Cinema of Denmark
has been producing films since 1897 and since the 1980s has maintained a steady stream of product due largely to funding by the state-supported Danish Film Institute. Historically, Danish films have been noted for their realism, religious and moral themes, sexual frankness and technical innovation.
The Danish filmmaker Carl Theodor Dreyer is considered amongst the greatest directors in the history of cinema. Other Danish filmmakers of note include Benjamin Christensen, who outside his native country directed several horror classics including Häxan and Seven Footprints to Satan ; Erik Balling, the creator of the popular Olsen-banden films; Gabriel Axel, an Oscar-winner for Babette's Feast in 1987; and Bille August, the Oscar, Palme d'Or and Golden Globe-winner for Pelle the Conqueror in 1988.
In 1995, Danish filmmakers Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg founded the avant-garde Dogme 95 film movement, promoting a manifesto that emphasised the traditional values of story, acting, and theme; simultaneously denouncing the use of elaborate special effects or post-production. It was supposedly created as an attempt to "take back power for the directors as artists" as opposed to the production company. Although few of their films have rigidly adhered to the movement's rules, many of their works have received critical acclaim and multiple awards. von Trier's Dancer in the Dark won the Palme d'Or, while Vinterberg's Another Round won the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. Renowned Danish actor Mads Mikkelsen won the Cannes Film Festival Award for Best Actor for his performance in Vinterberg's The Hunt.
Additionally, modern-day directors from Denmark who have enjoyed both domestic and international successess include Nicolas Winding Refn, Susanne Bier, Lone Scherfig and Anders Thomas Jensen.
History
Beginnings
Danish cinema pioneer Peter Elfelt, a photographer, was the first Dane to make a film. Between the years of 1896 and 1912, he produced around 200 documentary films on life in Denmark. His first film was Kørsel med Grønlandske Hunde. Furthermore, he produced the first Danish feature film: Henrettelsen. The first film show in Denmark took place in the Panorama cinema on the Town Hall square in Copenhagen, in June 1896. However, the selection of films had been made and produced abroad.The Golden Age
In 1906, cinema owner Ole Olsen founded the first Danish film-making company, Nordisk Films Kompagni. It gained most of its income from the export market of short films. Two of Olsen's silent stars were Valdemar Psilander and Else Frölich, who often worked together. Not until 1909 were other film-producing companies established. In 1910 the number had reached ten. This period is now known as the Golden Age of Danish Cinema. In the spring of 1910, Nordisk Films Kompagni changed its policy of producing only short films and began making feature films. This was largely inspired by the Århus Fotorama company's Den hvide Slavehandel, which was the first multi-reel Danish film lasting more than 30 minutes.With the increasing length of films, there was a growing artistic awareness, which is evident in Afgrunden. This film launched the career of Asta Nielsen, who soon became Europe's first great female film star. The film was an erotic melodrama, which soon became the preferred genre in early Danish cinema. In 1911, with director August Blom as the new head of production, Nordisk Film was the first of the major European companies to devote itself entirely to full-length feature films. These films were sold abroad profitably because the technical and photographic quality impressed audiences. Yet, when exporting the films, the erotic elements needed to be toned down in order not to offend the working class audiences. In 1913, Nordisk released the first full-length feature movie, Atlantis directed by Blom.
After 1913, Danish cinema began to lose its leading foothold in the film industry, with foreign companies having intensified competition in the production of feature-length films. Danish cinema had also begun to suffer from a lack of imagination and a willingness to take creative risks on the part of Danish producers. Independent producer Benjamin Christensen had great success with the spy film Det hemmelighedsfulde X and the crime drama Hævnens Nat, both of which are major works in the history of the Danish cinema; he would later direct several films in Sweden and Hollywood.
1920s through 1940s
During World War I, the USA became the leading nation in film production and Danish exports decreased. In the years following the war, Dreyer made an appearance as director at Nordisk Film with the drama Præsidenten, followed by the ambitious Blade af Satans Bog, inspired by the American director D. W. Griffith's Intolerance in both technique and theme. However, Dreyer, as well as Benjamin Christensen, were not permanently connected to the influential Danish film industries and remained loners. As a whole, Danish film in the 1920s was on the decline in spite of the filmmakers' better technical skills. Of most interest at this time were perhaps the so-called Dickens movies directed by the very able A. W. Sandberg. At one point Denmark again enjoyed some international reputation, by the many farces of the vagabond duo Fyrtaarnet og Bivognen, who were Scandinavian predecessors of Laurel and Hardy. They were introduced by Palladium, the rival of Nordisk Film. Despite these resurgences, at the end of the decade the Danish film industry was on its heels.In 1929, Nordisk Film Kompagni was established as a sound film company. The Pastor of Vejlby reinforced the Nordisk's dominance in the Danish market. The 1930s were dominated by many successes with light comedies. The so-called "folkekomedie" genre was born, with Barken Margrethe an important early example. The Depression and the economic conditions of the film companies prevented more serious film business, and the victory of the sound movie automatically set greater limits on the international possibilities of Danish film. Many popular stars like Marguerite Viby, Ib Schønberg and Peter Malberg had breakthroughs but in spite of many economic successes no further development of the media was seen.
