Jørgen Leth

Man on a Ledge premiere in LA

2012-01-27T00:19:00.000-08:00

The day of the premiere started with a dark sky over Los Angeles. Rain was whipping the transparent plastic walls around the tables on the terrace of Hotel Petit Ermitage in in West Hollywood, Asger and Mikael Rieks were reading the showbizz media's reviews on their computers. They were pretty negative towards the film. A couple of reviewers thought the story was too incredible, not least the end. But they all thought the film was professionally well made. Asger had done a good job tying the loose ends together, the images were amazing, the cast well functioning, good actors making the story alive.

At 3 p.m. Asger had a meeting with Brian Glazer's Imagine-producers about a big new project. Later some of Asger's Danish friends joined us in the hotel's bar. Ulrik Wivel, Elvira Lind, David Dencik, Tue Wallin, Gregers Heering, Nicolaj Fuglsig, René Ezra. They had to leave before us, to pick up their tickets at the theater in the very tightly security-checked system. Asger and I were picked up by a limousine precisely 6.30 pm. Asger had asked me to accompany him on the Red Carpet. It was an honour, and I was proud.
A documentary crew from DR had been cleared to be with us in the limo, but they weren't allowed to follow us through the media set up. Big lamps were lighting the entrance of the legendary Grauman's Chinese Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard. First a couple of hundred still photographers had their classical shots in front of the film's poster, then reporters and cameramen from about fifty tv-channels. A pretty amazing sight. Wilder than the Tour de France 'mixed zone', I thought. I was impressed by Asger's relaxed and varied answers. It was like a film itself.

Then into the darkness in the Chinese's mythological cinema. And the film was rolling. Immediately it seemed to turn the audience into a happy atmosphere of suspense and excitement. High energy and visual imagination from the opening scenes and on. We got the dizzying view of Mid-Manhattan's street canyons thrown at us. It starts with Sam Worthington crawling out of a hotel room's window and standing on the ledge of Hotel Roosevelt's 21nd floor. Then flashback to his getting involved in a fight in the Sing Sing prison where he is a prisoner dressed in orange. Then he is allowed to attend a funeral of close family, and gets involved in another, this time well planned fight with his brother, during which he gets away from his prison guards and disappears after a dramatic car chase.

Read about the storyline another place, it is pretty wild, but the main element is that he is standing on the ledge threatening to jump, and that this scene is attracting a big New York crowd on the street. Only much later we understand that the attraction and chaos is part of a complicated heist to steal a diamond which again will prove his innocense in events that led to his being in prison. He needs the right setting for his false suicide threat. Elisabeth Banks plays a police psychologist who has a reputation for negotiating with suicide desperados, even if she lost a couple of them. There is a number of other policemen, some nasty and negative, others simply evil and even criminal. Ed Harris plays a wealthy, corrupt real estate mogul and diamond collector, the villain of the film. The plot thickens (he is very good).
There is big applause after the film.

Then after party in a big hall on top of the theatre. More people from Danish film are here, among them LA residents like Kim Magnusson, who, with Rieks, helped start Asger's career with the production of the groundbreaking documentary, 'Ghosts of Cité Soleil. Also present were former ballet dancer Alexander Kølpin, and actor Ulrich Thomsen, in town to cast a film he will shoot this year. The composer Mads Helleberg coming in from Sundance, he composed the score for one of the Danish entries.

Lots of food and drinks, a big open bar, individual tables where director and stars could invite their guests. Selected photographers were there to shoot pics with celebrities. All other guests had received instruction not to bring camera nor use cellphone. We knew there was an after-after party waiting for us at Petit Ermitage.

That became very animated. The owner Stephan had produced a big dark cake copy of the film's poster with the man on the ledge, only here with Asger's face replacing Sam Worthington's. I have a conversation with Asger's manager Darin, who tells me Asger has many proposals to consider. They are setting up meetings while he is here. He tells me he has a reputation of being good with actors, and that's very important in this town. I also talk with one of the producers who tells me he was impressed with Asger insisting on shooting all the dramatic ledge-scenes on location, instead of in a studio.

