in 1952 - though he still made features up to the mid- 1960s, a few years before his death. His films are typically slow, intense studies of human psychology, usually of people undergoing extreme personal or religious crises. He is now regarded as the greatest director ever to emerge from Denmark.- Director
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Gabriel Axel was born on 18 April 1918 in Århus, Denmark. He was a director and actor, known for Babette's Feast (1987), The Red Mantle (1967) and Christian (1989). He was married to Lucie Axel Moerch. He died on 9 February 2014 in Copenhagen, Denmark.- Director
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Bille August was born on 9 November 1948 in Brede, Denmark. He is a director and writer, known for The House of the Spirits (1993), Pelle the Conqueror (1987) and Les Misérables (1998). He is married to Sara-Marie Maltha. He was previously married to Pernilla August, Masja Dessau and Annie Munksgaard.- Director
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With Sidste omgang (1993) (Last Round), his graduation short from The National Film School of Denmark, Thomas Vinterberg got an early taste of critical success. He received the Jury's and Producers' Awards at the International Student Film Fest in Munich and won the 1st Prize at the Tel Aviv Film Fest. Popular success followed with his breakthrough short fiction film, Drengen der gik baglæns (1995), about a boy, who - after the death of his brother - discovers he can turn back time by walking backwards. This poetic short film was followed the reckless and fast-paced thriller, The Biggest Heroes (1996).
Vinterberg is one of the founding "brothers" of dogme95, a set of rules dedicated to reintroducing the element of risk in filmmaking. The Celebration (1998) was not only his first Dogme95 project it was also his first international success. With this movie he "penetrated a layer of evil and abomination [he'd] never been to before" (according to an interview by Bo Green Jensen for Weekend Avisen). The story revolves around Family patriarch Helge Klingenfeldt Hansen, celebrating his 60th birthday. In a speech the eldest son addresses his father, supposedly to honor him, only to reveal the father's darkest secret. Among other international prizes, Vinterberg received the Prix du Jury of the Cannes International Film Festival.
His feature, It's All About Love (2003), is a departure from the dogme95 project. It is the story of John (Joaquin Phoenix) and Elena (Claire Danes), whose marriage has fallen apart. Their troubled relationship is reflected in their surroundings as Vinterberg attempts to create a parallel between the chaos of the world and the chaos inside the characters.
Back in his homeland, Thomas Vinterberg nevertheless sticks to the English language. His Dear Wendy (2005), written by Lars von Trier, is a fierce attack against America's obsession with weapons. In 2007, Vinterberg returns to Danish with When a Man Comes Home (2007) whose subject (a singer comes home to the town he left behind) is appropriate to the circumstances. Vinterberg strikes hard with his next two works, Submarino (2010), the gloomy story of two brothers who try to cope with their depressing everyday lives and The Hunt (2012), the shocking tale of a man who falls prey to a madding crowd. It was no surprise to anyone that his next project was a new adaptation of a Thomas Hardy novel with Far from the Madding Crowd (2015).- Writer
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Writer/director Lone Scherfig graduated from The National Film School of Denmark in 1984. Her first feature film, THE BIRTHDAY TRIP (1990), was selected for Panorama in Berlin, the New Directors section at MOMA in New York and won the Grand Jury Prix in Rouen. Her next film, ON OUR OWN (1998), received the Grand Prix in Montreal and the Cinekid Prize in Amsterdam. Scherfig then wrote and directed ITALIAN FOR BEGINNERS (2000; the Danish 'Dogma' #5), which was a huge audience hit and won her the Silver Bear and the international film critics' award FIPRESCI at the 2001 Berlinale, plus numerous other awards around the world.
