Scandinavian Cinema

Scandinavian Cinema, historical development of the cinema in the Scandinavian countries.

The world's oldest production company, Nordisk Films Kompagni, founded in Copenhagen in 1906, came to prominence in the early 1910s through innovation in multiple-reel dramas, quality cinematography, and high production values. Following the example of Kosmorama (who produced The Abyss in 1910, and made Asta Nielsen an international star), Nordisk stimulated a demand for sensational films and erotic melodrama. Through international sales and cinema ownership in Germany, the company achieved a dominant position within the European film economy. Blacklisted however, by the allied forces and required to sell its German interests to UFA in 1917, Nordisk suffered economic decline which the introduction of Carl Theodor Dreyer to film directing in 1919 did little to reverse. Danish production in the silent period is best represented in the work of Benjamin Christensen (who directed The Mysterious X, 1913, and Night of Revenge, in 1915, for Dansk Biografkompagni) and Vilhelm Glückstadt, who directed at Filmfabrikken Danmark. The international reputation of Swedish film was advanced by Victor Sjöström and Mauritz Stiller, who demonstrated a flair for adapting sophisticated comedy (Erotikon, 1920) and the novels of Selma Lagerlöf (Sir Arne's Treasure, 1919; Gunnar Hede's Saga, 1922). Stiller's adaptation of Gösta Berling's Saga (1924) brought Greta Garbo to international attention. Specializing in genre films, Georg af Klercker used deep-focus cinematography to striking effect in The Prisoner of Karlsten's Fortress (1916). In Finland and Norway, production in the silent era served a largely domestic market.

With the introduction of sound, film production became focused on relatively buoyant national markets. In Sweden, Ingrid Bergman rose to fame in Gustaf Molander's Intermezzo (1936); in Denmark, Palladium produced a series of popular musical comedies featuring Marguerite Viby. Import restrictions during World War II stimulated national productions, which concentrated on escapist entertainment and the production of documentary film. The return of Alf Sjöberg, however, to Swedish production marked the dawning of a cinema which, in the work of Ingmar Bergman, began to address the anxieties of a nation that had been neutral during the war. In post-war Denmark, production inevitably celebrated a heroic view of the resistance movement, although a film such as Your Freedom is at Stake, (Theodor Christensen, 1946) was strongly critical of the way politicians had behaved during the occupation. In Finland, national production was represented in the films of Nyrki Tapiovaara and Edvin Laine, and in Norway by Tancred Ibsen.

Popular cinema during the 1950s remained by and large escapist. During the 1960s, however, a new generation of film-makers, influenced by the French New Wave (see French Cinema), brought change to Scandinavian film. Directors such as Palle Kjaerulff-Schmidt demonstrated a more improvisational style of film-making in Weekend (1962), while Henning Carlsen and Theodor Christensen brought new-found political commitment to their work. A generation of film-makers, capitalizing on changes in funding and the creation of film schools in Sweden and Denmark, brought new energy to production. In Sweden, Bo Widerberg, Vilgot Sjöman, Jan Troell, and Jonas Cornell achieved international prominence, while in Finland and Norway, Risto Jarva, Mikko Niskanen, Jörn Donner, and Anja Breien attracted international recognition. Troell's filming of The Emigrants (1971) and Unto a Good Land (1972) made Liv Ullmann an international star.

Although the 1980s brought a more pragmatic approach to funding, Scandinavian co-productions have since maintained an international presence through the work of Andrey Tarkovsky (The Sacrifice, 1986), Gabriel Axel (Babette's Feast, 1987), Bille August (Pelle the Conqueror, 1987), Aki Kaurismäki (Leningrad Cowboys Go America, 1989), Lars von Trier (Breaking the Waves, 1996; Dancer in the Dark, 2000), and Liv Ullmann (Faithless, 2001). Von Trier (The Idiots, 1998), along with Thomas Vinterberg (Festen, 1998; The Celebration), was at the forefront of the Dogme 95 movement, which led to a surge of international interest in Danish cinema in the late 1990s. Films produced under the Dogme banner were to be shot handheld, using only ambient light, and without recourse to superficial action (murders, weapons, etc.); the director was to be uncredited. Partly tongue-in-cheek, the group’s manifesto was nevertheless a serious challenge to the cinema’s growing dependency on illusion and technology.