Sons by Gustav Möller
Selected for International Competition at the Berlinale

By Bjørn Juul Andersen, Danish Film Institute
January 20, 2024

BERLIN. “The Guilty” director Gustav Möller's prison drama “Sons” starring Sidse Babett Knudsen will be celebrating the World premiere in the International Competition strand of the Berlinale as the first Danish-language film in eight years.

Birgitte Stærmose's 'Afterwar' is presented in the festival's Panorama program, which also includes two Danish co-productions.

There is a strong Danish presence at this year's Berlin Film Festival, also known as the Berlinale, where two Danish films will celebrate their world premieres and in addition two Danish co-productions are also featured as part of the prestigious festival that runs from February 15.-25.


Acclaimed Danish actress, Sidse Babett Knudsen plays prison guard Eva in Gustav Möller's psychological prison drama “Sons”, which has just been selected for the Berlin Film Festival's International Competition where it will compete for The Golden Bear. Photo: Nikolaj Møller/Nordisk Film.

"It is an incredible international achievement to make it into the official selection of the Berlinale, which is considered to be one of Europe's largest festival in regards to audience attendance. The Berlinale is an incredibly important platform: It has great international press attention and the festival's European Film Market attracts film buyers from all over the world.” says Lizette Gram Mygind, Festival Consultant for feature films at The Danish Film Institute.


Sons

Eva, an idealistic prison officer, is faced with the dilemma of her life when a young man from her past is transferred to the prison where she works. Without revealing her secret, Eva asks to be moved to the young man’s ward – the toughest and most violent in the prison. Here begins an unsettling psychological thriller, where Eva’s sense of justice puts both her morality and future at stake.

“Sons” is director Gustav Möller's follow-up to his award-winning and critically acclaimed debut feature film “The Guilty” from 2018, which won the Audience Award for International Feature Film at the Sundance Film Festival, where it had its world premiere. “Sons” is written by Gustav Möller and Emil Nygaard Albertsen and produced by Lina Flint for Nordisk Film with funding from the Danish Film Institute.

Afterwar

Set in Kosovo, ‘Afterwar’ begins in 2008, where children sell peanuts and cigarettes in the streets of Pristina to help support their families after the war. In 2023, 15 years later, the children have become adults. They still fight for a future, for dignity, and a better life for their own children in the never-ending afterwar. ‘Afterwar’ is a group portrait made in co-creation with the cast, and moves between raw realism, staging and an existential reflection on the long aftermath of any war.


'Afterwar' by danish director Birgitte Stærmose

'Afterwar' is screened in the festival's Panorama program for more experimental films from around the world. Director Birgitte Stærmose has directed the Danish feature films 'Room 304' (2011), 'Darling' (2017) and 'Camino' (2023), as well as several series, including the Danish TV2 series 'Norskov' from 2015.

'Afterwar' is a sequel to Stærmose's own award-winning short film 'Out of Love' from 2009, which got a special mention at the Berlinale in 2010. The film is produced by Lise Lense-Møller for Magic Hour Films with funding from the Danish Film Institute.

Two Danish co-productions in Panorama

In addition to 'Afterwar', two Danish minor co-productions have been selected for the Panorama program: Panorama's opening film is Swedish-Georgian Levan Akin's drama 'Crossing', a co-production between Sweden, Denmark, France and Turkey. In 2019, Akin directed the critically acclaimed coming of age dance drama ‘And Then We Danced’ about a gay Georgian dancer. 'Crossing' is co-produced by Danish Katja Adomeit for Adomeit Film with funding from the Danish Film Institute.

Contact

Lizette Gram Mygind
Festivalkonsulent, spillefilm
Tlf. +45 2482 3758
lizetteg@dfi.dk

The Chinese/Danish 'Brief History of a Family', directed by Jiajie Lin, is also part of the Panorama program. The film is about a middle-class Chinese family whose fate becomes intertwined with their only son's enigmatic new friend. Unspoken secrets, unfulfilled expectations and unresolved feelings suddenly comes out in the open. 'Brief History of a Family' is co-produced by Danish Rikke Tambo for Tambo Film with funding from the Danish Film Institute.