Academy Award winning/nominated films at the 4th Danish Film Festival

The Embassy of Denmark in the Philippines presents a new selection of contemporary and critically acclaimed films, led by the Academy Award nominated film Under sandet/Land of Mine, at the 4^th Danish Film Festival happening on November 8-11 at Robinson's Movieworld, Robinson's Galleria.

A tale about young German prisoners of war forced to defuse land mines in Danish territory, Under sandet/Land of Mine was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 89^th Academy Awards. The film is directed by Martin Pieter Zandvliet and stars Roland Møller. Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, Louis Hofmann, Joel Basman, Emil Belton, and Oskar Belton.

The multi-awarded Filipino film, Dagsin/Gravity, is also among the movies to be screened at the festival as part of the strengthening of Danish-Philippine cultural ties. Inspired by the ideas of Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard and French existentialist Albert Camus, this film had its debut at the 2016 Cinemalaya Philippine Independent Film Festival, is directed by Atom Magadia and stars Tommy Abuel, Lotlot De Leon, Benjamin Alves, Janine Gutierrez, Sue Prado, and Alex Diaz.

“We are very happy to continue developing our social and cultural links to the Philippines. Films, literature, music – cultural events create common ground between people beyond institutionalized politics. Now again Filipinos get another chance – through our 4^th Danish Film Festival - to learn about some of social, political and cultural characteristics of Danes and Denmark. We believe by engaging with each other, we can inspire each other and develop our relations. I look forward to seeing an even bigger crowd than last year at our film screenings in November,” says Ambassador of Denmark to the Philippines, Jan Top Christensen.

As always, screenings are for free on a first come, first-served basis. Very likely also that all the films will have English subtitles. Although it may be possible that Otto er et næsehorn/Otto is A Rhino will be in English to accommodate the younger movie goers.

4^th Danish Film Festival Line-Up

Under sandet/Land of Mine (2015)

Director: Martin Pieter Zandvliet

Starring: Roland Møller, Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, Louis Hofmann, Joel Basman, Emil Belton, Oskar Belton

As World War II comes to an end, a group of German POWs, boys rather than men, are captured by the Danish army and forced to engage in a deadly task to defuse and clear land mines from the Danish coastline. With little or no training, the boys soon discover that the war is far from over.

Anti (2016)

Director: Morten BH

Starring: Stefan Hjort, Casper Kjær Jensen, Oscar Dyekjær Giese, Theis Monrad Post, Sonny Lindberg

The year is 1991.

Simon and his best friend Frede are very busy doing absolutely nothing in a tiny suburban town outside Copenhagen. Simon has always loved to draw but has never quite had an outlet for his talent. He experiences a jolting realization when he learns about the graffiti culture by chance, and now he sees a chance to accomplish something that will leave a mark on the world.

Simon and Frede quickly paint graffiti all over the town they live in, and when CHAOS, a large graffiti crew from Copenhagen, discovers Simon’s talent, they recruit the both of them. As opposed to Frede, Simon is completely hooked by the environment, but he soon realizes that things are not quite what he thought they would be.      

Skammerens datter/The Shamer’s Daughter (2015)

Director: Kenneth Kainz

Starring: Rebecca Emilie Sattrup, Jakob Oftebro, Søren Malling

A reviled widow and her daughter, who have the ability to peer into people's souls, are called upon to investigate the murder of the royal family.         

De standhaftige/Walk with Me (2016)

Director: Lisa Ohlin

Starring: Mikkel Boe Følsgaard, Cecilie Lassen

Deployed on mission in Helmand, Afghanistan, 25-year old Thomas steps on a landmine and gets seriously injured. At the local rehabilitation center he meets Sofie, an ascending ballerina from the Royal Danish Ballet, who is helping a relative to regain strength after a long term sickness.

Thomas desperately wants back in the field and gets impatient, as progress does not emerge as fast as he wants to. When Sofie offers to help him with a more intense rehabilitation plan, he accepts. Despite their differences, they develop a special bond and a mutual affection.

