Press
release22.10.2004
Contemporary Danish
cinema is the "oddest and most intriguing of beasts: both avant-garde and
traditional, commercially viable yet artistically challenging" proclaims
film critic Steve Gravestock in his introduction to the film programme of
SuperDanish, an innovative cultural event unearthing a vast array of
Danish art and artists at the Harbourfront Centre in Toronto.
The SuperDanish film
programme (22 October - 4 November) is a collaboration between the
Cinematheque Ontario and the Danish Film Institute (DFI). Canadians will
have the opportunity to see works from directors: Jørgen Leth, Lars von
Trier, Bille August, Anders Thomas Jensen, Ole Christian Madsen, Søren
Kragh-Jacobsen, Susanne Bier and Lotte Svendsen.
The programme places
special emphasis on the works of Jørgen Leth, whose mixture of documentary
and essay forms inspired a generation of young cineastes. Jørgen Leth will
be present for an on-stage interview on Saturday 23 October, prior to the
second screening of "The Five Obstructions", directed by Leth himself and
Lars von Trier.
In the beginning of
October SuperDanish launched "Danish Kids", a film event arranged in
collaboration with the Centre for Children & Youth Film at the DFI.
The event included screenings and a seminar; the film programme consisted
of the cream of Danish films for children and youth over the last decade,
both short films and features. The seminar included an on-stage
presentation by two of the three directors of the teen-film "Terkel in
Trouble", Thorbjørn Christoffersen and Kresten Vestbjerg, and an
introduction to filmmaking for children in Denmark by DFI's Head of Centre
for Children & Youth Film, Charlotte Giese.
The seminar attracted a
small group of hard-core Canadian professionals who were interested in
summing up the main characteristics of an indigenous film culture far from
their own, and were especially interested in Denmark's legislation for
children and youth film, in the cutting edge quality found in Danish
children's films, and the ability of filmmakers to create stories from a
child's perspective.
For further
information
SuperDanish film
programme www.harbourfrontcentre.com/superdanish/film.php
Danish Film
Institute (DFI)Charlotte Giese: +45 3374 3516, charlotg@dfi.dkLizette Gram: +45
2482 3758, lizetteg@dfi.dkAnne
Marie Kürstein: +45 3374 3609, kurstein@dfi.dkVicki Synnott: +45
3374 3438, vickis@dfi.dk