Empire (Danish: Viften) is a 2023 absurdistperiod drama film directed by Frederikke Aspöck from a screenplay by Anna Neye. It stars Neye and Sara Fanta Traore.
In the Danish West Indies in 1848, Anna Elizabeth Heegaard, a wealthy "free colored" woman, maintains a close friendship with Petrine, her housekeeper who is enslaved. Meanwhile, rumors of a slave rebellion begin to circulate.
The idea of the film was conceived during Neye's trip to Saint Croix in 2015, where she filmed a documentary about the history of black Danes.[1][2] In January 2021, the project received €144,700 funding from the Nordisk Film & TV Fond.[3]
Empire had its world premiere on 29 January 2023 at the Gothenburg Film Festival, competing for the Dragon Awards.[4] REinvent acquired the film's international sales shortly after the world premiere.[5]
The film was released in Danish theatres on 20 April 2023.[6]Netflix acquired its distribution rights, releasing it on 23 October 2023.[7]
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