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The Guardian
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Dogme 25 announced at Cannes, as directors launch ‘cultural uprising'
A group of Danish and Swedish film-makers have relaunched the notorious avant garde Dogme 95 movement with a manifesto updated for the internet age, vowing to make five films between them in a year, from handwritten scripts and without using the internet or any emails in the creative process. 'In a world where film is based on algorithms and artificial visual expressions are gaining traction, it's our mission to stand up for the flawed, distinct and human imprint,' said the five film-makers in a statement read at the Cannes film festival on Saturday. Described in its manifesto as 'a rescue mission and a cultural uprising', Dogma 25 was founded in Copenhagen by 47-year-old Danish-Egyptian director May el-Toukhy, whose 2019 erotic drama Queen of Hearts was that year's Danish submission to the Oscars, and who has directed two episodes of British TV drama The Crown. 'After Covid, all prices have gone up and we get less film for the same amount of money,' El-Toukhy said. 'That's a huge problem for the arthouse film, because the risk-taking is gone. All mainstream stands on the shoulders of arthouse, and if the arthouse dies completely, there will be no originality left in the mainstream.' El-Toukhy is joined in Dogme 25 by film-makers Milad Alami, Annika Berg and Isabella Eklöf, and visual artist Jesper Just, 50, though the movement is open to allowing further members. Their manifesto has been endorsed by the two best-known directors to emerge from the original Dogme movement, Thomas Vinterberg and Lars von Trier, and established in collaboration with Zentropa, the film production company set up by Von Trier. The low-budget ethos of Dogme 95 films such as Vinterberg's Festen and Von Trier's The Idiots went on to have a profound influence on contemporary cinema in Europe and beyond. Some 212 Danish and international films have been granted a Dogme certificate since its manifesto was launched in Paris in March 1995 – though many films associated with the movement, such as Von Trier's Breaking the Waves and Dancer in the Dark, didn't qualify because they failed to meet its strict 'vows of chastity'. Dogma 25 only retains one of the original manifesto's self-imposed rules: that any film that is part of the movement must be 'shot where the narrative takes place'. The new movement's 10 rules commit its followers to working from a script that 'must be original and handwritten by the director', to only accept funding 'with no content-altering conditions attached', and to have 'no more than 10 people behind the camera'. At least half of any Dogma 25 film must be without dialogue, 'because we believe in visual storytelling and faith in the audience'. The use of makeup or any manipulation of faces and bodies is not allowed, and props used on set must be either 'rented, borrowed, found or used'. Most challenging of all, Dogma 25 films must be made 'in no more than a year', and the use of the internet 'is off limits in all creative processes'. At the launch event in Cannes, Just clarified that this rule meant they would only be allowed to use email for administrative purposes during the one-year film-making phase. 'We've become so dependent on the internet that you think, 'Wow, all my inspiration I draw from the internet,'' said Berg. 'The point is to liberate ourselves from it because we are very vulnerable when we constantly are attached to big firms that can target us with algorithms.' Swedish filmmaker Eklöf, whose film Holiday won best Danish film at the country's annual Bodil awards in 2018, said she had already decided on the plot of her first Dogma 25 feature. 'I was in a sadomasochistic relationship and I've never seen a film about that from a sort of naturalistic point of view,' she said. 'I would really like to make a romantic, down to earth film about that.'
