On his quest for happiness, Per moves from the dark region of Jutland and a severe upbringing in a strictly religious home. He runs away from his family and his patriarch father, a priest, and sets sail towards Copenhagen to become an engineer and implement a large energy project. In the capital, Per throws himself into the big city life and with an appetite for life and joy, he soon finds himself in an unconcerned and vivid social environment. Parallel to his studies, he works on a large and visionary energy project based on wind and wave energy. As he gets his projects up and running and marries into a rich Jewish family he quickly climbs the social ladder. But Per’s childhood keeps haunting him and his dogmatic family cannot accept his new life and Jewish fiancée.
Bille August's international breakthrough came with 'Pelle the Conqueror', which received the Palme d'Or in Cannes in 1988 and an Oscar and a Golden Globe in 1989. His most recent Danish film, 'Silent Heart,' won at San Sebastian in 2014.
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