Later in the night, Nicolaj Fuglsig was the first one to jump into the pool. We all sat down around the outdoor fireplace on the roof and had our view over the lights of Los Angeles. I left the party at 4 am, others were staying.

Next day was hangover day, but it finished with a wonderful drive in cabriolet towards the sunset in Santa Monica. We stopped to take pics of a big billboard with Man on a Ledge. The sunset spectacular as always here. An incredible piece of pop art. With sharp edges of black sea towards the glowing sky.

And next day Asger had meetings again, with Sony and with Warner. And Thursday evening brought the precise and positive review in Wall Street Journal where among other good observations the reviewer says this about the director: '... (he) has directed only one other film, 'Ghosts of Cité Soleil', a highly stylized doc that revealed a soul yearning to breathe free of nonfiction. He has an instinct for weaving sturdy narrative fabric out of intersecting plot lines.' And Friday 27th the film will open in 2800 cinemas in the USA, plus in many cities around the world. 4500 prints have been made.

For the full Wall Street Journal review, please visit this link.

Danish Film Week in Vietnam

2011-12-05T13:51:00.001-08:00

A special Danish Film Week is currently taking place in Vietnam as part of the celebration of the 40th Anniversary of Diplomatic relations between Denmark and Vietnam. A selection of remarkable Danish films have been especially chosen to screen in Vietnam, including the Jørgen Leth classic, 'Five Obstructions'. Leth has been invited to open the film week and participate in the festival, giving a Q&A and a couple of masterclasses.

The Vietnamese TV channel, VTC International, made this reportage from the Danish Film Week:

Jørgen Leth:

'It has been an interesting experience to meet film audiences in Ho Chi Minh (Saigon) and Hanoi. I had been invited to introduce a Danish Film Week here as part of the celebration of 40 years of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and Denmark and in connection with Crown Prince Frederik's official visit. Wednesday evening I attended Niels Lan Doky's Concert at the Opera House in Saigon. He played first with his Danish trio, and later with Vietnamese musicians. After the concert the delegation went to a badminton event featuring Peter Gade against a Vietnamese top player and, in a show match, former Olympic champion Poul Erik Højer against another popular local player. Peter Gade played brilliantly and won a very intense match in three closely contested sets.

Thursday evening was the opening of the Danish Film Week. I did a short speech about Danish film hisotry before introducing 'The Five Obstructions', followed by a lively Q&A. Friday evening repetition of the same program for a full house at Hanoi Cinemateque. Again many good questions after the film. I enjoyed it. And then Sunday the first of two masterclasses. This one with Hanoi Doc Lab students. They listened eagerly when I explained my ideas and methods.

Sunday evening I had a superb Vietnamese dinner at the old hotel Metropole with my old friend Jean Claude Dicquemare, owner of Hotel Cormier Plage where I now live on the north coast of Haiti. He has accompanied me on this long voyage; he was the son of the last French genereal governor and lived in Vietnam all his childhood.

The second masterclass will be Tuesday with another group of Vietnamese documentary filmmakers. And then Wednesday after some shopping and lunch with the Danish ambassador John Nielsen, a late evening departure with Vietnam Airlines to Paris and then to Miami with American Airlines . And next morning to Cap-Haitien.'

For more about the Danish Film Week and for the full film programme, please visit the Danish Film Institute or the Danish Embassy in Vietnam.

Full house in Montréal, November 9-20.

2011-11-15T23:56:00.000-08:00

I enjoy discussing my work with interested audiences. Here in Montréal I have had full houses in almost all screenings, and also at my masterclass. People stay for the Q&A after the film, and there have been many good questions which inspired me to explain method and thoughts.

The nine films selected for this retrospective are: Motion Picture (1970), Good and Evil (1974), Haiti. Untitled (1996), The Perfect Human (1967), The Five Obstructions (2004), A Sunday in Hell (1977), Erotic Man (2010), 66 Scenes from America (1982), New Scenes from America (2002). I was very happy with the warm response to Erotic Man yesterday, November 14.

