Denmark & Sweden Send Shooting Stars To Berlin

Denmark’s Esben Smed (Follow the Money) and Sweden’s Karin Franz Körlof (Blue Eyes) have been selected by European Film Promotion (EFP) for Shooting Stars 2017, an annual showcase for ten young and promising European actors at the Berlin International Film Festival, which will take place February 9th-19th 2017.

During the Berlin International Film Festival, the ten Shooting Stars will undertake a weekend of profile-raising workshops and events, with influential members of the International Casting Directors Network (ICDN), film and television agents and filmmakers, alongside interviews and photo-shoots with international media.

The jury said in their deliberation of of Esben Smed, who can be seen in Denmark’s Oscar shortlisted entry Land Of Mine: “This is one intense, high octane Dane. To meet him when he’s angry is somewhat disturbing. And we mean this in the nicest possible way. Esben’s presence is unquestionable and fills up the screen with great edge.”

Meanwhile, the jury said of Karin Franz Körlof, who became a household name in Pernilla August’s A Serious Game: “Significant tension of the good, even sensuous kind, is clearly felt in her aura and her firm gaze. Karin demonstrates versatility, drive, composition and courage, also when taking the darker emotional paths of the story at hand.”

Previous winners of the Shooting Stars award, which is now in its 20th year, include: Iben Hjejle (1999), Daniel Craig (2000), Daniel Brühl (2003), Nikolaj Lie Kaas (2003), Carey Mulligan (2009), Alicia Vikander (2010), and Atli Óskar Fjalarsson (2016).