Scherfig's first English-language feature, WILBUR WANTS TO KILL HIMSELF (2002), toured the festival circuit and brought home awards from e.g. France, the US and Japan. Her next production, AN EDUCATION (2009), won the Audience Award at Sundance and was nominated for three Oscars and eight BAFTAs. Scherfig has since directed three British films, i.e. ONE DAY (2011), THE RIOT CLUB (2014) and THEIR FINEST (2016) which premiered at TIFF in 2016 and screened in Sundance and London as the Mayor's gala. In 2019, Lone Scherfig's The Kindness of Strangers opened and was in competition at Berlin International Film Festival.
In between features Scherfig has directed a range of TV-series, including TAXA (1997), QUIET WATERS (1999), BETTER TIMES (2004) and, most recently, THE ASTRONAUT WIVES CLUB (2015; conceptualised by Scherfig).- Writer
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Writer, director, and producer Nicolas Winding Refn was born in Copenhagen, Denmark, in 1970, to Anders Refn, a film director and editor, and Vibeke Winding (née Tuxen), a cinematographer. Just before he turned 11, in 1981, he moved to New York with his parents, where he lived out his teen years. New York quickly became his city and soon began to shape Nicolas' future.
At seventeen, Nicolas moved back to his native Copenhagen to complete his high-school Education. After graduation, he swiftly flew back to New York, where he attended the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. However, this education was cut short when Nicolas threw a desk at a classroom wall and was expelled from the Academy. Consequently, he applied to the Danish Film School and was readily accepted. This education too was to be short-lived, though, as one month prior to the start of the semester, Nicolas dropped out.
A short film Nicolas had written, directed, and starred in was aired on an obscure cable TV channel and lead to the offer of a life-time. Nicolas was spotted and offered 3.2 million kroners to turn the short into a feature. At only twenty-four, Nicolas had written and directed the extremely violent and uncompromising Pusher (1996), which became a cult phenomenon and won Nicolas instant international critical acclaim. The success of his debut spurred him to push the boundaries of his creative filmmaking further, which resulted in the close-to-the-edge and intricately gritty Bleeder (1999). Highly stylized and focused on introverted reactions to outward situations, this film was a marking point for the shaping of Nicolas's future career. The movie was selected for the 1999 Venice International Film Festival as well as winning the prestigious FIPRESCI Prize in Sarajevo.
Nicolas's fourth feature, the much-anticipated Fear X (2003) was also his first foray into English-language movies. Starring the award-winning actor John Turturro, "Fear X" made its world premiere at the Sundance Film festival. However, Fear X divided critics and it flopped, which made Nicolas Winding Refn broke and in debt.
Having to provide for his family and paying his debt, he returned to Denmark to revisit "Pusher." Refn was reluctant to revisit his past success but decided that he could both make commercially viable and artistically pleasing films. In just two years he managed to write, direct and produce the two sequels. Pusher II (2004) and Pusher III (2005) sealed the box and success of the internationally renowned "Pusher" trilogy. In 2005, the Toronto Film Festival held a "Pusher" retrospective showing all three features cementing its worldwide phenomenon.
In 2006 Nicolas embarked on a second English-language (and first digital) feature called Valhalla Rising (2009), which was inspired by a story his mother read to him at the age of five about a father and son who embark on a trip to the moon. Not recalling the ending of this story has been a long time fascination of Nicolas's with the unknown. During the pre-production on "Valhalla Rising," his long time collaborator and friend, Rupert Preston, urged him into accepting an offer to write and direct Bronson (2008), an ultra-violent, surreal, and escapist film following the real-life landmarks and self-entrapment of Charles Bronson, Britain's most notorious criminal. Before its cinematic release, "Bronson" was making waves inside and outside the film industry. The 2009 Sundance Film Festival selected the blistering film for its World Cinema Dramatic Competition and it soon became the talk of the festival. With such a prestigious premiere, "Bronson" went on to be selected for other major international film festivals and reap strong box-office rewards. But, even with such a buzz surrounding the film, no one could predict how the British press would bite at "Bronson's" bit. The content was close to the knuckle, the subject matter controversial, but Nicolas's take on this was even more inspired leading him to be labeled by the British media as the next great European auteur.