Between 1940 and 1945, the German occupation of Denmark during World War II pushed the film industry toward more serious subject matter. The darker tone during these years paralleled the rise of film noir in Hollywood. Bodil Ipsen made her directorial mark with 1942's Afsporet, the first Danish film noir, and continued with the psychological thriller Melody of Murder. The standard of the comedy was also lifted, especially by the witty, elegant movies of Johan Jacobsen, a Danish pupil of Ernst Lubitsch. After the war ended, there was a movement toward realism and social criticism, particularly noted in films directed by Ole Palsbo. Soon, however, Denmark's film industry returned to making the light sentimental comedies and uncomplicated regionalist movies that were popular with Danish filmgoers.
1950s to 1970s
A large stream of family comedies and class-conscious folk comedies were produced from the 1950s to late 1970s/early 1980s. Here a lot of Danish stars were born, such as Dirch Passer, Ove Sprogøe and director Erik Balling. Important films of this period include De røde heste, Far til fire, Kispus, Støv på hjernen, Sommer i Tyrol, Passer passer piger, SS Martha, the Olsen-banden-series and Erik Balling's classic TV-sitcom Huset på Christianshavn.In the sixties, Danish cinema became gradually more erotic, with films such as , Sytten, Jeg – en kvinde and Uden en trævl, several of which made a huge international impression. As a natural progression, in 1969 Denmark became the first country to completely legalize pornography. In the 1970s, a large percentage of all Danish films were sexually oriented, and many mainstream-features with mainstream-actors included sequences with either softcore- or hardcore-pornography, most notably Mazurka på sengekanten and I Jomfruens tegn along with their many respective sequels, forming the eight Bedside-films and six Zodiac-films.
In 1972, the Danish Film Institute was founded to provide state subsidies for hand-picked films. It allocated public funding for feature films based on their artistic merit rather than commercial appeal—with an emphasis on those films which expressed Danish culture and identity. The DFI reinvigorated the financial viability of the sagging Danish film industry, but later was criticized for becoming too conservative and nationalistic in defining which films represented Danish identity. In one example, Lars von Trier's 1984 debut feature The Element of Crime struggled to receive funds because it was radically different from the typical Danish film—and, yet, received international acclaim upon release. In response, the Ministry of Culture in 1989 vastly broadened the DFI's definition of "Danish film" to include any work which contributed to Danish film culture. This allowed state funding of films with greater global appeal and helped foster the international success of a new wave of Danish filmmakers.
With La' os være , independent producer Steen Herdel launched a wave of successful teenage-dramas, including Måske ku' vi , Du er ikke alene , Mig og Charly and Vil du se min smukke navle? , all produced by Steen Herdel.
A notable TV series, Matador, ran from 1978 to 1982, and has remained a national favourite. It was directed by Erik Balling.
The 1980s
Since the start of the 1980s, the Danish film industry has been completely dependent on state funding through Det Danske Filminstitut. A project usually does not get made unless the script, director and cast etc. has been approved by the appointed representatives of the Danish Film Institute. This means that Danish filmmaking is essentially controlled by the state.In 1983, Lars von Trier graduated from Den Danske Filmskole and received international attention with films such as Forbrydelsens element and Epidemic. His strange, innovative ideas were fiercely resisted by Det Danske Filminstitut and drew very small local audiences, but were embraced by the Cannes Film Festival, where his films were included in the official selections and took home awards.
Released in 1987 was the gay teenage drama Venner for altid, directed by Stefan Henszelman. It won the 1988 Audience Award as Best Feature at the San Francisco International Lesbian & Gay Film Festival.
The Danish film industry got a major boost in the late 1980s when the movie Babettes Gæstebud, directed by Gabriel Axel, won an Academy Award for Best Foreign Film in 1987, and next year the Best Foreign Film award went to Pelle Erobreren, directed by Bille August.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, more talented directors started graduating from the National Film School of Denmark, such as Thomas Vinterberg, Per Fly and Ole Christian Madsen.
Also in the late 1980s, Danish cinematographer Mikael Salomon ended a long career in Danish cinema to become one of Hollywood's most celebrated DPs, later establishing himself as a successful, Emmy Award-winning television director.