North Star
 

PostED ON 14.10.2025

Norwegian cinema did not begin to flourish only since the time of Joachim Trier. Before him, director Anja Breien had already laid the foundations for an engaging and singular style of filmmaking.

© Erik Berglund / Aftenposten / NTB

A champion of women's cinema first, then identified as a feminist, Anja Breien, today age 85, is a pioneer whose films have helped create a paradigm shift in Scandinavia... Her story begins thanks to a lucky encounter with a film director. She is not quite twenty when he asks her what she wants to do after finishing high school. ‘I said maybe cinema,’ she confided on the Africiné website in 2012. Two weeks later, a script supervisor calls and offers Anja the job of replacing her on a film set. Anja knows nothing about the profession and after the experience, decides to seek out a film school. ‘There weren't any in Scandinavia’, so she heads to Paris, where in 1962, at 22 years old, she enrols at IDHEC, which has since become La Fémis. The timing is fortuitous, because in France, New Wave artists and films have opened the floodgates for a generation of young filmmakers, whose footsteps Anja will follow.

Between classes, she spends her time at the Cinémathèque. It's ‘also an excellent way to learn. You have to know the classics’, she says. ‘They’re a source of inspiration.’ And when new films are released, her excitement is just as palpable. ‘We’d go to the cinema instead of school, to see the latest Godard, for instance.’

She hones her craft by directing short films, a format she remains true to until 2005, the year of her last production. Her debut feature makes a lasting impression; selected for the Directors' Fortnight in 1971, ‘The Anders Case’ is entitled Rape. Shot in black and white, the crime flick focuses on a falsely accused man, serving as a veiled critique of the justice system, infused with a documentary flair.

© Malavida / DR
Wives (1975)

In her next film, Wives (1975), Anja's gaze becomes more assertive and her popularity surges. The story involves three childhood friends who reunite for one memorable day, abandoning their husbands and children, momentarily forgetting who they are and who they no longer wish to be. An engaging and humorous film that encourages improvised dialogue, Wives is a counterpart to John Cassavetes's Husbands (1971). The freedom of tone and form is impressive, even forty years down the line. According to British historian and critic Peter Cowie, precisely these qualities of freedom and form lead Anja as a director to establish foundations of a new avant-guard style, two decades before Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg claim ownership of the Dogma 95 movement.

When Wives is released, the status of women is also a sensitive topic in Norway. ‘There were quite a few protests,’ recalls Anja. But her strategy is to employ ‘humour and irony’. Wives becomes a political vehicle for advocacy, prompting the filmmaker to add two more instalments—in 1985 and 1996—imbued with the same irreverence. The trio of films generate an infectious enthusiasm for women to ‘neglect their duties’ in favour of giving free rein to their rights. And the public follows their lead.

In 1979, Anja Breien is honoured at the Cannes Film Festival for her œuvre Next of Kin. This satirical take on family life is considered her masterpiece. Even the great Ingmar Bergman, who knew a thing or two about masterpieces, agreed, mentioning that Anja's film ‘was deserving of an award’.

Carlos Gomez

Our thanks to Malavida.
With the support of CHANEL 

Screenings

Rape by Anja Breien (Voldtekt, 1971, 1h36).
Lumière Terreaux Wed 15 7:45pm | Pathé Bellecour Thu 16 9:15pm

Wives by Anja Breien (Hustruer, 1975, 1h24)
UGC Confluence Fri 17 10:45am | Lumière Bellecour Sat 18 8:30pm

Next of Kin  d'Anja Breien (Arven, 1979, 1h35)
Pathé Bellecour Wed 15 11:15am | Lumière Terreaux Thu 16 4:45pm

Wives, dix ans après by Anja Breien (Hustruer - ti ar etter, 1985, 1h28)
Lumière Terreaux Thu 16 9:45pm | Lumière Bellecour Sun 19 2:30pm