29/04/2014 - Gunnar Vikene’s new comedy-drama about the kidnapping of IKEA’s founder will be presented to buyers for the first time at Cannes

Danish international sales agency TrustNordisk has picked up Norwegian director Gunnar Vikene’s comedy-drama Here Is Harold [+see also:
trailer
interview: Gunnar Vikene
film profile], which will be screened to buyers for the first time at the upcoming Cannes International Film Festival (14-25 May).

Norwegian actor Bjørn Sundquist plays the lead as Harold, who has successfully been running Lunde Furniture for 40 years with his wife; but it all comes to an end when IKEA decides to open a superstore next to his small shop. With his professional pride under attack, he arms himself with a pistol, gets into his old Saab and sets off for Almhult, Sweden, to kidnap IKEA’s founder, Ingvar Kamprad. However, Kamprad is actually quite happy to be kidnapped. 

Scripted by Vikene from a novel by Norwegian author Frode Grytten, Here Is Harold co-stars Swedish actor Björn Granath as Kamprad, adding Fanny Ketter, Vidar Magnussen and Grethe Selius to the cast. It was produced by Maria Ekerhovd and executive-produced by Axel Helgeland for Norway’s Mer Film, Lizette Jonjic and Daniel Andersson for Sweden’s Migma Film, Filmpool Nord and Fuzz.

Swedish major Svensk Filmindustri will handle Scandinavian distribution from October; Vikene has three previous features to his credit, most recently Vegas [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (2009), which garnered him several festival awards and an Amanda – Norway's national film prize – for Best Original Screenplay.

Also on TrustNordisk’s slate for Cannes is Danish director Kristian Levring’s western The Salvation [+see also:
trailer
interview: Kristian Levring
film profile], selected for a Midnight Screening out of competition in the official festival programme. Scripted by Oscar-winning Danish author Anders Thomas Jensen, it sees Mads Mikkelsen heading up an international, all-star cast including Eva Green, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Mikael Persbrandt, Eric Cantona and Jonathan Pryce.

Even before business has begun on the Côte d’Azur, the Sisse Graum Jørgensen production for Zentropa Entertainments, with Spier Films (South Africa) and Forward Films (UK), has already been sold to French distributors Jour2Fête/Chrysalis Films, Greek distributor Hollywood Entertainment and Estonian distributor Estin Film. Danish major Nordisk Film will be in charge of Scandinavian releasing, with a local premiere scheduled for 2 October.