With such critical acclaim, Nicolas's reputation as a producer, writer and director was solidly reaffirmed. Nicolas and his wife Liv Corfixen were the subjects of an acclaimed documentary, Gambler (2006), which premiered at the Rotterdam International Film Festival in 2005. In addition, Nicolas already received two lifetime-achievement awards (one from the Taipei International Film festival in 2006 and the second from the Valencia International Film Festival in 2007), and it was the winner of the Emerging Master Award from the Philadelphia International Film Festival 2005.- Director
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Though Academy Award®, Golden Globe Award and Emmy Award winning writer and director Susanne Bier's work often plays out against a wide-reaching global backdrop, its focus is intimate, carefully exploring the explosive emotions and complexities of familial bonds. This unique combination is part of the formula that has made her Denmark's leading female filmmaker and a powerhouse worldwide.
Bier's 2010 film In a Better World won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film in 2011, as well as an Italian Golden Globe Award® for Best European Film and Best Director at the European Film Awards. She previously helmed the multi-award-winning After the Wedding (2006), which was also an Academy Award® nominee for Best Foreign Language Film, and was remade as an English-language film in 2019 starring Julianne Moore, Michelle Williams, and Billy Crudup.
Bier won an Emmy Award in 2016 for directing the six-part AMC mini-series The Night Manager, based on the 1993 novel of the same name by John le Carré, with stars Tom Hiddleston, Hugh Laurie, and Olivia Colman all winning Golden Globes for their work.
Bier followed this with the 2018 Netflix film Bird Box, starring Sandra Bullock, which went on to become the most-watched film in Netflix history. In 2020, she directed the six-part HBO series The Undoing, starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant, the network's first original series to grow its audience each week.
Prior to this, Bier co-wrote and directed the romantic comedy The One and Only (1999), which won Best Film at the Danish Robert Awards and was the most watched domestic film in Denmark in 20 years, with one-fifth of the country's population having seen it at the cinema.
In 2002, she directed Open Hearts, shot in accordance with the Dogme '95 filmmaking aesthetic. The film won numerous awards, including the Audience Award at the Robert Festival (Danish Academy Award) and the International Film Critics' Award at the Toronto International Film Festival. Bier followed this with Brothers (2004), which won, among others, the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival.
In 2007, Bier directed the award-winning Things We Lost in the Fire, starring Halle Berry and Benicio Del Toro, her first English-language film.
In 2012, Bier made her triumphant return to the genre with the 2013 winner of the European Film Award for Best Comedy, Love Is All You Need, starring Pierce Brosnan and Trine Dyrholm. In 2014, Bier directed A Second Chance, starring Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival.
Most recently, Susanne Bier directed the Showtime limited series The First Lady, starring Viola Davis, Michelle Pfieffer, and Gillian Anderson.- Writer
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Nikolaj Arcel was born on 25 August 1972 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He is a writer and director, known for A Royal Affair (2012), Kongekabale (2004) and The Promised Land (2023).- Director
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Ole Christian "OC" Madsen is from the "Golden Year" of the Danish Filmschool, including director's like Thomas Vinterberg and Per Fly. Ole Christian Madsen started out directing television series, but moved on to his first feature Sinans Wedding in 1997, followed by highly acclaimed second feature Pizza King (1998) - both films dealt with 2nd generation emigrant issues, and became the first of their kind approaching this subject in Denmark. OC moved on to the highly profiled miniseries "Edderkoppen", a film-noir vision of post-war Copenhagen in 1949, an elegant romantic gangster-flick. The seriel is still one of it's kind in Denmark, and became immensely popular. Award-winning breakthrough arised with "En Kaerlighedshistorie". Besides taking home international awards, it swept the national Bodil, and Robert-awards in 2002. With the adaptation of his good friend Jakob Ejersbo's Nordkraft, he made his first hit movie. One year later he wrote and directed Prag. And another year after came the 2WW resistance drama Flame & Citron. It became the biggest box-office hit in 10 years - and the most expensive danish-languaged movie ever. In 2010 "OC" shot his latest film Superclasico in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It will premiere in Copenhagen March 2011.- Director
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Søren Kragh-Jacobsen was born on 2 March 1947 in Copenhagen, Denmark and is one of the country's most respected directors and co-inventor of the "dogme95" project. After becoming a popular musician, he attended film school in Prague and returned to his home country where he made his first feature film Vil du se min smukke navle? (1978). Despite doing several movies, TV projects and commercials, his international breakthrough was the acclaimed Mifune (1999).- Writer
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Anders Thomas Jensen was born on 6th April 1972 in Frederiksværk on Sjælland in Denmark to Carl Benny Jensen and Kirsten Jensen (born Sørensen). He attended the high school in Frederiksværk from 1988 to 1991. In 1990 while still in high school, he wrote and directed 10 år på bagen - 3 år i skyggen (1990) (TV).
