01/03/2005

The snowy gala premiere on Friday 25 February of Nordisk Film’s Young Andersen (Unge Andersen), the film tribute to Hans Christian Andersen’s 200 year birthday was like a fairy tale evening with the presence of Her Royal Highness Danish Queen Margrethe II and many other special guests including Danish politicians and representatives from Copenhagen’s cultural elite
The film directed by Rumle Hammerich, focuses on the famous Danish writer’s formative years. In 1822, after a series of failed attempts to make it in Copenhagen as a singer, dancer and actor, the 17-year old Andersen finds himself a student at Meisling’s boarding school outside of Copenhagen. Educated with soul-crushing discipline, the young poet discovers the gift of fairytales.

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Young Andersen is Hammerich’s awaited comeback to filmmaking after a few years spent at the Head of Nordisk Film Production. Hammerich’s directorial debut Otto Is a Rhino (Otto er et naesehorn) in 1983 was considered as one of the best Danish children’s film of the decade and his second film, the Swedish The Premonition (Sort Lucia) made in 1992 was awarded in Montreal for Best direction.
The 5,24 million € Young Andersen was produced by Tina Dalhoff and executive produced by Erik Crone and Kim Magnusson for Nordisk Film Production with support from the Danish Film Institute, the specially appointed H.C. Andersen 2005 Jubilee Fund, Film Fyn Denmark, the Nordisk Film & TV Fund and broadcasters DR TV (Denmark), SVT (Sweden) and NRK (Norway). The film will be released domestically on 11 March and a two-part TV version will follow. Nordisk Film International Sales is handling world sales.