The Danish Oscar committee, made up of representatives from the film industry and the Danish Film Institute, elected Wednesday Thomas Vinterberg's 'Another Round' as Denmark's contender in the International Feature Film category for the 2021 Academy Awards.
'Another Round' was selected from a shortlist of three films. The two additional titles on the list were 'A Perfectly Normal Family' by Malou Reymann and 'Shorta' by the directing duo Anders Ølholm and Frederik Louis Hviid.
Claus Ladegaard, CEO of the Danish Film Institute who chairs the committee, says:
"'Another Round' is an original drama about our desire to feel the rush of life, even when the party is over and the lights come on. Director Thomas Vinterberg and screenwriter Tobias Lindholm take an unblinking look at this universal longing in a story of four men in mid-life experimenting with alcohol to rekindle the fire of their youth. The result is an insightful, tender and entertaining film balancing tragedy with a good dose of humour, featuring a sharp cast led by Mads Mikkelsen. Hitting home with Danish audiences, 'Another Round' has proved to have unique cross-generational appeal. International publicity and festival awards bode well for the film, which will hopefully soon see wide release in Europe and the US.
"The team advancing in the Oscar race has a remarkable track record at the Academy Awards. Notably, producer Sisse Graum Jørgensen is celebrating next year the tenth anniversary of her Oscar win for Susanne Bier’s 'In a Better World'. We look forward to following the competition and the work of seeing 'Another Round' through to the next round."
About Another Round
Thomas Vinterberg's drama about four weary high school teachers testing a theory that a constant level of modest inebriation opens our minds to the world has fared well on the festival circuit despite the global health situation.
Garnered with the Cannes Festival's Official Selection stamp, 'Another Round' enjoyed its in-cinema world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival. Critics praised the film as "compelling" (Screen), a "darkly comic referendum on booze" (IndieWire) and an "appealing ensemble piece" (The Hollywood Reporter), with a good few applauding Mads Mikkelsen's performance.
Awards include the French Art House Cinema Prize (Prix des Cinémas Art et Essai), handed out in collaboration with the Cannes Festival, the Silver Shell for Best Actor to Mikkelsen and co-players Thomas Bo Larsen, Magnus Millang and Lars Ranthe, and finally the main prize at the London Film Festival. 'Another Round' also screened at Rome Film Festival and recently gained four top nominations at the European Film Awards, to be presented in December.
'Another Round' was warmly received in Denmark as it premiered 24 September, and with admissions now reaching 753,000, the film ranks as the film by Vinterberg selling most tickets at the domestic box office.
France was the first country after Denmark to release the film (14 October), and several more countries, including the UK and the US, have scheduled release dates in the coming months.
Strong Oscar team
Thomas Vinterberg wrote the script with Tobias Lindholm, who was also co-author on Vinterberg's Oscar-nominated 'The Hunt'. As director, Lindholm received a nomination for his drama 'A War'.
Kasper Dissing and Sisse Graum Jørgensen from Zentropa are in charge of production. Graum Jørgensen is a prominent profile in recent Oscar history, having produced four of the Danish films that have reached the nomination round, including one win, in the international category: Susanne Bier's 'After the Wedding', Bier's 2011 Oscar winner 'In a Better World', Nikolaj Arcel's 'A Royal Affair' and Thomas Vinterberg's 'The Hunt'.
Danish Oscar Committee
Made up of representatives from film associations and guilds, the Danish Oscar Submitting Committee consists of:
Chairman Claus Ladegaard (CEO, Danish Film Institute), Noemi Ferrer (Danish Producers), Ali Abbasi (Danish Directors), Mette Heeno (Danish Screenwriters), Jan Weincke (Danish Cinematographers), Nanna Frank Rasmussen (Danish Film Critics), Søren Søndergaard (Danish Cinema Owners) and Marianne Moritzen (Head of Fiction, Danish Film Institute).
Oscars rules and dates
Each country may submit one film for nomination in the International Feature Film category. Last year, a total of 92 titles were approved for submission.
Due to the health crisis, the Academy has extended the period, during which a film must have its local premiere, by three months. To be eligible in the International Feature Film category, a film's release date must be no earlier than 1 October 2019 and no later than 31 December 2020.
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly non-English dialogue track.
The submission deadline is 1 December (formerly 1 October). The Academy will be announcing all shortlists on 9 February, including the ten films that have a chance to become one of the five nominees in the International Feature Film category.
All Oscar nominations will be announced on 15 March. The 93. Oscars take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on 25 April 2021.
10 years of Danish films and the Oscars
Below is an overview of the last ten years of Danish Oscar entries in the international feature film category by awards ceremony year:
2020 Queen of Hearts / May el-Toukhy
2019 The Guilty / Gustav Möller / Oscar shortlist
2018 You Disappear / Peter Schønau Fog
2017 Land of Mine / Martin Zandvliet / Oscar nomination
2016 A War / Tobias Lindholm / Oscar nomination
2015 Sorrow and Joy / Nils Malmros
2014 The Hunt / Thomas Vinterberg / Oscar nomination
2013 A Royal Affair / Nikolaj Arcel / Oscar nomination
2012 Superclásico / Ole Christian Madsen / Oscar shortlist
2011 In a Better World / Susanne Bier / Oscar winner
Three Danish films have won an Oscar in the international feature film category: Susanne Bier's 'In a Better World' in 2011, Bille August's 'Pelle the Conqueror' in 1989 and Gabriel Axel's 'Babette's Feast' in 1988.
See full list of nominations and awards for Danish films on our Oscar page.