An extra event in the margin of the prestigeous RIDM (Rencontres Internationales du documentaire de Montréal) is that November 15, a new book with English translations of my poems is launched with a reading. The title of the book is 'Trivial Everyday Things', published by BookThug, and Martin Aitken has translated the poems. For more information, please visit The Danish Film Institute.

Leth Retrospective at RIDM, Montreal

2011-11-07T06:01:00.000-08:00

The prestigious Canadian documentary film festival, Rencontres Internationale du Documentaire de Montréal, which runs from the 9th-20th of November 2011, will host a big retrospective of Leth's oeuvre. During the course of the festival, a number of Leth's classics will screen, including 'Good and Evil', 'The Five Obstructions', 'The Perfect Human', 'A Sunday in Hell' and his latest work, 'Erotic Man' - just to name a few.

Leth himself will be in Montreal to attend screenings, participate in Q&As, hold masterclasses about his films and methods and not least do a poetry reading in connection to the brand new publication of an English translation of a collection of his poetry. The new publication is called 'Trivial Everyday Things' and is published by Canadian 'Book Thug'.

For a full schedule of Jørgen Leth screenings and performances during Rencontres Internationale du Documentaire de Montréal, please visit the festival's own website, RIDM.

No CPH:DOX without Leth

2011-11-03T03:42:00.000-07:00

The prestigious and bold international documentary film festival, CPH:DOX, just wouldn't be the same, if it didn't screen a work made by or about the grand old man of Danish documentary and experimental film, Jørgen Leth. Thus this years festival presents a brand new portrait film about Leth, made by Norwegian director and philosopher Truls Lie. The film is called 'The Seduced Human' and takes a thorough look at the man who emerged from the rubbles after his house and home during the past 20 years suddenly fell to pieces in the horrible earthquake in Haiti two years ago.

For more information about the film and for screening dates during the festival, please visit CPH:DOX or the film's own website, The Seduced Human

New poetry collection receives great reviews

2011-10-17T06:56:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend, Jørgen Leth's recently published poetry collection, 'Hvad er det nu det hedder' (What's it called), has received great reviews in Danish newspapers. Some announce it to be one of Leth's best poetry works ever, while others praise its amazing coolness, its honesty and its wild untamed will to be imperfect and to be vulnerable.

For a selection of reviews, please visit the following links (Danish):

For more about the book, please visit Leth's publisher, Gyldendal.

Leth's poetry in English

2011-10-13T22:29:00.000-07:00

Jørgen Leth has just published his first collection of poems in over five years, a collection called "Hvad er det nu det hedder" (What's it called?) about once again finding words and meaning after a big disaster and once again finding one's footing. At the same time, a greater selection of Leth's poetry, including some of Leth's most popular writings over a span of almost 40 years, will be published in English by the Canadian publisher BookThug in Toronto. In November, the collection with the title 'Trivial Everyday Things' will be presented at the documentary film festival of Montreal, RIDM 2011.

Riga International Film Festival

2011-09-18T10:31:00.000-07:00

September is the month for the largest film festival in Riga, the International Film Festival 'Arsenals'. The festival is a highly respected old film festival with a history that goes back to Soviet times, when 'Cinema Days '86' showed a variety of films otherwise not accessible to the public. The festival in its current incarnation includes a number of competitions and retrospective screenings.

This year, Jørgen Leth was invited to Riga with his newest film, 'Erotic Man' represented in main competition. In addition, Leth was given a special honorary award for his cinematic work in general.

For more information about the festival, please visit this link.

LETH BICYCLE SPECIAL

2011-09-18T09:53:00.000-07:00

On the 19th and 20th of September 2011, The Danish Cinemateque has arranged for a special open air screening of three Jørgen Leth classics, his famous bicycle films 'Stars and Water Carriers' (1974), 'The Impossible Hour' (1975) and 'A Sunday in Hell (1976). The screenings will take place in Ørstedsparken during the first two days of the cycling world championship in Copenhagen. Leth himself will of course be present to introduce his films.