Otto er et næsehorn/Otto is A Rhino (2013)

Director: Kenneth Kainz

Starring: Nikolai Aamand, Noah Crone Back, Lars Brygmann, Kaya Brüel, Rebecca Brüel

Topper is a young boy with a vivid imagination. After finding a pencil, he soon discovers that it has magic powers when his drawing of a rhino is suddenly standing alive and hungry in the middle of his apartment! With his best friend’s birthday just around the corner, Topper realizes that the enormous “Otto” would make for the perfect gift. But how does he keep Otto the Rhino hidden, let alone sneak him across town? Life in this sleepy seaside village is about to be shaken up completely!

Hævnen/In a Better World (2010)

Director: Susanne Bier

Starring:
Mikael Persbrandt, Trine Dyrholm, Ulrich Thomsen, Markus Rygaard

Anton is a doctor who commutes between his home in an idyllic town in Denmark, and his work at an African refugee camp. In these two very different worlds, he and his family are faced with conflicts that lead them to difficult choices between revenge and forgiveness.

Anton and his wife Marianne, who have two young sons, are separated and struggling with the possibility of divorce. Their older, ten-year-old son Elias is being bullied at school, until he is defended by Christian, a new boy who has just moved from London with his father, Claus. Christian's mother recently lost her battle with cancer, and Christian is greatly troubled by her death.

Elias and Christian quickly form a strong bond, but when Christian involves Elias in a dangerous act of revenge with potentially tragic consequences, their friendship is tested and lives are put in danger. Ultimately, it is their parents who are left to help them come to terms with the complexity of human emotions, pain and empathy.

Dansen med Regitze/Waltzing Regitze (1989)

Director: Kaspar Rostrup

Starring: Ghita Nørby, Frits Helmuth, Henning Moritzen, Rikke Bendsen

An American Academy Award Best Foreign Film 1990 nominee, Dansen med Regitze/Waltzing Regitze tells of a working class marriage that has survived all obstacles because true love and mutual respect always prevailed. Tempestuous Regitze and conformist Karl Aage live through wartime hardships and familial strifes and upheavels and are now preparing for their annual summer party over which the shadow of tragedy is suddenly cast.

Frygtelig lykkelig/Terribly Happy (2008)

Director: Henrik Ruben Genz

Starring: Jakob Cedergren, Lene Maria Christensen, Kim Bodnia

Frygtelig lykkelig/Terribly Happy spins a riveting yarn about Robert Hansen, a Copenhagen police officer who, following a nervous breakdown, is transferred to a small provincial town to take on the mysteriously vacated marshal position and subsequently gets mixed up with a married femme fatale. Robert’s big city temperament makes it impossible for him to fit in, or understand the uncivilized, bizarre behavior displayed by the townspeople. Quickly spiraling into an intense fable, director Henrik Ruben Genz displays a unique and sometimes macabre vision of the darkest depths to which people will go to achieve a sense of security and belonging.

Dagsin/Gravity (2016)

Director: Atom Magadia

Starring: Tommy Abuel, Lotlot De Leon, Benjamin Alves, Janine Gutierrez, Sue Prado, Alex Diaz

Inspired by the ideas of Søren Kierkegaard and Albert Camus, Dagsin/Gravity is a beautiful love story about two people who are willing to sacrifice everything to protect their Love against the tragedies of human existence.

Here is the schedule of the 4^th Danish Film Festival.

November 8, 2018

5:00 PM Dansen med Regitze/Waltzing Regitze

7:30 PM Under sandet/Land of Mine

November 9, 2018

3:15 PM Hævnen/In a Better World

5:00 PM Frygtelig lykkelig/Terribly Happy

7:00 PM De standhaftige/Walk with Me

November 10, 2018

3:15 PM Skammerens datter/The Shamer’s Daughter

5:00 PM Dagsin/Gravity

7:00 PM Under sandet/Land of Mine

November 11, 2018

3:15 PM Otto er et næsehorn/Otto is a Rhino

5:00 PM De standhaftige/Walk with Me

7:00 PM Anti

The 4^th Danish Film Festival is presented by the Embassy of Denmark in the Philippines, the Danish Film Institute, Robinson's Movieworld, and the Film Development Council of the Philippines through their Film Cultural Exchange Program. The event is also made possible by Arla, media partners art+ magazine, Cinemabravo and official TV partner: ANC News Channel.