Christina Olofson (SE)

Director and producer. Born in Kristinehamn in 1948. Together with Göran du Rées she co-directed the documentary film Tältprojektet: Vem tillhör världen (“The tent project: Who owns the world?”, 1978). She has regularly explored the conditions surrounding the female creative process, for example in her documentaries A Woman Is a Risky Bet: Six Orchestra Conductors (1987) and Lines from the Heart (1996), as well as in feature films such as Honungsvargar (“Honey wolves”, 1990) and Truth or Dare (1997).

Christina Olofson started out as a film editor, and together with Göran du Rées she made the legendary documentary Tältprojektet: Vem tillhör världen? (1978). In her diverse body of filmmaking work, Olofson has both in short and feature film form explored different conditions around female activity and creativity, especially in documentaries such as A Woman Is a Risky Bet: Six Orchestra Conductors (1987) and in Lines from the Heart (1996), as well as in feature films such as Honungsvargar (“Honey wolves”, 1990) and Truth or Dare (1997).

Christina Olofson got her education at the film editing department at the national Swedish broadcaster SVT in 1970-71 and then worked as editor for TV2. In 1974 she formed Hagafilm together with filmmaker Göran du Rées and later they made the feature film documentary Tältprojektet: Vem tillhör världen (“The tent project: Who owns the world?”, 1978) which has become one of the most important documentations of the political-progressive music and theatre movement in Sweden during the 1970s.

In her next film, the short Bara ett barn (“Just a child”, 1980), Olofson tells the story of a young and unemployed woman and here she touches on the theme that she with variety and empathy will return to many times: women at work, searching for a personal creativity. As director and producer, heading her own company CO.film, Olofson has so far produced some thirty films, both under her own and other women’s direction.

The durable collaboration with cinematographer Lisa Hagstrand began with the short film Mötet med Flory (“Meeting Flory”, 1985), a film about author Elin Wägner’s life companion Flory Gate. The short film Nästa söndag ska jag måla en svart prick bättre (“Next Sunday I’ll paint a better black dot”, 1987) dealt with the Finnish painter Helen Schjerfbeck. The same year also brought the feature documentary A Woman Is a Risky Bet: Six Orchestra Conductors (1987), which received considerable attention and was awarded, among other prizes, with the award for best documentary at the Créteil International Women’s Film Festival in France.

In 1990, Olofson committed her debut as a feature fiction director with Honungsvargar (“Honey wolves”, 1990), based on Sun Axelsson’s novel. She then ventured into a collaboration with screenwriter Annika Thor. To date, they have made three films together and especially Truth or Dare (1997), based on a youth novel by Annika Thor herself, paved the way for a new wave of Swedish youth films with young girls in the lead part.

Over the years, Olofson has often returned to both the documentary and the short film form. The documentary Lines from the Heart (1996) became both a tribute to director Mai Zetterling and a portrait of three fantastic actresses: Harriet Andersson, Bibi Andersson and Gunnel Lindblom, who make a joint trip to Zetterling’s house in Ardèche in France. With The Steel-Iron-Grey Sky (2013), Olofson returned to the depiction of the Swedish working class, in this case the women working in a steel mill in Borlänge in mid-region Sweden.

Another and substantial part of Christina Olofson’s film life has concerned itself with the politics of film. She has been a board member both at the Swedish Film Institute and The Swedish Arts Grants Committee and not least been involved in the discussions around the governmental Swedish film directive. She was also a part in the creation and foundation in 1975 of SKFF, Svenska Kvinnors Filmförbund – “Swedish Women’s Film Association” – which since 2003 has merged itself into the Swedish branch of Women in Film and Television WIFT, where Olofson also has served as board member.

