Artist and filmmaker John Skoog’s sophomore feature, Redoubt, is now in post-production. According to Variety, the outlet that first reported the announcement, the picture is “a narrative film that expands on Skoog’s video installation by the same name, which won the prestigious Baloise Art Prize in 2014, and is also part of the artist’s exhibition Walls”.

Previously, Skoog helmed a short documentary, Shadowland, which vied for the Golden Bear in 2015, and the 2019 feature Ridge [+lire aussi :
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bande-annonce
fiche film], whose synopsis describes it as “a story composed of fragments of lives lived in the periphery”.

The new black-and-white, 35 mm film, penned by Skoog together with Kettil Kasang, draws inspiration from Karl-Göran Persson, a real-life farmer known as a good Samaritan on the verge of madness, who lived near the helmer’s home town of Kvidinge during World War II. After receiving a warning by the Swedish government of potential strikes by the Soviet army, he sets off to turn his house into a fortified shelter for fellow villagers.

The story of Redoubt, however, will unfold during the second half of the 20th century, “post-World War II, but before the internet became something for everyone and before the fall of the Berlin Wall”. The movie was shot in two parts, with the first taking place in summer and the second set ten years later, in winter.

The leading role is played by 62-year-old thesp Denis Lavant, who is best known for his work with director Leos Carax in films such as Les Amants du Pont-Neuf, The Night Is Young and Holy Motors [+lire aussi :
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interview : Leos Carax
fiche film]. The main cast is rounded off by Agnieszka Podsiadlik (Ridge, World on Fire, Prime Time [+lire aussi :
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interview : Jakub Piątek
fiche film]), Michalis Koutsogiannakis (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo [+lire aussi :
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interview : Niels Arden Oplev
interview : Søren Stærmose
fiche film]) and Livia Millhagen (The Sunny Side [+lire aussi :
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fiche film]).

The key crew members are DoP Ita Zbroniec Zajt (Ridge, Alma [+lire aussi :
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fiche film], Woman on the Roof [+lire aussi :
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interview : Anna Jadowska
fiche film]), editor Jussi Rautaniemi (Natatorium [+lire aussi :
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fiche film], Alice & Jack, Compartment No. 6 [+lire aussi :
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interview : Juho Kuosmanen
fiche film]) and production designer Søren Schwartzberg (Wild Men [+lire aussi :
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interview : Thomas Daneskov
fiche film], Margrete: Queen of the North [+lire aussi :
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interview : Charlotte Sieling
fiche film], The Keeper of Lost Causes [+lire aussi :
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interview : Eugenio Mira
fiche film]).

Redoubt is being produced by Erik Hemmendorff and Caroline Drab for Ruben Östlund’s banner Plattform Produktion (Sweden), in co-production with Film i Skåne (Sweden), Film i Väst (Sweden), SVT (Sweden), BCD Film (Sweden), Bufo (Finland), Lemming Film (Netherlands), No.Mad Films (Italy) and Paloma Production (Denmark), and in association with Bord Cadre Films (Switzerland) and Sovereign Films (UK).

Erik Hemmendorff’s credits include hits such as the Palme d’Or-winning films The Square [+lire aussi :
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interview : Ruben Östlund
fiche film] and Triangle of Sadness [+lire aussi :
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bande-annonce
interview : Ruben Östlund
interview : Ruben Östlund
fiche film], as well as Mia Hansen-Løve’s Bergman Island [+lire aussi :
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bande-annonce
interview : Mia Hansen-Løve
fiche film] and Ninja Thyberg’s Pleasure [+lire aussi :
critique
bande-annonce
interview : Ninja Thyberg
fiche film].