He made his film debut in 1996 with the short films Café Hector (1996), Davids bog (1996), Hvileløse hjerte (1996) and the Academy Award nominated Ernst & Lyset (1996), which he also directed. The following year Jensen wrote and directed Wolfgang (1997), which also earned an Academy Award nomination for best short film. He also made a rare appearance in front of the camera in Royal Blues (1997). Baby Doom (1998) and Albert (1998), both released in 1998, were the first feature films with screenplay co-written by Jensen.
After being nominated two previous years Jensen finally won in 1999 an Oscar for best short film with Election Night (1998). He followed it with writing the screenplay for two successful films in 1999, Mifune (1999) and In China They Eat Dogs (1999). Jensen was nominated for a Robert for the both films, but neither won. Mifune, directed by Søren Kragh-Jacobsen was the third dogme film. I Kina spiser de hunde (In China They Eat Dogs), directed by Lasse Spang Olsen and starring Kim Bodnia, was the first of typical Jensen screenplays with an original mixture of humour and action. The formula was very effective and the film was a huge hit in Denmark. In a way it created a new genre, Danish action comedies, as it spawned several imitations as well as a prequel three years later. In 2000 Jensen co-wrote the screenplay for Dykkerne (2000) and The King Is Alive (2000), the fourth dogme-film which is a story about a group of people who decides to stage Shakespeare's King Lear in the desert.
After having written screenplays for films in various genres, in 2000 he also his feature film debut as a director with Flickering Lights (2000). Blinkende lygter (Flickering Lights) tells the story of four small time crooks from Copenhagen who steal 4,000,000 DKR from a gangster boss. Unfortunately their escape route won't take them further than the countryside before the car breaks down. That leads them to renovate an old guesthouse while tring to lay low. With Denmark's best talents Søren Pilmark, Ulrich Thomsen, Mads Mikkelsen, Nikolaj Lie Kaas and Iben Hjejle, it was a huge blockbuster hit in Denmark and also gained interest abroad. Blinkende lygter also gained a Bodil nomination for the best picture of the year, a Robert nomination for best screenplay and won the audience award at the Robert festival. By now already an established name on the Danish movie scene he wrote the screenplays to Count Axel (2001), made an uncredited contribution to Fukssvansen (2001), Lone Scherfig's Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself (2002) and Susanne Bier's celebrated Open Hearts (2002) highlighted by strong performances from Mads Mikkelsen, Nikolaj Lie Kaas and Paprika Steen. The screenplay of Elsker dig for evigt (Open Hearts) also showed a completely different side of him. In 2002 he also wrote the screenplay for Lasse Spang Olsen's Gamle mænd i nye biler (2002), the prequel to In China They East Dogs. Jensen received his fourth Robert nomination for the screenplay of Gamle mænd i nye biler (Old Men In New Cars).
