As it is in heaven

The kids have joined Jochem in the Netherlands and I am spending a week on my own in Ulricehamn. Yesterday I spent the afternoon at the golf course trying to improve my swing with the result of 3 blisters in my hand and after that I had an obsessive film evening. I watched “As it is in heaven” more or less three times going through some scenes several times. The last few years I have had very little time to watch films and it was really nice to get completely into the film. It is also one of the best Swedish films in the last ten years. When I worked at the Swedish embassy in the Hague I tried to get Kaj Pollak (the director) to the Netherlands but he was busy writing a new script and did not want to stop the writing process. If his next script is as good as “As it is in heaven” we will see a new Swedish top film shortly (as he has already proven his directing skills in several films).

The European union is trying to increase European film production in order to strengthen local production and cultural heritage. After my studies at the European Film College I did a short traineeship at Warner Brothers in Brussels and London. At this time (in 1995) the European distribution channels and marketing strategies were still far behind the Americans. WB used 10-15% of its film budget on marketing and the marketing process started before they even started shooting the film. For a long time European films were supposed to sell themselves but in today’s world it does not matter how good a film is if you don’t know that it is there and the competition is killing. So far the EU support to the European film industry has had a positive effect on the European film market and we have seen several good European films doing well. I also think it strengthens the connection between Europeans when we see more films from other neighbouring countries. I have decided that I will try and watch at least one non-American film a month from now on (from all over the world so please come with your suggestions!)
If you have not seen As it is in heaven I can surely recommend it.
Ulrika