Five creepy and popcorn Nordic chillers to break free at Cannes Frontières

A total of 13 projects will bow at the Frontières Platform, organised in collaboration with the Marché du Film (July 6-15).

“Frontières Platform will take place in a hybrid way,” said executive director Annick Mahnert. “The people attending the Cannes (pre-market screenings) physically in June, will be able to see the pitches in a screening room. But we are also screening them online via the Marché du Film's platform for the participants who can't travel to Cannes.”

Commenting on the five Nordic projects selected, Mahnert told nordicfilmandtvnews.com: “We're always very happy when projects from the Nordic countries get submitted and selected. Their tone is very specific. They are very dark but always display some dry humour that helps loosen the atmosphere when needed. It's just a perfect balance!”

All films except the Danish film Superposition are shot fully or mostly in English-language, and two of them - Draven, co-produced by Sweden’s Filmgate Films (The Woman in Black, The Whistlers) and Twisted, produced by Anders Winding Refn’s Space Rocket Nation, are still available for world sales.

The Nordic projects in development Draven and Superposition are showcased at Frontières’ ‘Proof of Concept’, while Finland’s The Creeps, The Twin and Denmark’s Twisted are selected for the ‘Buyers Showcase’.

Proof of Concept Section

• DRAVEN (UK, Sweden/Norway/Finland)
  Produced by Stockholm Syndrome Film’s David Liljeblad with Filmgate Films‘ Sean Wheelan, and Grimmfest Films UK’s Simeon Halligan and Rachel Richardson-Jones. Draven is the latest project from Swedish genre directing duo Sonny Laguna and Tommy Wicklund who won Best Feature at Portland Horror Film Festival for Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich (2018).
  
  In their production notes, the co-directors said their main protagonist -the fictional serial killer Draven - will be both rooted in the classic slasher universe, and offer new story twists that will take the viewers “on a horror thrill ride where the tension and strong violence go hand in hand.”
  
  Set in Norway in 1980, the film follows an American scientist who must fight for survival when he discovers a link between the mysterious Northern Lights and ancient evil the Norwegian locals thought long since buried in the ice and snow. “We believe strongly in this project and feel it could be a Scandinavian answer to Jason [Voorhees] from Halloween, which could spawn a small franchise, which is perhaps why US companies are showing interest,” said Sean Wheelan, founder of Sweden’s leading VFX company Filmgate. The project in early development is due to start filming in summer 2022. Wheelan said the film’s producers will be presenting a proof of concept video at Cannes.
• SUPERPOSITION (Denmark)
  Produced by Amalie Lyngbo Quist of Beo Starling.
  National Film School of Denmark’s 2013 graduate Karoline Lyngbye who was assistant director on the TV series Heartless 1, will be making her directorial debut with Superposition, co-written with seasoned writer Mikkel Bak Sørensen (Greyzone, Cutterhead).
  
  The psychological thriller centres on a creative couple and their young son, who leave their urban life in Copenhagen behind, in favour of an isolated forest in Sweden, where they hope to reignite the spark in their relationship and find themselves as individuals. But they soon learn to be careful of what they wish for, as they are forced to fight for their lives against identical copies of themselves.
  
  In the title roles are Mikkel Boe Følsgaard (The Rain, A Perfectly Normal Family) and Marie Bach Hansen (White Sands, The Legacy).
  
  The DKK 8 million (€1m) project is co-financed by DR, with support from the Danish Film Institute’s New Danish Screen, Creative Europe and Scandinavian Film Distribution which will handle the domestic release. TrustNordisk handles sales.
  
  Genre specialist producer Lyngbo Quist said she is looking forward to presenting her film to potential partners in Cannes: “I attended Frontières with Breeder and it was a great starting point for bringing the film out in the world. Superposition is a genre film with a relatable story and a great cast, so I hope Frontières will eventually lead to wide distribution of the film,” she said. The premiere is pencilled for the fall 2022.

Buyers Showcase Section

• THE CREEPS (Finland)
  Produced by Miika J. Norvanto and Timo Puustinen for Black Lion Pictures, Frozen Flame Pictures and Kajawood Studios
  Raven Banner Pictures handles sales.
  The $1.5 million film “is a nostalgic and warm tribute to popcorn movies and series of the 80s and 90s, a Nordic style Gremlins and Critters meets American Pie, National Lampoon’s and Highlander,” told Norvanto to nordicfilmandtvnews.com.
  Seasoned French actor Christopher Lambert (Greystoke, Highlander) has joined the ensemble international cast, that takes in Chris Cavalier (The Best Enemies), Veronica Jarvis, Kheba Touray (Cryptid), Liro Paula (Bordertown), Jarmo Mäkinen (Downshifters) and Matti Paalanen.
  
  Young American student Zach has arrived to the epic vistas of Vuokatti Ski Resort in Finland with his best friend Joe. They are getting ready for Sex, Drugs and Rock’n’Roll to celebrate Zach’s 17th Birthday at the MonsterFest. But some uninvited guests are about to crash the party.
  
  Norvanto said he will unveil footage and ‘cool’ behind the scene images from the film to potential co-financiers. The Creeps is due to premiere at Christmas 2021.
• THE TWIN (Finland)
  Produced by Aleksi Hyvärinen of Don Films.
  The latest genre film by Taneli Mustonen (Bodom) stars Teresa Palmer (Lights Out, Hacksaw Ridge), Steven Cree (MotherFatherSon, Outlander) and Barbara Marten (Sanctuary, Casualty).
  
  The elevated horror film is set in the aftermath of a tragic accident that claimed the life of a twin boy. His parents Rachel and Anthony decide to move to Scandinavia, in a quiet rural area with their surviving son, in the hope of building a new life. What begins as a time of healing soon takes an ominous turn when Rachel begins to unravel the torturous truth about her son and confronts the malicious forces attempting to take hold of him.
  
  The film was pre-sold by Film Constellation to several territories including Benelux (Dutch Filmworks) and CIS (Nashe Kino), while AMC Networks’ genre streamer Shudder has acquired it for North America, U.K., Ireland, Australia/New Zealand. Nordisk Film Distribution will handle the Nordic territories.
  
  The director and producer who will attend Cannes in-person, will introduce a sneak-peek of the film. The premiere is set for 2022.

• TWISTED (Denmark)
  Produced by Lene Børglum for Space Rocket Nation (co-founded with Nicolas Winding Refn) with director Vibeke Muasya (Lost in Africa).
  “The director was inspired by her own upbringing with a paranoid and sometimes psychotic mother,” says Børglum who produced Refn’s Only God Forgives. Muasya’s script won a Special Mention at Sitges Pitchbox 2020. It’s a movie created by women, with girls and women as target audience,” notes the producer.
  
  In the film, the young woman Hanna (Madeleine Masson) seeks independence from her protective mother Silvia (Karen Leigh Sharp), only to be questioning her own sanity when newfound friends die, and her mother suggests Hannah is the cause of their death.
  
  “The latest footage was made under Covid in October 2020 and March 2021, in the Sierra Mountains of Northern California,” said Børglum. Six original songs were composed by New-York-based Alison Clancy.
  
  The low-budget film financed through private investors, received development support from the Danish Film Institute and Creative Europe. Delivery has not been set yet. We haven’t yet chosen a sales agent, despite the huge interest following the Frontières selection,” said Børglum.