Jensen then wrote and directed The Green Butchers (2003). With outstanding performances by Nikolaj Lie Kaas and Mads Mikkelsen, Jensen contributed yet another characteristic story of two butchers with very unorthodox methods. This time Jensen was for De Grønne slagtere (The Green Butchers) nominated for both screenplay and direction at the Robert Festival. He also wrote the screenplays for Søren Kragh-Jacobsen's Skagerrak (2003) and Rembrandt (2002). Skagerrak tells the story of Danish Marie (Iben Hjejle) who finds happiness when she least expects it as she is offered to be a surrogate mother in Northern Scotland. Rembrandt on the other hand continues the adventures of Danish small time crooks, as they by mistake steal a painting by Rembrandt which causes them more problems that they ask for. In 2004 Jensen wrote the screenplay for Susanne Bier's Brothers (2004). Brødre (Brothers), starring Connie Nielsen, Ulrich Thomsen and Nikolaj Lie Kaas is a story of two brothers whose lives alter in many ways when one is sent to war in Afghanistan and the other one takes his place in the brother's family. For Brothers Jensen finally won a Robert for best screenplay. In February 2005 premiered Solkongen (2005), directed by Tomas Villum Jensen, and followed by Adam's Apples (2005) in April 2005. Jensen's third directorial effort Adams æbler is written and directed by himself and stars once again Mads Mikkelsen, Nikolaj Lie Kaas and Ulrich Thomsen. His next contribution will be After the Wedding (2006) (After the Wedding), which will be directed by Susanne Bier and with Mads Mikkelsen and Rolf Lassgård in leading roles. Efter brylluppet is due to be released in March 2006.- Director
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Annette K. Olesen was born on 20 November 1965 in Denmark. She is a director and writer, known for Kamikaze (2021), Borgen (2010) and Lille soldat (2008).- Director
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Per Fly was accepted to the Danish Film School in 1989. He completed his education in 1993 with the graduation film Room 17. In the following years Per Fly directed, among other films, the short films Sofaholdet (1994), Calling Katherine (1994) and The Little Knight (1997). In 1998, he directed the short film Liftarflickan and three episodes of the television show TAXI for Danish Radio.
In 2001 Per Fly won a Bodil and a Robert award for Best Director, and both the Audience Award and the Best Director award from Nordische Film Days 2000 in Lübeck. The awards were given for Fly's debut feature film, The Bench (2000), which was the first in Per Fly's trilogy about the lower, middle and upper class in Denmark.
The sequel, Inheritance (2003) about the Danish upper class, was the most attended film in Danish cinemas in 2003 and won a total of seven Robert awards in 2004, including Best Film, Best Director and The Audience Award. Inheritance also received several major international awards, including the award for best screenplay at the Flaiano International Film Festival in Italy and San Sebastian International Film Festival in Spain.
Per Fly won the award for Best Director once more at the Robert Awards, with the last film of the trilogy, Manslaughter (2005), and a Bodil for Best Film and the Nordic Council Film Prize.
In 2005, Per Fly received the Crown Prince and Crown Princess' Culture Prize for the trilogy. In this context the Crown Prince stated that: "The trilogy is some of the most powerful films in Danish film history".
In 2007 Per Fly made the TV series Performances in six episodes for the TV network DR. Sonja Richter won the award for Best Actress at the 47th Monte Carlo TV Festival.
