Den stygge stesøsteren. Foto Marcel Zyskind
The Ugly Stepsister, written and directed by Emilie Blichfeldt, will open the Midnight Program at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival 2025. No Norwegian film has ever received this honor before.
The Midnight Program is renowned for premiering some of the year’s most entertaining, uncompromising, and critically acclaimed films, including modern classics like Hereditary and It Follows.
"Sundance is one of the world’s most important film festivals and a key gateway to the North American market. For a debut feature filmmaker to be invited to open the Midnight Program is incredible and once again demonstrates that Norwegian cinema holds a high international standard. Participation in Sundance provides an excellent platform for The Ugly Stepsister to reach a global audience," says Kjersti Mo, director of the Norwegian Film Institute.
The 41st Sundance Film Festival will take place in Utah from January 23 to February 2, 2025. As always, the festival is expected to draw many prominent film industry figures. The festival was originally founded by, among others, Robert Redford, with its name inspired by the Western character he once portrayed.
“It’s almost unbelievable! We’ve created a film we’re extremely proud of - something we consider beautiful, entertaining, and delightfully shocking. To open the Midnight Program at Sundance means they wholeheartedly agree with us, which is just incredible,” says director Emilie Blichfeldt.
“Emilie Blichefeldt is uncompromising and possesses an extraordinary storytelling ability. My goal as a producer is always to create something the audience hasn’t seen before, and Emilie has achieved that with The Ugly Stepsister,” says producer Maria Ekerhovd.
It’s not easy being an ugly stepsister. Elvira dreams of the dazzlingly handsome prince, Julian. When he announces a ball to find his bride, Elvira is willing to do whatever it takes to win his heart. She must conform to the kingdom’s ruthless beauty standards, eliminate the enchanting Cinderella, and, most importantly, fit the shoe! The Ugly Stepsister is a surprising and raw twist on the classic Cinderella tale, with the stepsister in the lead role. The film is inspired by the Grimm Brothers' version of the story, where the stepsister cuts off her toes to fit the shoe.
The film is directed and written by Emilie Blichfeldt. In her debut film, Lea Myren takes on the lead role of Elvira. Thea Sofie Loch Næss (The Last Kingdom) plays Cinderella, Ane Dahl Torp (Occupied, The Quake) is the stepmother, and Flo Fagerli plays younger sister Alma.
The film is produced by Maria Ekerhovd at Mer Film, known for works like Let the River Flow, The Innocents, and The War Sailor. Ekerhovd is also in post-production with upcoming films by Joachim Trier and Itonje Søimer Guttormsen.
The Ugly Stepsister has received NOK 17.8 million in production funding from the Norwegian Film Institute. It is co-produced by Lizette Jonjic for Zentropa Sweden (Another Round), Mariusz Wlodarski for Poland’s Lava Film (The Girl with the Needle), and Theis Nørgaard for Denmark’s Motor (The Dead Don’t Hurt).
The Norwegian release is scheduled for March 7, 2025 by Ymer/Scanbox
Sukkwan Island by Vladimir de Fontenay will have its world premiere at Sundance in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition. Maipo Film, represented by Synnøve Hørsdal and Petter Onstad Løkke, are co-producers.
The film is an intense psychological survival drama based on the novel by David Vann. Swann Arlaud and Woody Norman play the leading roles.
The project is a collaboration with Haut et Court, Good Chaos, and Versus Production, as well as Maipo's northern Norwegian partner, Fjordic Film.
Additionally, the documentary film The Dating Game will be shown in the World Documentary Competition. The Norwegian co-producer is Ten Thousand Images. The director is Violet Du Feng, and the Norwegian producer is Mette Cheng Munthe-Kaas.
The documentary Folktales, set at Pasvik Folk High School, has been invited to the Sundance Premieres program. The film is directed by Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing and co-produced with Fuglene by Gudmundur Gunnarsson and Kari Anne Moe.
Manager International Relations, Feature Films