For more information about the special screenings, please visit DFI.

The cycling world championships in Copenhagen

2011-09-18T09:23:00.000-07:00

Monday 19 September through Sunday 26 is the week of the cycling world championships. I am looking forward to commentating this event, probably the biggest sports event ever in Copenhagen. We will concentrate on the elite men. The time trial Wednesday takes place in the historic center of the town, a spectacular frame for a cycle race. The line race on Sunday will see the 200 man strong field racing through the beautiful Rudersdal area, passing Søllerød Slot and Geels Bakke many times.

The world championships is traditionally near the end of the professional road racing season. And the champion will wear his rainbow-coloured jersey in all races throughout next season.

That reminds me of the exceptionally exciting last week of this year's Tour de France rich in dramatic intensity and courageous riding. Dennis Ritter, Rolf Sørensen and i enjoyed doing our job as commentators. And TV2 had a record number of viewers.

Mads Rottbøll made a reportage about my work during the great Galibier stage. It gives an idea of my working day in a decisive moment of the race where the main contenders demonstrated courage, endurance and suffering.

Postcard from Jørgen and Asger Leth

2011-08-26T03:15:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, Odense Film Festival asked Jørgen Leth if he would please make a video postcard for the festival. By video postcard the festival meant a short online greeting to its audience. However, as Jørgen Leth seldomly takes on a challenge without twisting it, the result was somewhat different than expected. At the time of the request, Jørgen was on vacation in France with his son, filmmaker Asger Leth. Together they picked up the only camera at hand, an iphone, and shot the following piece, simply calling it: Postcard.

South Sudan revisited

2011-07-09T04:25:00.000-07:00

In 1962, Jørgen Leth went to South Sudan and registered the intense ethnical tensions already then unnervingly visible, yet still not internationally recognized. Back then, Jørgen Leth reported back to his employer, the leftist newspaper Dagbladet Aktuelt. Now, almost 50 years later, Danish newspaper Information reprints Leth's old articles, supplemented by a brand new commentary by Leth himself, reflecting on South Sudan's newfound independence.

To read the article, please visit Information.

Erotic Man at Roskilde Festival

2011-06-27T07:03:00.000-07:00

Roskilde Festival 2011 has barely begun its infamous days of warm up, and already the big Roskilde Cinema tent at the camping site is packed with happy people. In participation with CPH:DOX, Leth's 'Erotic Man' has just been screened in front of a completely packed tent of 750 people, and 400 people have lined up in front of the cinema tent, unable to get in. Jørgen Leth himself introduced the film via skype and is now getting ready to participate in a Q&A about the film.

Courtesy: Christoffer Rohr

The atmosphere in the tent is intense. 750 people are cheering for Jorgen, as he gets ready to introduce his film. Even though Jorgen, well into his 70s, has over 40 films behind him, he still manages to excite younger generations with his latest work, the long awaited 'Erotic Man'.

Leth is cool jazz

2011-06-11T09:43:00.000-07:00

After a very successful tour with the great 'Vi sidder bare her' (Simpson, Toksvig, Vibskov, Baden, Leth), Leth once again took the stage on Thursday, this time participating in an alternative event at Copenhagen JazzHouse. Curated by Danish poet Søren Ulrik Thomsen, the 'Jazz'n'Poetry' event creatively combined jazz music by the Danish jazz septet, 'Det Glemte Kvarter' with poetry readings and anecdotes by highly acclaimed poets Søren Ulrik Thomsen, Nicolaj Stockholm and Jørgen Leth himself. The event has received great reviews in today's papers.

Excerpt from Politiken: 'Leth enters the stage and invokes legendary Bud Powell and the two Polish jazz musicians Tomasz Stanko and Krzysztof Komeda. For the last half century, Leth has been Danish poetry's equivalent to cool jazz.'

For a full review, please visit Politiken.

