Blind - Norway
Synopsis
Having recently lost her sight, Ingrid retreats to the safety of her home, a place where she can feel in control, alone with her husband and her thoughts. However, Ingrid’s real problems do not lurk beyond the walls of her apartment, but lie within – and her deepest fears and repressed fantasies soon take over.
Motivation of the adjudication committee
Eskil Vogt is known for his collaborations on manuscripts with Joachim Trier. His debut as director of a full-length feature film is a strikingly original, daring and funny film about a blind woman’s imagination. Ellen Dorrit Petersen gives a brilliant performance as a devil-may-care woman who isolates herself after losing her sight. Using her computer, she writes about two characters whose solitary existences mirror her own. Vogt’s remarkable script has been transformed into a playful, challenging and visually gorgeous film, which offers a uniquely sensitive reflection on humanity.
Director/Scriptwriter – Eskil Vogt
Born in 1974, Eskil Vogt graduated from the prestigious French film school La FEMIS in Paris. Two short films made during his time in France – An Embrace (2003) and his 2004 graduation film Strangers – won several international awards.
Considered one of Norway’s leading scriptwriters, Vogt is known for his collaboration with director Joachim Trier on the multi-award-winning films Reprise and Oslo, August 31st (2011 Nordic Council Film Prize nominee), as well as the upcoming English-language film Louder than Bombs. He is currently writing his second feature as a director.
Vogt and Trier shared a Film & Kino Aamot statuette in 2007 for “Most outstanding effort in Norwegian filmmaking”.
Producer – Sigve Endresen
Born in Stavanger in 1953, Sigve Endresen is CEO of Motlys, one of Norway’s leading production companies, set up in 1983.
Over the last three decades, he has produced dozens of feature films and documentaries, collaborating with directors such as Nils Gaup (Misery Harbour), Marius Holst (Dragonflies) and Gunnar Vikene (Falling Sky). His name is associated with five films nominated for the prestigious Nordic Council Film Prize: Rune Denstad Langlo’s North (2009), Joachim Trier’s Oslo, August 31st (2011), Arild Andresen’s The Orheim Company (2012), Dag Johan Haugerud’s I Belong (2013) and Eskil Vogt’s Blind (2014). Endresen also produced Jannicke Systad Jacobsen’s acclaimed feature debut Turn Me On, Dammit! and the TV series Buzz Aldrin. Among his most ambitious upcoming projects is Joachim Trier’s first English-language film Louder than Bombs, starring Isabelle Huppert and Gabriel Byrne.
Endresen was co-producer of the Swedish master Jan Troell’s Everlasting Moments and of the Danish director Peter Schønau Fog’s 2007 Nordic Council Film Prize-winner The Art of Crying.
As a director, Endresen has been honoured for his documentaries Living Amongst Lions and Big Boys Don’t Cry. He is the recipient of the Aamot statuette, the Norwegian film industry’s highest honour.
Producer – Hans Jørgen Osnes
Born in 1972 in Oslo, Hans-Jørgen Osnes joined Motlys in 2011. He worked as first assistant director on Joachim Trier’s Reprise and Oslo, August 31st, which he also produced.
Eskil Vogt’s drama Blind, which won the screenwriting award at Sundance 2014, is his second feature as producer. He is currently working on Aasne Vaa Greibrokk’s feature debut All the Beauty.
Hans Jørgen Osnes was named “Producer on the Move” at Cannes 2013
Key production information
Original Title: Blind
Director: Eskil Vogt
Scriptwriter: Eskil Vogt
Producers: Hans-Jørgen Osnes, Sigve Endresen
Main Cast: Ellen Dorrit Petersen, Henrik Rafaelsen, Vera Vitali, Marius Kolbenstvedt
Production company: Motlys
Running time: 96 minutes
Domestic distribution: Norsk Filmdistribusjon
International Sales: Versatile Films
Jury members
Silje Riise Næss, Britt Sørensen, Kalle Løchen