Oscar Winning Director Bille August on ‘The Kiss,’ His Craft, the Streamers

variety.com:

Annika Pham Oscar and double Palme d’Or winning director Bille August (“The Best Intentions”, “Pelle the Conqueror”) is attending the Göteborg Film Festival for a Director’s Talk and the gala screening of his psycho-drama “The Pact”.He will also pitch at the adjoining Nordic Film Market (Feb.

3-6), the work in progress of his upcoming Danish pic “The Kiss”.August spoke exclusively to Variety about “The Kiss,” his enduring interest in the complexity of human beings, book-to-screen adaptations and his belief in the big screen experience.Loosely based on Stefan Zweig’s novel “Beware of Pity and transposed from an Austrian to a Danish setting, “The Kiss” is a romantic drama set in 1913.

The helmer has reunited with “A Fortunate Man”’s lead Espen Smed, cast as cavalry officer trainee Anton. Introduced to Baron von Løvenskjold’s daughter Edith, a wheelchair user following an accident, Anton is attracted to her, but unsure if his feelings are of pity or true love.

Starring alongside Smed are Clara Rosager (“The Rain,” “Before the Frost”), David Dencik (“No Time To Die”, “The Chestnut Man”), Lars Mikkelsen (“Borgen”, “Ride Upon the Storm”) and Rosalinde Mynster (“Persona Non Grata,” ”Darkness: Those Who Kill”).Produced by Thomas Heinesen for Nordisk Film Production and Lars Sylvest (“Robots”, “Cliffhanger”), the film is due to open in August in Denmark.LevelK is handling world sales.What was the genesis for “The Kiss” and what attracted you to the story?Originally the film was meant to be a more international co-production but for several reasons it didn’t go through.