Leth defends Lars von Trier

2011-05-19T07:38:00.000-07:00

Jørgen Leth, currently on his Denmark tour with the band 'Vi sidder bare her', has taken time off to comment on the controversy regarding Lars von Trier's infamous press conference at the Cannes Film festival yesterday. "The fact that Lars von Trier has been banned from the festival due to his comments on Hitler and the Second World War is outright ridiculous", says Leth. Leth is very surprised that the Cannes establishment doesn't recognize the statements from Trier as merely a testament to his infamous need to provoke. "There is no doubt that Lars got carried away", says Leth, "but he has given a formal apology and that should be the end of it."

Leth will give statements to several different media today. To see and hear more about Leth's take on the situation, please visit TV2 and Politiken among many others.

The world according to Jørgen Leth

2011-05-07T02:17:00.000-07:00

This week, Planete Doc Film Festival in Warszawa presents an impressive selection of Danish documentary films. Jørgen Leth's 'Erotic Man' will compete in two different categories, the Millenium Award and the Canon Cinematography Award, and Leth himself is in Warszawa for the festival to personally introduce the Polish premiere of his film. In addition, Leth and Polish actor Jan Nowicki will reunite on stage after more than 20 years. Nowicki starred in Leth's 'Notes on Love (1989), and they haven't seen each other since.

On the occasion of Leth's visit to Poland, the Polish company Against Gravity, represented by Artur Liebhart, will introduce their latest publication, a box set with 11 of Leth's most important films, presented in their prestigious series of box sets: 'The world according to...'. Only one other documentary filmmaker has been published in this series so far: the legendary Werner Herzog.

For more information about the festival, please visit DFI (Danish) or Planete Doc. For more about the box set release, please visit Against Gravity.

... IN THE WOODS and The Human Experience Tour

2011-04-25T21:42:00.000-07:00

Five years ago, Jørgen Leth accepted an invitation from Jennifer Elster to participate in her experimental documentary project IN THE WOODS. She shot scenes with Jørgen in the Hareskoven forest outside Copenhagen, Denmark. The project was later expanded into the trilogy 'Being, and Jørgen Leth also participated in several NYC shooting sessions for this groundbreaking project. Apart from Leth, the project now included people like Dave Matthews, Yoko Ono, Rufus Wainwright and Bob Mankoff, to mention a few.

The first installment, '...In the Woods Experience' is now complete and has begun to seep into the world in some very unusual ways. You may already have come across a clip or wandered down an online path. These byte-sized puzzle-pieces of content, along with the projects interactive website are all just prequels to the real experience, which lies in the films themselves.

Jennifer Elster: 'The Experience elicits the types of thoughts, feelings and ideas that are not essential and fundamental to who we are as thinking, dreaming, worrying, hoping and loving human beings, but that stretch and push us into areas that, both immediately and over time, bring us closer to an individual and collective raised awareness.'

Jørgen Leth: 'I didn't know where this would take me. From the very first moment it felt like an exploration of unknown territory.'

To explore the interactive Part One, please visit www.InTheWoodsExperience.com

'Vi sidder bare her' announces a Denmark tour 2011

2011-04-12T04:49:00.000-07:00

The music trio 'Vi sidder bare her', consisting of Jørgen Leth, Frithjof Toksvig and Mikael Simpson, return to the stage for a spring tour through Denmark. They join forces with musicians Karin Dahlsgaard, Asger Baden and Henrik Vibskov and will be performing pieces from their two albums, 'Vi sidder bare her' and 'Ikke euforisk'. For more information and current updates, join their facebook event. For tickets, please visit the links below.

18.05.11: Aarhus, Train

19.05.11: Aalborg, Studenterhuset

20.05.11: Roskilde, Gimle

21.05.11: Odense, Kansas City

27.05.11: Copenhagen, Bremen

Erotic Man in Brazil

2011-04-03T09:12:00.000-07:00

The prestigious international documentary film festival 'E tudo Verdade' (It's All True) that runs from 1st till 10th of April 2011 has included Jørgen Leth's 'Erotic Man' as part of their Special Programs. Jørgen Leth and his son Kristian Leth, who made the original score for the film, are both present at the screenings in Brazil. For more information about the festival and the screening of 'Erotic Man', please visit their website.

