The Celebration
The Celebration (Danish: Festen) is a 1998 Danish black comedy-drama film directed by Thomas Vinterberg and produced by Nimbus Film. The film tells the story of a family gathering to celebrate their father's 60th birthday, during which a family secret is revealed. Vinterberg was inspired to write it with Mogens Rukov, based on a personal interview broadcast by a Danish radio station that was later learned to be a hoax.
| Festen | |
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Danish theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Thomas Vinterberg (uncredited; under Dogme rules) |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Anthony Dod Mantle |
| Edited by | Valdís Óskarsdóttir |
| Music by | Lars Bo Jensen |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Scanbox Danmark |
Release dates |
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Running time | 105 minutes |
| Country | Denmark |
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| Budget | US$1.3 million |
It was the first Dogme 95 film, an artistic movement created by Danish directors Vinterberg and Lars von Trier. The movement preferred simple and analog production values to allow for the highlighting of plot and performance. Festen was selected as the Danish entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 71st Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee. In addition, it won the Jury Prize at Cannes Film Festival in 1998.