Ernst de Geer’s The Hypnosis competes for Crystal Globe in Karlovy Vary

The Hypnosis (Hypnosen) is among 11 features that will compete in the main Crystal Globe competition at the 57^th Karlovy Vary Film Festival, unspooling June 30-July 8, 2023.

“It will be great fun to show my debut film at a festival that I've heard so much about! I'm really looking forward to it finally meeting an audience!”, said the director, following this morning’s official festival selection announcement.

The social satire co-written by de Geer and Mads Stegger (Beforeigners), is the story of André and Vera, a young entrepreneurial couple who get the opportunity to pitch their female health app at a prestigious competition. Before going there, Vera tries hypnotherapy to quit smoking. From this point, her attitude changes and André starts to behave unexpectedly.

In the title roles are Herbert Nordrum (The Worst Person in the World, Beforeigners) and Asta Kamma August (Burn All my Letters, Blackwater).

Speaking to us earlier, Nordrum said he was thrilled to be reunited with de Geer, after the director’s multi-awarded short film The Culture. “Here my character has a desperate need to be liked and to fit in. But he also has high ambitions and wants to stand out, which is kind of contradictory. He has trouble accepting his girlfriend’s new spontaneous behaviour,” he said.

For her part August said playing a character who loses her boundaries was ‘liberating”.

For De Geer, the film is about trying to fit in, and what happens when one of persons in the couple isn’t interested in that anymore.

The film was produced by Garagefilm International’s Mimmi Spång, in co-production with Norway’s Mer Film, France’s Totem Atelier, Film i Väst, with co-financing from SVT, NRK, Yle, support from the Swedish Film Institute (via Moving Sweden), the Norwegian Film Institute and Nordisk Film & TV Fond. Scandinavian Film Distribution handles Nordic distribution.

Totem Films is in charge of international sales.

Other strong entries for Karlovy Vary’s main competition are the Canadian thriller Red Rooms by Pascal Plante and Blaga’s Lessons by Bulgarian director Stephan Komandarev.

The Crystal jury comprises actors Patricia Clarkson, Barry Ward, producer Dora Bouchoucha, Sundance Film Festival programmer John Nein, and director Olmo Omerzu.

Another 12 films will compete in the Proxima competition for bold and experimental works, and eight titles will bow at the Special Screenings, including Slow by Lithuanian Marija Kavtaradze, co-produced by Sweden’s Garagefilm International.

“It has been an incredible adventure for the programming team to get acquainted with this year’s state of the arthouse cinema via almost two thousand submissions. We are proud of the selection and simply cannot wait to share it with the audience,” said Karel Och, KVIFF artistic director.