20/06/2007

Ole Bornedal’s Danish family thriller The Substitute [+see also:
trailer
film profile] enjoyed a very strong opening weekend on home turf, taking second place at the local box office and promising healthy returns for distributor SF Film/Filmcompagniet with summer break only a few days away in Denmark.

As of yesterday at lunchtime, the film had garnered 37,918 admissions from 61 screens, including 10 in the Danish capital. “We are very satisfied with opening figures that are comparable to those of any top title opening during a holiday period….although this is not a holiday period in Denmark,” said Sune L. Thomsen, film and distribution manager for SF Film Denmark.

The Substitute is second only to Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, though its screen average is higher, at around €4,576 against €3,000 for the Johnny Depp vehicle. SF Film/Filmkompagniet put together a promotional and advertising campaign focused on television, outdoors and the Internet. Prior to the release, the cast (made up mostly of children) toured 21 of Denmark’s biggest cities where previews were held to spread word-of-mouth. The Thura Film production was launched at the Cannes market last May by Nordisk Film International Sales and deals were closed with France (Zylo), Turkey (D Productions), Bulgaria (Pro Films), Estonia (Estin Film), Lithuania (Skalvilja Cinema) and Taiwan (Hwa-Jaan Films).

Another Danish film released by SF Film/Filmcompagniet is doing very well on Danish screens at number eight in the local Top 10 after eight weeks: Peter Schønau Fog’s directorial debut and award-winning film The Art of Crying [+see also:
trailer
film profile].

“This film has been an excellent surprise for us because it was shot in a local dialect so 50 out of a total 60 prints had to be subtitled in Denmark,” said Thomsen. So far, it has clocked 208,264 admissions in Denmark and is still playing on 32 screens.