In January 2010 Per Fly released his latest film The Woman who Dreamed of a Man.- Writer
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Christoffer Boe was born on 7 May 1974 in Rungsted Kyst, Denmark. He is a writer and director, known for Reconstruction (2003), Beast (2011) and Sex, Drugs & Taxation (2013).- Actress
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Bodil Ipsen was born on 30 August 1889 in Copenhagen, Denmark. She was an actress and director, known for Café Paradis (1950), Red Meadows (1945) and The Viking Watch of the Danish Seaman (1948). She was married to Ejnar Black, Emanuel Gregers, Helmuth Heinrich Otto Moltke and Jacob Texiere. She died on 26 November 1964 in Denmark.- Director
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Benjamin Christensen was born on 28 September 1879 in Viborg, Denmark. He was a director and writer, known for Blind Justice (1916), Häxan (1922) and The Devil's Circus (1926). He was married to Karen Winther, Sigrid Stahl and Ellen Arctander. He died on 2 April 1959 in Copenhagen, Denmark.- Writer
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Morten Arnfred was born on 2 August 1945 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He is a writer and director, known for Land of Plenty (1983), Johnny Larsen (1979) and Hotellet (2000).- Director
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Niels Arden Oplev was born on 26 March 1961 in Denmark. He is a director and producer, known for The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2009), Drømmen (2006) and Held for Ransom (2019).- Director
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Erik Balling was one of the most beloved Danish filmmaker in the 20th century. Balling was a director, a producer and a writer. Erik Balling was mostly famous for creating such TV epics as "Matador" and "Huset På Christianshavn" and the film-series of "Olsen banden". Erik Balling was born the 19th of November 1925 in the Danish city of Nyborg, as a son of a priest. In 1946 Balling was hired as an assistant at "Nordisk Film Kompagni" - the world's oldest film production company. His talent was soon recognised, and Balling soon had the opportunity to work as a director. His debut as a director came in 1952, with the film: "Vi arme syndere". Balling soon gained a reputation of having good technical skills, and after that film his talent was widely recognised. In 1957 he became head of "Nordisk Film" - the youngest one ever. Balling was mostly famous for his comedies. In his early days he directed Poeten og Lillemor (1959) and Sommer i Tyrol (1964), which were very popular at the time. In the middle of the 1960s Balling tried to chance his style when it came to comedies. At this time the popular James Bond films circled the globe, Balling's next film was inspired by those films, teaming up with Henning Bahs to make the Jamed Bond spoof "Slå Først Frede" (1965), which became very popular in Denmark - so popular it spawned a sequel Slap af, Frede! (1966). This co-work with Henning Bahs was so fruitful that they made many more movies together. This co-work eventually led to film-series of "Olsen banden", which started with Olsen-banden (1968) - and eventually they made a total of 14 "Olsen banden" film, plus a TV series and a movie version where the characters in "Olsen banden" are children. "Olsen banden" was about a small band of small time criminals, trying to become millionaires. "Olsen banden" were not only very popular in Denmark, but also in East-Germany, Poland, Sweden and Norway - especially in Norway and Sweden, who eventually made their own national versions of "Olsen banden", namely the Norwegian "Olsen banden" and the Swedish "Jönssonligan" - Henning Bahs and Erik Balling also helped the Norwegians and the Swedes to write those. In that late 60s and early 70s Balling made the popular Danish TV series "Huset På Christianshavn", which also became the basis for a movie: "Ballade på Christianshavn (1971)".
In 1970 Balling produced the very popular Danish TV epic "Matador". More than fifty percent of Denmark's population watched "Matador" in those days. "Matador" was about life in a smaller city in Denmark in the 30s and 40s.
Balling was always known for his warm style, when he portrayed humans. Throughout his life, he received many prizes. He was 80 years old when he died the 19th of November 2005.- Director
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Peter Elfelt was born on 1 January 1866 in Elsinore, Denmark. He was a director and cinematographer, known for Capital Execution (1903), Fru Anna Larssen i sit paaklædningsværelse (1901) and Prinsesse Marie til hest (1903). He died on 18 February 1931 in Copenhagen, Denmark.- Director
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Danish Film Director Kristian Levring has produced a distinct body of work. With films ranging from thriller, through period drama, Shakespearean re-imagining and a Western, Levring has crafted an expression that is as visually stunning and unique as it is eclectic.
