Nicolaj Steen's debut feature "Oldboys" impressed the Karlovy Vary festival participants, taking home the festival's Audience Award.
Director Nikolaj Steen says:
"The reception of "Oldboys" at the festival was an amazing thing to experience. People were completely engaged and the cinema rocked with laughter at all the right places, even where I thought the humour would get lost in translation. To actually end up with the audience award makes me very proud. After all, this is my first film as a director and I did make a comedy about old men and football – not something you'd necessarily bet your money on, and drive people to the cinema. For this reason, it's been a great pleasure to see that both Danish and Czech audiences enjoy a movie that invites both smiles and tears."
At the center of "Oldboys" we find Vagn – a grey, morose and self-deprecating anti-hero. His general anonymity causes his football teammates to accidently leave him behind at a remote Swedish gas station. Vagn, to catch up with his forgetful friends, must team up with small-time criminal John, and the resulting journey slowly rekindles Vagn's languishing spirits.
In Denmark, "Oldboys" won Danish Film Academy Roberts for Best Song and Best Music Score. It was also quite well received at the box office with 67.000 tickets sold.
At the festival the award-winning feature film "R", a prison drama directed by Michael Noer and Tobias Lindholm was screened in Another View. Both "R" and "Oldboys" were produced by René Ezra and Tomas Radoor for Nordisk film.
Also, Thomas Vinterberg and Nimbus Film's "Submarino" was screened in Karlovy Vary's programme Horizons.