Swedish films at Sundance Film Festival 2023

Swedish films at Sundance Film Festival (January 19-29)

^{© Scott Jayro}

World Cinema Documentary Competition – And the King Said, What a Fantastic Machine!

Filmmakers Axel Danielson & Maximilien Van Aertryck (Ten Meter Tower, Jobs For All!) widen their lens to measure the depth of humanity’s  infatuation with framing the world through the camera; chronicling how we went from capturing the image of a backyard to a multi-billion-euro content industry in just 200 years.

Directed by Axel Danielson, Maximilien Van Aertryck
Produced by Plattform Produktion / Axel Danielson, Maximilien Van Aertryck, with support from the Swedish Film Institute
Sales Heretic 

^{© Gabriel Gabriel Garble} 

Short Film Program – Well Wishes My Love, Your Love

Newly orphaned and freshly wounded from a loss, a boy lends his companion a prosthetic arm for the day. The companion records the limb being exposed to textures and materials. What will become of the limb and the video recordings?

Directed by Gabriel Gabriel Garble
Produced by Gabriel Gabriel Garble
Sales Jonathan Anstett

Swedish Co-productions 

^{© Laurynas Bareisa}

World Dramatic Competition - Slow (LT/ES/SE)

Contemporary dancer Elena meets Dovydas when he is assigned to interpret via sign language in a class she is teaching to deaf youth. Their connection is immediate, kinetic, and frictionless. As they gravitate toward each other, resisting the forces and interventions of their separate daily lives, their bond deepens from platonic to romantic. When Dovydas discloses his asexuality, the couple commit themselves to honoring their individual needs in tandem. As they continue to weave more tightly together, they struggle to negotiate sacrifice and compromise and are forced to discover the edges of their generosity toward the other.

Directed by Marija Kavtaradze
Swedish co-producers Garagefilm / Anna-Maria Kantarius, with support from the Swedish Film Institute 
Sales Totem Films

^{© Teorema}

World Dramatic Competition - Heroico (ME/SE)

Eighteen-year-old Luis (Santiago Sandoval Carbajal) enlists as an infantry cadet in the Heroic Military College in the hopes of becoming an officer and supporting his struggling family. Tucked away in the mountains and surrounded by statues honoring Aztec gods, the school is constructed from giant slabs of stone and ruled by even more rigid rules of conduct. The curriculum combines mundane military training with rituals of abuse and humiliation. When Luis catches the eye of sadistic Sergeant Sierra, he learns new lessons in cruelty and extracurricular criminality.

Directed by David Zonana
Swedish co-producer Common Ground Pictures, Film i Väst 
Sales Wild Bunch International

More Swedish film at Sundance 

^{© Biscuit Filmworks / Radioaktivefilm} 

Midnight Short Film Program - Claudio's Song (UK)

A young man faces the wrath of criminals targeting people who are famous on the internet. Things take an unexpected turn when their scheme fails.

Directed by Andreas Nilsson (SE)
Composer Hans Appelqvist (SE)