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This year's opening film of the Norwegian International Film Festival Haugesund might be about the "Battle of Oslo" - or rather, the sinking of German cruiser Blücher back in 1940 - but it has become "unpleasantly relevant," says director Daniel Fahre.
"When they talk about foreign ships [showing up] in the Norwegian fjords, it doesn't feel like a fairy tale," he notes, admitting that the dilemmas voiced in the film start to sound very familiar again.
"Lots of civilians at Oscarsborg [fortress] were trapped in the shelters. When we shot those scenes, we had little children as extras, pretending they were afraid. I had tears in my eyes. I knew they were pretending - I also knew that right now, there are other children terrified of war somewhere in the world."
He adds: "There've been many war films, but we need to remember our history. Especially when it tells us about the moments right before the war started."
The events at Oscarsborg, which allowed the Norwegian king to escape, preceded German occupation of Norway that ultimately went on for five years. The sinking of Blücher, under the leadership of Colonel Birger Eriksen, "is one of the most famous events in our history. Some people are calling it the single most important event during the Second World War in Norway," notes Fahre. Which also posed a significant challenge: how to portray something Norwegians already know so well?
"We kept it quite accurate, also because it's such a thrilling story. But we had to look for its emotional side, because there's no mention of that in military reports. I am sure Colonel Eriksen had doubts, that he was afraid. But nobody wrote about it. I wanted to follow the facts and see what was hiding behind them."
Fahre's intention was to "figure out who this man was and why he did what he did." It was Eriksen who ordered the fortress to open fire on the German invaders.
"He was under enormous pressure and nobody could help him out. Now, everyone calls him a hero. But when you see him standing there, watching a ship sink and hundreds of soldiers dying... He said this was the hardest part: seeing the consequences of what he's done." Right after the attack and also much later, with the film being set in 1940 and in 1946, Eriksen's choices came under scrutiny.
"A lot of things happened in Norway after the war. We had to process everything, find the good guys and the bad guys. Colonel Eriksen was summoned by a commission and he had to explain why he surrendered the fortress after 10 hours. I felt it was really unfair. After all, he was under a bombing attack," says Fahre.
"He became this political figure after the war and some people wanted to bring him down. I don't think he felt victorious at that moment [of the sinking]. I feel sorry for him. There is this scene of him sitting on a bench, all alone, and I'd like to sit right next to him."
He found his Colonel in Bjørn Sundquist, known for "Here Is Harold," "Handling the Undead" and "probably the most famous actor in Norway."
"He's a true legend. I was so happy he came on board, because despite Eriksen's military facade, you can always see something in his eyes. Bjørn lets the audience in, even though they don't know what this man is thinking. There was no other actor I wanted for this," admits Fahre, opening up about his protagonist.
"Norway hadn't been at war for 120 years and he had no standing orders from the government. Eriksen didn't know if these ships were German or British. He didn't know anything and put his whole career on the line. It was the right decision, but he couldn't have known it back then."
He says: "Eriksen was really close to retirement. He was an elderly officer. That's so interesting, because many war movies are about younger soldiers. All this life experience allowed him to handle that situation better than any officer in his twenties. That's something we should think about because older people are often removed from professional settings."
It was crucial to underline that "war isn't beautiful; it's gruesome and unpleasant." At the same time, always staying close to the people right in the middle of it.
"My last TV show, 'Rådebank,' was about love, sorrow and loss. I really like intimate stories.
It was fun to combine these two fascinations this time, because I like making films on that scale, but my interest is always with human drama," says Fahre. "When you are depicting a big event, it would be tempting to follow multiple perspectives, but it was really important to stay close to Eriksen at all times. We only see what he sees."
Which, especially at night, is not an awful lot.
"'Jaws' was a bit of an inspiration, because you don't see the shark. It's the same in this film. There's a threat coming, and you know it, but it's so dark and foggy."
1985 epic "Come and See" by Elem Klimov was also on Fahre's mind, as well as Bergman's "Shame."
"The only war movie he's ever made. There's a scene when this couple's house is bombed, and it really sums up that experience - you just grab onto the people you love. We actually have a tribute to that very shot in the film. These are two examples of films that depict big events and war, but from a more character-driven perspective."
"Battle of Oslo" was produced by Tom Marius Kittilsen and Knut Inge Solbu for Fenomen Studios AS. Global Constellation handles sales, while Ymer Media distributes locally.