Low Expectations. Photo: Maipo Film/Andreas Bjørseth
Norwegian feature film Low Expectations, directed by Eivind Landsvik, has been selected for Directors’ Fortnight in Cannes. This marks director Eivind Landsvik's second time at the festival. The film stars Marie Ulven, known worldwide as the artist Girl in Red.
Written and directed by Eivind Landsvik, Low Expectations is his second film to screen in Cannes. In 2023, his acclaimed short film Tits was selected for the Cannes Short Film Competition.
Low Expectations will have its world premiere in Cannes. Marie Ulven, known worldwide as the artist Girl in Red, plays the lead role as Maja.
The selection of Low Expectations places Landsvik among a small group of Norwegian directors to have screened work in Directors’ Fortnight, the independent parallel section of the Cannes Film Festival known for discovering new talent and screening works by established filmmakers.
“For a Norwegian director, being invited to Directors’ Fortnight is a special distinction. Norwegian filmmakers are rarely represented in this section, and this selection confirms Eivind Landsvik as a striking new directing talent. This continues Norwegian cinema's strong presence in Cannes — the world’s foremost arena for cinematic art,” says Kjersti Mo, CEO of the Norwegian Film Institute.
“It is a great honour to be invited to screen the film in Cannes at Directors’ Fortnight, where so many of my heroes have shown their films over the years. I am immensely grateful that the film will begin its journey here, and I am looking forward to the film meeting its audience", says director Eivind Landsvik
Synopsis:
After years of hard work in the studio, touring, and partying, Maja (29) collapses. The acclaimed artist is forced to put everything on hold. Depressed and broke, she has moved back home with her mother and works part-time at a local high school. Maja tries to distance herself from her chaotic past, observing life from the sidelines rather than participating
Low Expectations is produced by Lotte Sandbu and Synnøve Hørsdal for Maipo Film AS, and has received NOK 11 million in production grants from the Norwegian Film Institute.
The film is written and directed by Eivind Landsvik. The cast includes Marie Ulven, Tone Mostraum, Embla Berntsen, Anders Danielsen Lie and Snorre Kind Monsson. The Norwegian distributor is Nordisk Film Distribusjon, while international sales are handled by the French sales company Salaud Morisset. The film will be released in Norwegian cinemas on 11 September 2026.
Directors’ Fortnight, or Quinzaine des Cinéastes, is an independent parallel section held alongside the Cannes Film Festival. Separate from Cannes’ Official Selection, it is internationally recognised as one of the festival’s most respected showcases for emerging and established filmmakers with singular artistic voices.
The programme presents short films, medium-length films and feature films across fiction, documentary, animation and live action. Its selection is guided by one core principle: the filmmaker’s work with mise-en-scène, and the originality of their artistic expression.
Only five Norwegian films have previously been selected for the programme: Rape (1971), director Anja Breien, Strike (1975), Oddvar Bull Tuhus, and director Bent Hamer’s Eggs (1995), Kitchen Stories (2003) and Factotum (2005).
Manager International Relations, Feature Films
At the height of her music career, Maja falls apart and has to step away from her ambitions. Depressed and broke, she moves back home with her mother and works part-time at a local high school. Far from the spotlight, wrapped in everyday kindness, she slowly finds her way back to life.
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