Patrik Eklund is considered to be one of the biggest film making talents in Sweden. This he substantiated in 2010, when his short film Instead of Abracadabra was nominated for an Oscar.

The director, who is currently working on his feature film debut, Flimmer, has contributed to the DVD Funny Films of the North, which Rushprint has produced in cooperation with three other Nordic film magazines.

His short film Seeds of the Fall from 2009, which won a prize in Cannes the same year, is about an middle-aged married couple, Rolf and Eva, whose marriage is in ruins resulting in great, sexual frustrations.

But when their house is torpedoed by an excavator, everything turns upside down. All of the sudden a disabled neighbour asks Rolf to impregnate his wife, which forces Rolf and Eva to go soul-searching.

– Patrik Eklund, how did you come up with the idea for the film, and under what circumstances did it come into being?

– It all started with the opening scene, which was written for another script that didn’t turn out so well. I kept that scene and used it as a catalyst for Seeds of the Fall and the story just grew from there.

– Are you inspired by any specific artists or works?

– Kaurismäki. Jodorowsky. Lynch. Tarkovsky. Jarmusch. Paul Thomas Anderson. Wes Anderson. Roy Andersson. H.C. Andersen.

A LANDSCAPE OF MEAT
– What was the greatest challenge about making this film, artistically as well as practically?

– Artistically, is always a challenge finding the right balance between comedy and tragedy. We rehearsed the discussion at the kitchen table a lot because that scene represents much of the tone I was going for. Once we had control over that scene, we had control over the whole film. Practically, we had this big inflexible bull crane that we used during the sex scenes in bed. Very unromantic.

– The director of photography David Grehn and I tried long and hard to create what we would call ‘a landscape of meat’ with sweeping close shots of the naked actors. Most of it ended up on the cutting room floor and I learned that there’s obviously a fine balance between what’s romantic and what’s disgusting.

– In what way are you using humour in Seeds of the Fall?

– Very subtle. Or very excessive. No in-between.

– What do you wish to achieve by combining comedy and tragedy in your films?

– A pleasant discomfort.

ABOVE THE ARCTIC CIRCLE
– Do you think that there exists a particular Nordic humour?

– Depends on how far up north you’re looking. People above the Arctic circle don’t talk much, I find that humorous and usable when I write stuff.

– What reactions do you wish to provoke in the audience with Seeds of the Fall?

– About the same reaction as when you drop your ice cream on the beach and decide to eat it anyway. It’s still sweet, but eating it sometimes hurt.

– How do you regard the result?

– It actually turned out exactly how I wanted, which rarely happens. Makes you feel a bit indifferent and numb at the end, no surprises anywhere, good or bad. But I’m pleased with it.

By Mads Suldrup and Thomas S. Sejersen / Filmmagasinet Ekko

Les intervjuer med de andre kortfilmskaperne