Major changes were expected to occur at senior positions within Svensk Filmindustri following the appointment last September of the new CEO Jonas Fors and the merger with the leading production house Tre Vänner. This week the Bonnier-owned Scandinavian film group announced the departure of veteran producer Peter Possne from SF’s brand Sonet Film and the promotion of its Head of Production Charlotta Denward (pictured) to the newly created job of Nordic Head of Production.
The experienced Charlotta Denward who was head of the Swedish Film Institute’s production and Promotion department before joining SF, will oversee the group’s overall Nordic production activities from her Stockholm office. As such, she will be responsible for all in-house film, TV and web content produced by SF, Tre Vänner and for all co-productions with independent producers in Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway. ”Co-productions are very important for us. To work with different production companies and producers provides us with a range of possibilities and diversity which we do not possess in-house. In addition, we will be able to intensify the cooperation between the local Nordic territories, which is very positive. Not the least from a creative point of view,” said Denward.
SF is currently enjoying the box office success of the Swedish biopic Waltz for Monica (StellaNova Film), this year’s top grossing title in Sweden with 505,000 admissions, the kids franchise Jerrymaya’s Detective Agency-von Brom’s Secret (206,163 admissions) and Michael Persbrandt’s vehicle Nobody Owns Me (Filmlance International), number three at the Swedish Top ten with over 172,000 admissions in four weeks. Upcoming Swedish releases include Filmlance International’s children’s book adaptations Emil & Ida in Lönnerberga and Annabelle’s Spectacularities, Colin Nutley’s comedy drama Medicin co-produced with Sweetwater, and Heaven and Earth, a sequel to the 2004 hit As it is in Heaven, coproduced with GF Studios.
In Norway SF is co-producing with part-owned Filmkameratene the film Burning, directorial debut of Troll Hunter cinematographer Hallvard Bræn, and the TV drama The Heavy Water War. Another high profile TV series is co-produced with Denmark’s Miso Film: Ole Bornedal’s war epic and love story 1864, set to air on DR1 in the autumn 2014.
Tre Vänner’s upcoming releases include the animation film Bamse and the City of Thieves, The Boy with the Golden Boy by Ella Lemhagen and the heist film Mastermind.
Meanwhile SF’s in-house production brand Sonet Film will lose its creator Peter Possne who has decided to leave the company he founded in 1984. One of Sweden’s most influential film professionals, Possne has been associated to over 70 Swedish films during his career such as As it is in Heaven, Sebbe, Patrick Age 1.5, Simple Simon and The Hypnotist. He told nordiskfilmogtvfond he will continue to work in film at the highest level.