Niels Arden Oplev’s Daniel, Mikael Håfström’s Quick, Ari Folman’s The Horse Boy, Rojda Sekersoz’s My Life as a Comedian are among Film i Väst’s upcoming A titles.

The 2018-2019 Film i Väst slate reflects the leading Nordic film fund’s double focus on quality films for a wide audience and festival films.

Peter Possne, Head of Production at the leading Nordic film fund introduced to the press the film team of four films selected in Cannes and five high profile upcoming films:

  • Quick by Mikael Håfström (Evil) brings to the screen Sweden’s biggest legal scandal ever. The film is based on journalist Hannes Råstam’s book Thomas Quick, the making of a Serial Killer, adapted for the screen by Norway’s Erlend Loe. The film tells the extraordinary story of Sweden’s most notorious serial killer who confessed to 25 murders, was convicted of eight of them and is now a free man as it turned out that he lied and didn’t commit the crimes.

    David Dencik who plays Quick said he acquired rights to the book in 1992 and hooked up with producer Helena Danielsson (Brain Academy). “I was fascinated by Thomas Quick, a weirdo with multiple-personality,” he told nordicfilmandtvnews.com. “It was like a candy bag for an actor." 

    But beyond the portrait of Quick, the film explores the fascinating relationship or bromance that develops between him and reporter Hannes Råstam who fought to reveal the truth. It’s also a criticism of Swedish society and the legal system.”

    Håfström who hadn’t made a Swedish film in 15 years, said he was attracted to the material and film team. Jonas Karlsson plays Hannes Råstam and Alba August researcher Jenny Küttin. The film is produced by Brain Academy, in co-production with Film i Väst, Belgium’s Umedia and Nordisk Film who will supervise the local release in the fall 2019. TrustNordisk handles sales. 
  • The Horse Boy by Ari Folman is based on Rupert Isaacson’s best-selling novel. Joel Kinnaman and Léa Seydoux play a couple and their autistic son as they trek on horseback through outer Mongolia in an attempt to treat his condition with shamanic healing. The English-language film will be shot a full month in Sweden, as well as in the UK and Mongolia. Zentropa Sweden is minority co-producer. Gaumont handles world sales. 
  • Daniel directed by Niels Arden Oplev (We Shall Overcome) tells the dramatic story of Danish photographer Daniel Rye who was held hostage by ISIS for 398 days. Anders Thomas Jensen has written the script, based on Puk Damsgård’s best-selling novel Ser du månen, Daniel. Toolbox is producing with support among others from Nordisk Film & TV Fond. Filming starts on October 2018. Nordisk Film handles Scandinavian distribution and TrustNordisk world sales. (see separate story) 
  • My Life as a Comedian by Rojda Sekersöz (Beyond Dreams) is written by Jonas Gardell from his own best-selling novel ‘Growing Up as a Comedian’. The coming of age story set in two time periods –the 1970s and contemporary Sweden-tells of a boy, who uses his comedic talent to try to fit in at school. Decades later, as a grown up man and established comedian, he reconnects with childhood acquaintances and with his past. Swedish top comedian Johan Rheborg who plays Juha adult, says he feels strongly for the role as he experienced bullying as a child. “The film is a universal story about exclusion, still very topical today,” he told nordicfilmandtvnews.com. Filming in Västra Götaland will start in September. The film is produced by Sweden’s Anagram, in co-production with Film i Väst and SF Studios. 
  • The Irish film Sea Fever by Neasa Hardiman is a thriller set in a fishing trawler outside the West coast of Ireland. A marine biologist student (Hermione Corfield) fights for her and the crew’s survival when the ship is infected by an unknown parasite. Ireland’s Fantastic Films is producing with Belgium’s Frakas Productions and Sweden’s Bright Pictures. Epic Films handles sales.

Film i Väst’s four co-productions selected in Cannes are Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s film The Wild Pear Tree in official competition, Las von Trier’s out of competition The House that Jack Built, Ali Abbasi’s Un Certain Regard entry Border and Fugue by Agnieszka Smoczyńska screening at the Critics' Week.