Career
Carlsen began by writing and directing short documentaries and industry films, and with this background he flourished in the production of the cinema verite style. His documentary trilogy, De Gamle (The Elderly – 1961)), Familiebilleder (Family pictures- 1964) and Ung (Youth – 1965), created a classic portrait of 1960s Denmark as the nation revolutionized and transformed into a modern welfare society Especially noted was Carlsen's technique of rhythmic editing in De Gamle which produced a lyrical portrait of retirees without any needed commentary.
In 1962, Carlsen continued in cinema verite style with his first feature film: the harsh social drama A World of Strangers (Dilemma). Based upon the Nadine Gordimer's 1958 novel about apartheid, the movie was shot covertly on location in South Africa through Carlsen's use of a hidden camera. He followed this effort with the 1966 drama Hunger (Sult) based upon the autobiographical novel of Norwegian author Knut Hamsun. With its stark focus on a life of poverty and desperation, the film is considered a masterpiece of social realism and is one of the ten films listed in Denmark's cultural canon by the Danish Ministry of Culture. Carlsen was nominated for the Palme D'Or and won the Bodil Award for Best Danish Film.
The following year, Carlsen changed pace from his realistic dramas and made the comedy People Meet and Sweet Music Fills the Heart (Mennesker mødes og sød musik opstår i hjertet) based on the work of Jens August Schade. Again, he was awarded the Bodil Award for Best Danish Film. During his career, Carlsen has maintained interest in popular comedies with such films as Oh, to Be on the Bandwagon! (Man sku være noget ved musikken), in collaboration with Benny Andersen, and I Wonder Who's Kissing You Now?. In 1967, Carlsen returned to the same format of social realism he used in Sult with the drama We are All Demons (Klaubauterman), a story based upon a novel by Axel Sandemose.
In 1986, Carlsen filmed the international production Wolf at the Door starring Donald Sutherland. During his career, Carlsen has written 19 films and directed 21. He has also directed for both theater and television. Since 1966, Carlsen has been a teacher and member of the advisory council for the National Film School in Denmark. In 2006, Carlsen was the recipient of the Golden Swan Lifetime Achievement Award at the Copenhagen Film Festival.
In 2012 Carlsen received an honorary Robert Award for his body of work. He also released his film, Memoria de Mis Putas Tristes (Memories of My Melancholy Whores), adapted from the 2004 novel by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
Read more about this topic: Henning Carlsen
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