Inte mindre än tre svenska långfilmer har kvalat in på Nordamerikas viktigaste filmfestival: Hannes Holms Himlen är oskyldigt blå, Kristian Petris Ond tro och Daniél Espinosas Snabba cash.
Josefin Ljungman and Bill Skarsgård in Behind Blue Skies. Photo: Nordisk Film.
Starring Bill Skarsgård, Peter Dalle and Josefin Ljungman, Hannes Holm's Behind Blue Skies (Himlen är oskyldigt blå) will screen in the Contemporary World Cinema section.
The film, which has its Swedish premiere on 15 October, is a drama set in the Stockholm archipelago about first love and one of the biggest scandals in Swedish criminal history.
Hannes Holm, Bill Skarsgård, Peter Dalle and producer Patrick Ryborn will all be in Toronto for the screening.
Bad Faith (Ond tro) by Kristian Petri starring Sonja Richter, Jonas Karlsson and Kristoffer Joner will also screen in the festival's Contemporary World Cinema section. This story of a woman who becomes obsessed with various murders is set to premiere in Sweden on 10 September.
Representing the film in Toronto will be Kristian Petri, Sonja Richter and the film's producer, Johannes Åhlund.
Daniél Espinosa's Easy Money (Snabba cash) has been this year's biggest box office hit in Sweden, seen by more than 620,000 viewers and breaking the record previously held by Avatar for the number of DVD hires in its first week. The film has been sold to 25 countries and is also in line for a US version starring Zac Efron. Fredrik Wikström, producer of the Swedish version, will also be producing the American film for Warner Bros. Easy Money is screening in the Vanguard section for films which "defy convention". Easy Money is an action packed drama about the Stockholm underworld based on a best-selling novel by Jens Lapidus.
Daniél Espinosa and Fredrik Wikström will be present in Toronto.
All three films were granted production funding by the Swedish Film Institute, and TrustNordisk are responsible for international sales.
Co-productions
There is also a Swedish co-production element in the following films screening at the festival:
Lapland Odyssey by Dome Karukoski (Contemporary World Cinema), Swedish co-producer Martin Persson, Anagram
As if I’m Not There by Juanita Wilson (Discovery), Swedish co-producer Lena Rehnberg, Stellanova Film
Home for Christmas by Bent Hamer (Contemporary World Cinema), Swedish co-producer Jörgen Bergmark, Filmimperiet
In a Better World by Susanne Bier (Special Presentations), Swedish co-producer Anna Anthony, Memfis Film International and Gunnar Carlsson, SVT
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale by Jalmari Helander (Discovery), Swedish co-producer Anna Björk, Davaj Film
Armadillo by Janus Metz (Real to Reel), Swedish co-producer Magnus Gertten, Lennart Ström, Auto Images
The 35th Toronto International Film Festival runs from 9-19 September.