28/02/2011

Danish director Susanne Bier’s In a Better World [+see also:
trailer
film profile] triumphed last night, scooping the prestigious Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film after having won the Golden Globe in the same category last month.

It makes the first time in 20 years that a Danish film was awarded the golden statuette from the Hollywood Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science. The previous Danish winners were Gabriel Axel’s Babette’s Feast (1988) and Bille August’s Pelle the Conqueror (1989).

Bier’s drama was co-written with Anders Thomas Jensen, her collaborator on After the Wedding [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Sisse Graum Jørgensen
interview: Susanne Bier
film profile], which was nominated for the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar in 2007.

In a Better World was the third biggest domestic hit of 2010 in Denmark with over 415,000 admissions. Surprisingly, it was not nominated for a Best Film Robert, the country’s top film prize, by the Danish Film Academy, although Trine Dyrholm won the Best Actress award for her performance.

In a Better world was produced by Sisse Graum Jørgensen for Zentropa. The film has been sold around the world by TrustNordisk, including to Germany (Universum), France (Equation), Spain (Golem), Benelux (Cinéart) and Poland (Vivarto). Sony Pictures Classics will release it in the US in April.