Rekonstruktion Utøya

Reconstructing Utøya
‘We were all looking forward to the disco… But the disco never happened that year.’

White lines on a dark stage evoke the scene of the 2011 attack that plunged Norway's open and democratic society into a state of shock. Together with a group of young people, four survivors reconstruct their recollections of the massacre that took place at a youth camp on the island of Utøya. Carl Javér's film quietly observes a space in which scenes are re-enacted and means of processing trauma and communicating personal experience are made visible. Fleeing from gunshots, hiding in fear, not knowing what is coming next – these are experiences that straddle the borderline between life and death. But within the supportive environment of the group, the participants also manage to reclaim their laughter.
by Carl Javér
with Jenny Andersen, Rakel Mortensdatter Birkeli, Torje Hanssen, Mohammed Saleh
Sweden / Norway / Denmark 2018 Norwegian, Swedish 98’ Colour Documentary form

With

  • Jenny Andersen
  • Rakel Mortensdatter Birkeli
  • Torje Hanssen
  • Mohammed Saleh

Crew

Written and Directed by Carl Javér
Screenplay Fredrik Lange
Cinematography Henrik Bohn Ipsen, Trude Berge Ottersen (additional Cinematography), Martin Otterbeck (additional Cinematography)
Editing Carl Javér, Peter Winther
Music Kjetil Schjander Luhr
Sound Design Rune Hansen
Sound Mixing Owe Svensson
Sound Anders Kwarnmark
Casting Anne Katrine Haugen
Creative Producer Fredrik Lange
Producer Fredrik Lange
Production Managers Fredrik Lange, John Arvid Berger, Luna Jansen, Carina Åkerlund
Co-Producers Svein Andersen, John Arvid Berger, Ami Ekström, Helle Faber, Kjetil Jensberg
Co-Production Polarfox Tromsö
FilmCamp Øverbygd
made in copenhagen Kopenhagen
Film i Väst Trollhättan

World sales

Cinephil

Produced by

Vilda Bomben Film

Carl Javér

Born in Gothenburg, Sweden in 1972, this director and editor studied documentary production and has made a number of documentary films and series. Reconstructing Utøya was nominated in the Best Documentary and Best Director categories of the Swedish Film Institute’s Guldbagge Awards. Freak Out was released theatrically in Sweden, broadcast on Arte and won ten festival prizes. He is a workshop leader, lecturer, dramaturge and editing consultant, a member of the Swedish Independent Filmmakers Association, and co-owns the Vilda Bomben Film production company.

Filmography (documentaries)

1997 Tel al Zaatar – Vägen tillbaka (Tel al Zaatar – The Road Back) 1999 Sjukhuset (The Hospital) 2001 Skolan (High School) 2003 Heroin 2005 Varuhus nr 180 (Warehouse Nr 180) 2007 Alla hittar kärlek utom jag (Everyone Finds Love but Me) 2010 Kraschen (The Crash) 2012 Freia och Wannabeindianerna (Freia and the Wannabe Indians); short film 2014 Freak Out 2018 Rekonstruktion Utøya (Reconstructing Utøya)

Bio- & filmography as of Berlinale 2019