Karin af Klintberg to direct a documentary about the Swedish king
21 May 2022 - Last updated 30 May 2022
For two years, director Karin af Klintberg has courted the information department of the Royal Court. Through her persistence, she became the first journalist ever to be granted unique access to follow King Carl XVI Gustaf closely in both his private and professional life. The film is produced by Stina Gardell and Petra Måhl for Af Nexiko AB in co-production with SF Studios, the Swedish Film Institute and SVT. SF Studios handles Nordic distribution. The King in set to premiere in Swedish cinemas in February 2023.
Last spring, Karin Af Klintberg started shooting the documentary film. Af Klintberg and the Swedish king met several times. Sometimes during formal events, such as at inaugurations and state visits. Sometimes they met in private at the royal palace in Stockholm or in the park at Solliden, the King's summer residence on Öland. Their conversations circled around several topics such as childhood to the ups and downs of royal life.
- I wanted to create a modern film about a not so modern profession. I wanted to figure out how the King has felt during the years and how he believes. “If you interview someone long enough, you usually get really good conversations, says director Karin af Klintberg.
The work with the film is ongoing until the premiere in 2023, a year which also will serve as the 50th anniversary of King Carl XVI Gustaf’s ascendance to the throne and will make him the the longest-serving regent in Swedish history.
Previously, Karin af Klintberg has directed the Guldbagge awarded documentary Ebbe the Movie (2009) together with Jane Magnusson. She is also the director of Nice People (2015). She has also served as director for popular educational tv productions such as The History Eaters, The Worst Language and The World’s Worst Indian. She has twice been awarded the Grand Journalist Award.
- I want to deal with the present through humor and dignity, and I think that also suits a film about a monarch as well. We are like two different breeds; he is from a non-emotional 40s-generation, and I am from a more integrity free 70s-generation. The film is like a dance where I want to get close, but he wants to keep me at a distance.
This is the first time that a documentary has been produced about a Swedish king while he is still alive. The King's grandfather Gustaf VI Adolf and grandfather's father Gustaf V did not grant interviews.
- I always have great respect for those who I interview, and I want to portray with warmth and capture their own peculiar and humane attributes. The same goes for the King.
- How will the film end? No idea. It is not an easy person to interview. The King is not an onion that can be peeled layer by layer. But suddenly the man behind appears - and these are the moments I want to take advantage of in the film, says Karin af Klintberg.
Press contacts:
Petra Åkesson, petra@albakomm.se, +46707520588
Pia Grünler, Nordic Head of Theatrical Distribution SF Studios, pia.grunler@sfstudios.se, +46708792271
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