Norway in Sundance: Happy, Happy in competition, The Troll Hunter in Park City at Midnight

"Happy, Happy" (Sykt lykkelig) at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival.

Norwegian director Anne Sewitsky’s feature debut, Happy, Happy (Sykt lykkelig) will have its international premiere in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition at the Sundance Film Festival, which takes place in Park City, Utah (USA) between 20-30 January, 2011.

Park City at Midnight – the festival’s late programme for ”the raucous, rowdy, and rebellious; softies need not enter” – will screen Norwegian director André Øvredal’s The Troll Hunter (Trolljegeren).

A drama-comedy scripted by Ragnhild Tronvoll and produced by Synnøve Hørsdal for Maipo, Happy, Happy is the story of Kaja, an eternal optimist who loves her family, although her husband prefers to go hunting with the boys and refuses to have sex with her.

When ”the perfect couple” moves in next door, a new world opens to her, and with Christmas around the corner it is obvious that nothing will be like before – even though Kaja tries her best.

Agnes Kittelsen, Henrik Rafaelsen, Maibritt Saerens and Joachim Rafaelsen play the leads in the film which has since 5 November taken 25,000 admissions domestically for Nordisk Film Distribusjon. Denmark’s TrustNordisk handles international sales.

Produced by John Jacobsen and Sveinung Golimo for Filmkameratene, The Troll Hunter – marketed as a documentary confirming that trolls do exist, with the first footage ever shot of trolls in their own preserves – has since its 29 October launch sold close to 250,000 tickets in Norway, as an SF Norge release.

Magnolia’s Magnet Releasing has picked up worldwide rights excluding Europe for the film, while Universal Pictures International (UPI) has signed for most major European territories. ”Sundance at midnight is probably the coolest spot for The Troll Hunter to be shown, to further promote the interest worldwide,” said Jacobsen.

Source: Norwegian Film Institute