The Great Game is an epic adventure and family chronicle across three generations about extraordinary men and destinies: film producer Michael Haslund, his father, the former Lord Chamberlain of the Royal Danish family Søren Haslund-Christensen, and his grandfather, explorer/anthropologist Henning Haslund-Christensen. The Danish explorer, who died in Kabul in 1948 under mysterious circumstances, made his mark in Central Asia in the early 20th century but he was also rumoured to be a gunrunner and British agent.  

As Søren’s health starts to deteriorate due to Alzheimer and with time is running out Michael takes his father out of the nursing home and on a journey in his grandfather's footsteps. They travel across China and meet chiefs and ancestors who reveal that Henning was a true Lawrence of the East, a man who fought to unite the Mongol tribes and defend them against the Russians.

How/when did you two hook up to collaborate on the film?
Andreas Dalsgaard: before turning to filmmaking, I had studied anthropology and knew of Michael’s grandfather, Henning. I connected with Michael because of that, and he produced my first film Afghan Muscles [2006]. It was therefore a natural choice for me when Michael invited me aboard on The Great Game, to work together again.

It must have been very complex to find the main thread for the story, as there are so many layers, with the past and present constantly colliding and feeding off each other….
AD: Yes there are many layers to the story, and one of the main focuses is the story of Michael’s grandfather Henning, his expeditions in Central Asia between 1927 and 1935 and ties with Swedish explorer Sven Hedin. We used existing archive material, and at the same time, we did our own research into intelligence, power games and geopolitics at the time.

Condensing the story that others had spent decades working on was challenging. But the core of the film, is a family story, the father and sons’ relationships; what do you pass on, and what do you give back. That’s unfolded when Michael takes Søren on a journey back in the footsteps of Henning, to the Tian Shan Mountains in the Xinjiang province. We also see the characters, mirrors of each other in many ways.

Michael Haslund: the biggest puzzle was to find a balance between the two layers of the contemporary story and the historical, geopolitical background. We wanted to enlighten the history in a present set up, use history to reflect our present time. So we set off on a journey back in time by using the present story of my father loosing his short-term memory because of Alzheimer, to return the long-term memories to the Mongols, who lost all their past during the Cultural Revolution.

The film is also built like a thriller, with clues and new information about Henning Haslund’s activities as a possible British agent that are absolutely fascinating…
AD: There were rumours about Henning being a British agent, that no one had really investigated or been able to verify them. The investigative story emerged when we realised that a lot of documents had been published in the UK and in India that could shed a new light on Hedin and Haslund’s more clandestine activities. We could bring a totally new dimension to the story, with arms smuggling, espionage and power games.  Also the contacts that Michael developed since 1986 with personal Asian friends who gave us access to different Mongolian tribes, enabled us to meet people whose’ ancestors had met Michael’s grandfather. That allowed us to create the story from different perspectives.

MH: Also, from a filming point of view, we were able to combine unique and amazing material from different sources, about Sven Hedin’s expeditions, about my father with my grandfather that I found in the US. We could make the characters alive again straight from the past.

How long was the filming and entire filming journey?
AD We started filming in 2014 and we continued until a few weeks ago. Everything in the film leads to the big journey where Michael takes his father out of the nursing home to China, on the footsteps of the expedition of Sven Hedin and Henning Haslund, to track down the Mongol tribes than Henning had a special relationship with.

MH: For me, it started in 2012, when my father was diagnosed with Alzheimer. I didn’t want to wait passively for the next diagnosis. I went on a trip with him into the past.

Michael what vision did you have of your grandfather when you started the project and what vision of him did you have when you wrapped the film?
MH: He was more involved in espionage than I thought, but also very similar to the image that I’ve always had of him instinctively. In a way, I found his way of operating very similar to the one I use in my work. You have to use your network, your contacts…I was quite surprised to discover that. But I was mostly happy to do this project with my father as a last journey together. I wanted to show him the mountains of Central Asia, and thought that if I could take him there, we would have fulfilled our journeys of the family adventures for more than 100 years together in sound and visions.

Andreas, were you surprised by what you discovered about Henning Haslund-Christensen? AD: Before going to Afghanistan in 2003 for Afghan Muscles, I remember sitting in the anthropology museum in Copenhagen and looking at the collections from Henning’s expedition, but nowhere had anyone really investigated the clandestine world that these explorers also operated in. I was surprised to find so much evidence.

Andreas you’re not only a silent observer, behind with your camera, but you interact with the characters and the strong connection between you and them gives a pleasant playfulness, warmth and humour to the film…
AD: I’ve known Michael a long time and he let me enter his life and family in a natural way. Michael and I had a playful relationship from the outset and we both like to take things lightly. That’s probably what comes through in the film.

Michael has your father seen the finished film?
MH: Yes the whole family has seen the film. With Alzheimer disease you loose the short-term memory but the long-term memory is still there. I saw that he enjoyed the film, but the next day he wasn’t aware of which film we were talking about, when asked about his thoughts of The Great Game. Still, it’s been such a fun experience to show him past images of his own childhood. 

After the film’s world premiere at CPH:DOX, where will it open?

MH: DOXBIO in Denmark will release the film on June 6, in 40-60 cinemas. We are in discussion with foreign distributors as well.