Ben Hamilton
June 21st, 2018

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Susanne Bier will take this chance to make a difference for women and minorities (photo: Hasse Ferrold)

Susanne Bier has successfully applied to become one of the three film director representatives on the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 51-member Board of Governors.

Persuaded by all-time greats
She will sit alongside fellow representatives Steven Spielberg and Michael Mann, who actually mailed Bier to persuade her to apply.

Some 17 trades in the film industry have three representatives each on the board.

Promoting work by women and minorities
Bier will initially sit on the board for three years, and she has already said she will use the opportunity to promote the work of women and minorities – both in the industry and in general.

Bier, whose film ‘Hævnen’ won the 2011 Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, has been busy recently working on a TV series about the life of Karen Blixen, as well as a Netflix movie starring Sandra Bullock.

Geranium hanging tough in world’s top 20
Geranium has again been named the 19th best restaurant in the world on The World’s 50 Best Restaurants list. Geranium has earned three Michelin stars since opening at Parken in 2007, but has consistently been left in Noma’s shadow on a list that the industry tends to concur is the most prestigious. Nevertheless, Noma’s new restaurant failed to make the top 100 – understandably perhaps, given that it only reopened in February. Topping the list this year was Italian restaurant Osteria Francescana, heading a top ten that included three Spanish, two French and two Peruvian establishments. Meanwhile, the Nørrebro-based restaurant Rela fell from 39th to 71st.

Danish-based Swedish director Gustav Möller reaping the plaudits
The plaudits are raining down on the Swedish film director Gustav Möller, 29, following the release of his debut film ‘Den skyldige’ (‘The Guilty’) last week, which tells the story of a kidnapping from the perspective of the Danish police alarm centre operative trying to help the victim. Möller moved to Denmark ten years ago to study film. Earlier this year, ‘Den skyldige’ won the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival.

US version of Skam fails to inspire the same kind of following
SKAM Austin, an American version of the Norwegian social media TV series ‘Skam’, has not been as successful as the producers would have liked. While episode 1 attracted 12.6 million views on the show’s Facebook page, numbers plummeted to 792,800 by episode 5. The idea of the show is that the TV episodes only make up one component – others are provided by following the characters on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram. Critics note that the US version is too similar to the Norwegian original.

Eurovision film announced, but can it top MGP Missionen?
The 2013 Danish film ‘MGP Missionen’ climaxed at MGP Junior, the Danish heat of the junior Eurovision Song Contest, and now Netflix has announced plans to make a film about the senior version. Will Ferrell looks set to star and take charge of the manuscript. Some viewers might remember that Ferrell, whose wife is Swedish actress Viveca Paulin, was backstage in Lisbon at the finals of the 2018 edition. A previous attempt to make a movie about Eurovision, a project that apparently involved Borat star Sacha Baron Cohen, was shelved after three years of planning in 2010.

Denmark at the back of Disney’s queue
Denmark tends to get the new American blockbusters at the same time as the States and the rest of the world – unless it is a Pixar or Disney film, it seems. The keenly-anticipated ‘The Incredibles 2’ won’t make it to Danish cinemas until August 30 – over two months after its US premiere. Denmark is apparently a category 5 territory for the release – so extremely low priority. Pixar film ‘Coco’ was similarly delayed by two months last year. Disney has defended its decision, stating that it chooses the most advantageous release dates in local markets based on “family-specific seasonal habits”.

Monte Carlo acting award for Danish star of hostage drama
Johannes Lassen has won the ‘Best Actor in a Television Drama Series’ top prize at Festival de Télévision de Monte-Carlo – the first Danish winner since 2014 – for his role in ‘Gidseltagningen’ (‘Below the Surface’), a series about a hostage situation on the Copenhagen Metro. Kim Bodnia won the same award in 2014 for ‘Broen’ (‘The Bridge’).

Graduate a big name after selling vase to Noma
Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts graduate Frederik Nystrup-Larsen has suddenly become a household name in Denmark after selling a vase to Noma. The ornament is named ‘Mater’ because he originally made it for his dear old ma. According to his website, he will have a solo exhibition in September.

No pyrotechnics at this year’s Copenhell
The heavy metal festival Copenhell, which started at Refshaleøen in Copenhagen yesterday, has banned onstage pyrotechnics due to the drought-like conditions in Denmark presently, which have led to over two-thirds of the country’s municipalities introducing bans on open fires.

Mercury the inspiration, not Messi!
Rising star Rasmus Theodor, 19, would appear to have confirmed the inspiration behind Barselona, the name of the successful pop duo he forms with Rud Aslak, 18. And it is not Lionel Messi. “Freddie Mercury was fucking cool and so carefree and flamboyant,” he told DR about the singer who performed a duet with opera singer Montserrat Caballé entitled ‘Barcelona’ in 1987 (see video below). “He sang in a crazy fashion and moved wildly on stage. And he was a style icon.”