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Dogma 25 Explodes at Cannes, Spearheaded by New Quintet Led by May el-Toukhy: ‘A Rescue Mission and a Cultural Uprising'
Five Danish filmmakers are picking up the baton from the founders of Dogma 95 and launching Dogma 25 along with a new manifesto and ten 'vows of chastity' to 'protect the artistic integrity of feature film and create space for uncompromising cinematic storytelling.' May el-Thouky ('Queen of Hearts,' 'The Crown'), Milad Alami ('The Charmer,' 'When the Dust Settles'), Isabella Eklöf ('Holiday,' 'Kalak'), Annika Berg ('Hurricane') and rising talent Jesper Just will lead the new revolution. More from Variety Soundstage Expansion Adds to New Jersey's Strong Incentives to Juice Film and TV Production: 'People Are Taking Notice of Us' Jai Courtney on Making an Acting Comeback in Cannes Serial Killer-Shark Thriller and if He Would Return to DC Universe: 'I Have Hope' 'The Chronology of Water': Will Kristen Stewart's Directorial Debut and Jim Belushi and Thora Birch's Supporting Performances Generate Awards Heat? Previously, Lars von Trier, Thomas Vinterberg, Søren Kragh-Jacobsen and Kristian Levring kicked off the movement that resulted in 212 Danish and international feature films, including 'The Celebration,' 'The Idiots,' 'Italian for Beginners' and more. 'We celebrate Dogma 95, the filmmakers who came before us, and those who will come after. We stand together to defend artistic freedom as a shield against pointlessness and powerlessness. Dogma 25 is a rescue mission and a cultural uprising,' stated new leaders. 'In a world where formulaic films based on algorithms and artificial visual expression are gaining traction, it is our mission to stand up for the flawed, distinct, and human imprint. We champion the uncompromising and unpredictable, and we fight against the forces working to reduce cinematic art to an ultra-processed consumer product.' With the manifesto and the vow of chastity, the five directors commit to working within a structure that requires 'immersion, restraint and artistic necessity.' Three core themes are 'Back to the physical reality,' 'Aesthetic restraint,' as at least half of the film must be without dialogue, and 'economic and geographic accountability,' meaning the film must be shot where the narrative takes place. Funding may only be accepted if it doesn't impact the content. The groundbreaking announcement was made today at Zentropa's villa, attended by the collective and Dogma 25's key partners: Nordisk Film, DR and Nordisk Film Distribution. In a statement, von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg said: 'In '95, we made films in the certainty of peace and created a revolt against conformity. In '25, new dogmas were created, now in a world of war and uncertainty. We wish you the best of luck on your march toward reconquering Danish film.' Dogma 25 is an initiative of May el-Toukhy, who brought together the five directors. In late 2024, she reached out to Zentropa to establish the initiative as 'a space for development, reflection and innovation.' Louise Vesth and Sisse Graum Jørgensen, two of Zentropa's managing directors, are in charge of the financing and launch of Dogma 25. The Danish Film Institute is providing support for the development of the concept and manifesto as well as production, while TrustNordisk will oversee international sales and ensure a wide global distribution for the films. Here's the manifesto in its entirety:Dogma 25 is a collective of filmmakers founded in Copenhagen in the spring of 2025. Our stated purpose is to preserve the originality of cinema and the opportunity to create film on its own terms. The role of the director has increasingly been reduced to that of project manager, the film to a commodity, and the audience to consumers. Experimental practice is stifled by fear of risk-taking, which suffocates artistic exploration and silences unique voices. When films are merely executed and not allowed to evolve organically, it puts the art form in danger of becoming functional, obedient and thereby irrelevant. In a world where formulaic films based on algorithms and artificial visual expression are gaining traction, it's our mission to stand up for the flawed, distinct, and human imprint. We champion the uncompromising and unpredictable and we fight the forces working to reduce cinematic art to an ultra-processed consumer good. By scaling down production, we ensure that everyone on the team has an intimate relationship with the film and its message. This will enhance mutual trust and a sense of collective responsibility for the film and for each other. It also allows us to safeguard the flexibility that is vital in making a creative process dynamic and intuitive, rather than purely executive. We celebrate Dogma 95, all the filmmakers who came before us, and those who will come after. We stand together to defend artistic freedom as a shield against pointlessness and powerlessness. DOGMA 25 is a rescue mission and a cultural uprising. To protect and preserve what we hold dear, we hereby submit to the unflinching and unbreakable set of rules called: THE VOW OF CHASTITY.I vow to submit to the following set of rules drawn up and confirmed by Dogma 25:We compel ourselves to write the script by hand in order to nurture the kind of intuition that flows most freely from the dream, channeled through the hand onto the insist on a cinematic approach to filmmaking because we believe in visual storytelling and have faith in the commit to produce the films relying on real people within our physical reality – rather than in a digital one infused with assume responsibility for keeping budgets down so the team retains final say in all artistic commit to working in close collaboration to build trust and strengthen our shared as an art form becomes artificial and generic when we portray a location in a false as we strive to maintain the authenticity of the location, we also want to portray the human body without a filter. We celebrate it – warts and commit to making films using objects that already exist and renounce the ahistorical and self-destructive culture of abstain from any lengthy processes that stand in the way of creative flow. Best of Variety New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week Emmy Predictions: Talk/Scripted Variety Series - The Variety Categories Are Still a Mess; Netflix, Dropout, and 'Hot Ones' Stir Up Buzz Oscars Predictions 2026: 'Sinners' Becomes Early Contender Ahead of Cannes Film Festival