Mikaela Kindblom (2015, redigerad 2021)
(Translated by Jan Lumholdt)

Basic info

Main profession: Director
Born: 1948
Active: 1975-

Filmography

Regi:
Call Me Madame Maestro (2021)
Kropparnas arkiv (2015)
Stålhättor (2013)
Eriks fönster mot världen (2007)
Anette/Anette – krimjouren (2005)
Hannah med H (2003)
Kattbreven (2001)
Happy End (1999)
Sanning eller konsekvens (1997)
I rollerna tre (1996)
Evas döttrar (1995)
Rulla på (1995)
Nina älskling (1994)
Ode till stenen (1993)
Honungsvargar (1990)
Dirigenterna (1987)
Nästa söndag ska jag måla en svart prick bättre (1987)
1985. Vad hände katten i råttans år? (1985)
Mötet med Flory (1985)
Aldrig mera krig (1984)
Målaren (1982)
Bara ett barn (1980)
Tältet (1978)
Käck rebell (1976)

Manus:
Call Me Madame Maestro (2021)
Kropparnas arkiv (2015)
Stålhättor (2013)
Eriks fönster mot världen (2007)
Anette/Anette – krimjouren (2005)
I rollerna tre (1996)
Evas döttrar (1995)
Nina älskling (1994)
Ode till stenen (1993)
Honungsvargar (1990)
Dirigenterna (1987)
Nästa söndag ska jag måla en svart prick bättre (1987)
Mötet med Flory (1985)
Jacob Smitaren (1983)
Bara ett barn (1980)

Idé:
Sanning eller konsekvens (1997)

Producent:
Call Me Madame Maestro (2021)
Kropparnas arkiv (2015)
Stålhättor (2013)
Jag behöver dig mer än jag älskar dig och jag älskar dig så himla mycket (2012)
Apelsinen (2011)
Eriks fönster mot världen (2007)
Keillers Park (2006)
Anette/Anette – krimjouren (2005)
Alltid på en tisdag (2004)
Hannah med H (2003)
Skenäktenskap (2002)
Kattbreven (2001)
Happy End (1999)
Sanning eller konsekvens (1997)
I rollerna tre (1996)
Evas döttrar (1995)
Rulla på (1995)
Nina älskling (1994)
Ode till stenen (1993)
Närbilden (1990)
Imorron och imorron och imorron (1989)
Dirigenterna (1987)
Nästa söndag ska jag måla en svart prick bättre (1987)
1985. Vad hände katten i råttans år? (1985)
Jacob Smitaren (1983)
Målaren (1982)
Bara ett barn (1980)
Tältet (1978)
Jag känner mig betydelsefull (1975)

Klippning:
I rollerna tre (1996)
Evas döttrar (1995)
Ode till stenen (1993)
Det rutiga tyget (1992)
Nästa söndag ska jag måla en svart prick bättre (1987)
Själen är större än världen (1985)
Jacob Smitaren (1983)
Målaren (1982)
Bara ett barn (1980)
Tältet (1978)

Roll:
Anette/Anette – krimjouren (2005)

Regiassistent:
Två solkiga blondiner (1984)

Teknisk regi:
Jacob Smitaren (1983)

Coproducent:
Sufflösen (1999)

Exekutiv producent:
Tvätta med mig (2006)

Ansvarig utgivare:
Apelsinen (2011)
Skenäktenskap (2002)
Kattbreven (2001)
Happy End (1999)

Stillbildsfoto:
Tag ditt liv (1995)
Tältet (1978)

Dekorassistent:
Vi har vår egen sång – musikfilmen (1976)

Tack till:
Komplett galen (2005)
Dansaren (1994)

Arkiv:
Tusen bitar (2014)

Read more about the films at Svensk Filmdatabas (SE)

Published works

I rollerna tre (1996)

Awards

2004: Filmfestivalen i Zlín, Tjeckien, The Milos Macourex Award för Sanning och konsekvens.
1999: Festivalpris, bästa regi (Poznan, Polen), för Sanning eller konsekvens.
1998: Hedersomnämnande, Filmfestivalen i Berlin.
1994: Guldtackan, för Dirigenterna.
1991: Prix Egalia.
1989: Mauritz Edströms pris.
1987: Bästa dokumentärfilm, Filmfestivalen La Créteil, Frankrike.
1982: Kurt Linderstipendiet.

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