Born in 1957 in Copenhagen, Kristian Levring graduated from the National Danish Film School in 1984 as an editor but he soon switched to directing. In 1988 he began a very successful carrier directing TV commercials. Then in 1995, together with Lars Von Trier, Soren Kragh-Jacobsen and Thomas Vinterberg, Levring was one of the co-founders of the world renowned Dogme95 movement. In 2008 the four co-founders were awarded a European Film Award for their Outstanding European Achievement in World Cinema.
In 2000 Levring premiered his own award winning Dogme film The King Is Alive as part of the official selection at the Cannes Film Festival. The film starred Jennifer Jason Leigh, Janet McTeer and Romane Bohringer. Two years later The Intended, co-written with Janet McTeer, premiered in Toronto starring McTeer and Academy Award® winners Olympia Dukakis and Brenda Fricker.
Levring returning to directing in 2005 with the highly acclaimed Fear Me Not starring Ulrich Thomsen. This Danish language psychological drama was among others selected for San Sebastian International Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival.
In 2013 Levring co-wrote and directed a Western, The Salvation (film). The film starred Mads Mikkelsen, Eva Green, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Jonathan Pryce and Eric Cantona. The film made its world premiere as part of the official selection at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival before a worldwide release to critical acclaim.
Levring resides in Hampstead, North London.
He is represented worldwide by Frank Wuliger at The Gersh Agency, Los Angeles.- Director
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Kaspar Rostrup was born on 27 April 1940 in Denmark. He is a director and writer, known for Memories of a Marriage (1989), Her i nærheden (2000) and Jeppe on the Hill (1981).- Director
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August Blom was born on 26 December 1869 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He was a director and actor, known for The End of the World (1916), Kærlighedslængsel (1916) and The Airship Fugitives (1912). He died on 10 January 1947 in Copenhagen, Denmark.- Stunts
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Lasse Spang Olsen was born on 23 April 1965 in Denmark. He is a director and writer, known for In China They Eat Dogs (1999), Inkasso (2004) and Pusher (1996). He was previously married to Josephine Bergsøe.- Director
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Jørgen Leth was born on 14 June 1937 in Århus, Denmark. He is a director and writer, known for Haiti. Uden titel (1995), Jeg er levende - Søren Ulrik Thomsen, digter (1999) and The Five Obstructions (2003).- Director
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Pernille Fischer Christensen was born on 24 December 1969 in Copenhagen, Denmark. She is a director and writer, known for A Family (2010), A Soap (2006) and Someone You Love (2014).- Director
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Henning Carlsen was born on 4 June 1927 in Aalborg, Denmark. He was a director and writer, known for Dilemma (1962), Hunger (1966) and People Meet and Sweet Music Fills the Heart (1967). He was married to Else Heidary and Hjørdis Wirth Jensen. He died on 30 May 2014 in Copenhagen, Denmark.- Writer
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Natasha Arthy was born on 23 May 1969 in Gentofte, Denmark. She is a writer and director, known for Mirakel (2000), Fighter (2007) and Julefeber (2020).- Director
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Ole Palsbo was born on 13 August 1909 in Copenhagen, Denmark. He was a director and writer, known for Papir og pap er penge værd (1947), Familien Schmidt (1951) and Diskret Ophold (1946). He died on 11 June 1952 in Copenhagen, Denmark.- Director
- Writer
- Actress
Astrid Henning-Jensen was born on 10 December 1914 in Copenhagen, Denmark. She was a director and writer, known for Winterborn (1978), Early Spring (1986) and Øjeblikket (1980). She was married to Bjarne Henning-Jensen. She died on 5 January 2002 in Copenhagen, Denmark.- Actor
- Director
- Writer
Peter Schrøder was born on 13 June 1946 in Vemb, Denmark. He is an actor and director, known for Stolen Spring (1993), Springflod (1990) and Dicte (2013). He has been married to Susanne Heinrich since 1989.