25/10/2022 - The Swedish producer from Momento Film tells us about the project The Swedish Torpedo by Frida Kempff, winner of the Coprocity Development Award

The project The Swedish Torpedo by Frida Kempff (which will be the Swedish director’s second fiction feature after Knocking [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Frida Kempff
film profile]) has won the Coprocity Development Award (read the news). We talked to the project’s producer Erik Andersson (Momento Film).

Cineuropa: Could you introduce the project The Swedish Torpedo? What is the story?
Erik Andersson: The Swedish Torpedo is a feature directed by Frida Kempff and is inspired by a true story: that of Sally Bauer, who, in 1939, had to defy her family and social norms to become the first European woman to swim the English channel, all the while Europe was on the brink of war, something that everyone was still blissfully unaware of.

Why did you get involved with this project?
Frida and I have been working together since film school and she has time and time again proven that her vision is as sharp as a knife. Her visuals are jaw-dropping, and she has a way of getting close to her characters and getting under the skin of the audience. She has a strong social pathos and a genuine interest in people and their story. In 2010 we started the production company Läsk Film together and made several shorts, then in 2021 we premiered Fridas' feature fictional debut Knocking at the Sundance Film Festival. For almost 10 years we have also been working together with the producer David Herdies at Momento Film on several shorts, as well as Frida’s documentary debut Winter Buoy. In 2018, while she was doing research on another project, Frida came across the story of Sally Bauer and we immediately felt that this was a project we needed to pursue together, so we once again teamed up with David.

Is this project in line with the company's editorial line?
At Momento, we strive to be a harbour for both established and new talent who want to challenge the borders of filmmaking. We position ourselves on the international market with high-profile documentaries and dramas premiering at the most important film festivals. The latest releases include Yung Lean: In My Head by Henrik Burman (Tribeca FF 2020), Transnistra [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Anna Eborn (Guldbagge Best Documentary, Big Screen Award IFFR 2019), Hamada [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Eloy Domínguez Serén
film profile] by Eloy Domínguez Serén (IDFA 2018) and the drama Amparo [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Simón Mesa Soto, which won the Rising Star Award at Semaine de la Critique in Cannes 2021. We are currently working on a slate of both fiction and documentary projects, including the drama Madame Luna written by Maurizio Braucci (Gomorrah [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Domenico Procacci
interview: Jean Labadie
interview: Matteo Garrone
film profile]) and directed by Daniel Espinosa (Easy Money [+see also:
trailer
film profile], Morbius), the thriller Kautokeino by Isabella Eklöf (Holiday [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Victoria Carmen Sonne
film profile], Border [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Ali Abbasi
film profile]) as well as the feature documentaries Leaving Jesus by Ellen Fiske (Scheme Birds [+see also:
trailer
film profile], Josefin & Florin [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile]) and Stories From The Debris by Jennifer Rainsford. The Swedish Torpedo fits perfectly in this context, as a project by a long time collaborator with international festival potential as well as potential to reach a large audience.

When is the shooting scheduled?
Production is planned to start next summer and we will shoot the main part of The Swedish Torpedo in Estonia with a stint in the UK and Denmark. Premiere is planned for 2024.