Lars von Trier is a Danish film director and screenwriter with a prolific and controversial career spanning almost four decades. His work is known for its genre and technical innovation; confrontational examination of existential, social, and political issues; and his treatment of subjects such as mercy, sacrifice, and mental health.
The Element of Crime is a 1984 neo-noir crime art film co-written and directed by Lars von Trier. It is the first feature film directed by Trier and the first installment of the director's Europa trilogy – succeeded by Epidemic (1987) and Europa (1991).
Breaking the Waves is a 1996 drama film directed and co-written by Lars von Trier and starring Emily Watson. Set in the Scottish Highlands in the early 1970s, it is about an unusual young woman and of the love she has for her husband, who asks her to have sex with other men when he becomes immobilized from a work accident. The film is an international co-production led by von Trier's Danish company Zentropa. It is the first film in Trier's Golden Heart Trilogy which also includes The Idiots (1998) and Dancer in the Dark (2000).
Europa is a 1991 political drama art film directed by Lars von Trier. It is von Trier's third theatrical feature film and the final film in his Europa trilogy following The Element of Crime (1984) and Epidemic (1987).
Epidemic is a 1987 Danish horror art film directed by Lars von Trier; it is the second installment of Trier's Europa trilogy, following The Element of Crime (1984) and succeeded by Europa (1991).
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 Europa trilogy is a film trilogy written and directed by Lars von Trier, comprising his three feature films The Element of Crime (1984), Epidemic (1987) and Europa (1991). The films are not a narrative trilogy, but rather are linked by common themes and stylistic explorations. The overarching subject of the trilogy may be taken to be the social crises and traumas of Europe in the future. Each of the three films follows a character whose idealistic actions ultimately perpetuate the very problem he seeks to solve. Von Trier's later USA - Land of Opportunities Trilogy also deals with both apparent social collapse, and the ill-effects of the interventions of idealistic individuals. The trilogy also experiments with film noir conventions, and explores hypnosis and the relationship between reality and unreality.
Shari Roman is an American artist, author, screenwriter and director.
Zentropa, or Zentropa Entertainments, is a Danish film company started in 1992 by director Lars von Trier and producer Peter Aalbæk Jensen. Zentropa is named from the train company Zentropa in the film Europa (1991), which started the collaboration between Lars von Trier and Peter Aalbæk Jensen.
Puzzy Power is a Danish film company started in 1997 as a subsidiary to Lars von Trier's company Zentropa, with the goal of producing hardcore pornographic films for women. It is the only time ever a mainstream film company has openly produced hardcore pornographic films.
Filmbyen is a film studio complex located in Hvidovre just outside Copenhagen, Denmark.
Antichrist is a 2009 English-language Danish experimental erotic psychological horror film written and directed by Lars von Trier and starring Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg. It tells the story of a couple who, after the death of their child, retreat to a cabin in the woods where the man experiences strange visions and the woman manifests increasingly violent sexual behaviour and sadomasochism. The narrative is divided into a prologue, four chapters and an epilogue.
Dogme 95 was a filmmaking movement started in 1995 by the Danish directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, who created the "Dogme 95 Manifesto" and the "Vows of Chastity". These were rules to create films based on the traditional values of story, acting, and theme, and excluding the use of elaborate special effects or technology. It was supposedly created as an attempt to "take back power for the director as artist", as opposed to the studio. They were later joined by fellow Danish directors Kristian Levring and Søren Kragh-Jacobsen, forming the Dogme 95 Collective or the Dogme Brethren. Dogme is the Danish word for dogma.
Melancholia is a 2011 science fiction drama film written and directed by Lars von Trier and starring Kirsten Dunst, Charlotte Gainsbourg, and Kiefer Sutherland, with Alexander Skarsgård, Brady Corbet, Cameron Spurr, Charlotte Rampling, Jesper Christensen, John Hurt, Stellan Skarsgård, and Udo Kier in supporting roles. The film's story revolves around two sisters, one of whom is preparing to marry just before a rogue planet is about to collide with Earth.
Dimension is a short film written and directed by Lars von Trier, released in 2010. The film was shot from 1991 to 1997. The original intention was to continue production in three-minute segments every year for a period of 33 years for a final release in 2024. However, von Trier lost interest in the project and it was shelved. The short film consists of the completed footage at the time the film was abandoned.
Automavision is a cinematic technique invented by Danish director Lars von Trier.
Anders Refn is a Danish film editor and director.
Memfis Film AB also known as Memfis Filmproduktion AB and AB Memfis Film & Television, is a Swedish film production company. Founded by Lars Jönsson in 1989, Memfis is one of few comparatively new production units that has shown staying power and played a continuous role in the Swedish film community. Memfis have produced film by Lukas Moodysson, Josef Fares, and Lars von Trier among others.
Kristian Eidnes Andersen is a Danish film audio engineer and composer. He heads the department of sound design at the National Film School of Denmark.
The Robert Award for Best Screenplay is one of the merit awards presented by the Danish Film Academy at the annual Robert Awards ceremony. The award has been handed out since 1984, but except in 1991 and 1993. On two occasions, in 2005 and in 2015, the Academy handed out two awards in the category, one for best original screenplay, and one for best adapted screenplay.
