Norwegian director to shoot "The Down's Detective" in Prague

From Screen Daily:

Norwegian director Bard Breien will shoot his second feature The Down’s Detective in the Czech Republic, it was announced yesterday at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.

The film is a Norwegian-Czech-Danish-German co-production, and it will start shooting in late August.

The story is about a man with Down’s syndrome who wants to be a private detective. He has to pursue a former ice-skating legend who is now down on his luck. Svein Andre Hofso, who has Down’s syndrome, will play the lead [he is pictured in character].

Breien, who also wrote the script, said: “I want to tell an entertaining, exciting and touching story that will challenge the audience. It will be an adventure with one foot planted firmly in a well-known genre where a lonely private detective has to solve a mystery in a cold, dark and hostile world, while the other foot sets out in a completely unknown direction. The Down’s Detective is a film that sparkles with laughter as well as strong emotions, while the whole story and the main protagonist in particular are constantly balancing on the thin edge between tragedy and comedy.”

Producer Pål Røed added: “Just before Christmas 2011, we set off to scout the Czech Republic and Hungary as potential destinations. We were hoping that financial possibilities, lower production costs and different locations would enable us to make The Down’s Detective in a better way than back home. We knew that Bård had a name in the Czech Republic, but after one intense day in Prague, we realized how strong the Czechs felt about his film, his humour and his writing style. It did not take long before we cancelled our trip to Hungary, stayed a few more days in Prague and decided to make the film in the Czech Republic.”

Prague will stand in for Oslo in the film.

Friland’s production partners are Nimbus (Denmark), Unafilm (Germany) and Evolution Films (Czech Republic).

TrustNordisk will handle international sales and Cinemart has Czech rights.

The film has received financial support from the Norwegian Film Institute, the Nordic Film and Television Fund, the Danish Film Institute, the Czech State Fund for the Support and Development of Czech Cinema, and Eurimage.

“We are truly grateful for the support we have received in the Czech Republic. The Czech State Fund for the Support and Development of Czech Cinema really understands the potential of Bard Breien’s second film. It is a great honour for our company as well as for Czech cinema to be part of such a significant film project”, said Evolution Films’ producer Pavel Berčík.

Breiein’s first film The Art of Negative Thinking won the best director prize at KVIFF in 2007. The film went on to win the Czech Lion for best foreign film and then was adapted as a stage production.