Leth blogs with Danish literature's enfant terrible, Lars Bukdahl

2011-03-30T00:15:00.000-07:00

Currently an extensive online correspondence is taking place between Jørgen Leth and literary critic and poet Lars Bukdahl. On the 24th of March, Bukdahl publishes a blog post called "Tre nutidige bemærkninger til Jørgen Leth anno 1967" in which Bukdahl updates a couple of Leth's classic poems from the 1960s. Bukdahl continues by revitalizing a known review from Danish newspaper Information of Leth's poetry collection, 'Sportsdigte'. Leth reads the blog posts and finds them rather amusing. So far, this has resolved in three different blog contributions from Leth on Bukdahl's thread of blog posts. To follow their mutual blogging, please visit Lars Bukdahl's blog (Danish).

MoMA masterclass now online

2011-03-17T00:07:00.001-07:00

In November 2010, Jørgen Leth held a masterclass about the grand old cinematic master, Godard. The masterclass took place at one of the world's most prestigious museums: MoMA, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. MoMa is famous for its comprehensive collections of modern art, including the ownership of more that 22.000 films and over four million film stills. And now, excerpts of Leth's masterclass have been published online. To read more about the masterclass and see parts of it captured on video, please visit www.strasberg.com

Moving back to Haiti

2011-01-27T16:36:00.000-08:00

I have decided to move back to Haiti. Got a very good offer from my friends, the owners of the Cormier Plage hotel, near Cap Haitien which has for 20 years been my preferred writer's refuge. I was visiting with Frank Esmann when we did the radio documentaries recently. My old friend Jean Claude Dicquemare, famous scuba diver, said straight away to me: "Why don't you come and live with us here? I'll make a good deal for you. And we will take good care of you." I felt immediately this is what I want to do. This cuts through all indecision and depression about feeling rootless in the Dominican Republic. I felt I will come home.

I always felt at ease at Cormier, able to write almost from the moment I arrived. In a long period living there I wrote 'Traberg'. And later 'The Imperfect Human' and poems (as you can see in notes). I just feel relieved after I made that decision. Then I will again be in the country I know a lot about and which taught me so much about life. And yet, I will be at a pleasant distance to the busy and dramatic circles and events of Port-au-Prince. When I want to go there, it's just a 20 minutes trip with Tortugair or Caribintair. I can have friends and family visit me, eventually flying directly to Cap-Haitien from Fort Lauderdale. You can see references to Cormier Plage in many poems and in the novel 'Traberg' and the memoires.

The idea of staying in Cormier Plage makes me feel at home. The next couple of days I will pack my belongings, including many books, here at Hostal Tierra Plana, in Zona Colonial, and Tuesday 1 February, I will get on the Caribe Tours bus that will take me from Santo Domingo through Santiago and Dajabon directly to Cap-Haitien. I have invited Schilaine to visit me the last couple of days here. She will arrive tomorrow morning with American Airlines from Port-au-Prince. That's the first time she travels alone on a flight.

Leth's take on the political situation in Haiti

2011-01-18T23:15:00.000-08:00

Jørgen Leth and DR journalist Frank Esmann have been in Haiti during the last few weeks of political turmoil, recording a radio documentary series about the current state of the poverty-ridden, politically explosive and chaotic aftermath of the earthquake in the small Caribean country. Today, Danish newspaper Politiken publishes a long interview with Leth about his take on ex-dictator "Baby Doc's" return to Haiti. For more information, please visit Politiken.

TV documentary on Leth's return to Haiti

2011-01-10T23:05:00.001-08:00

Tomorrow, on Wednesday the 12th of January 2011, the national Danish broadcaster DR will be screening a brand new television documentary about Jørgen Leth and his long awaited return to Haiti. A year after the terrible earthquake that left his beloved home of 20 years completely shattered, Leth returns to his former home with DR journalist Michael Plejdrup and photographer, Peter Palm. The TV programme "Da jorden skælvede" documenting Leth's emotional return to Haiti will air primetime on DR1 at 8pm.

Back in Haiti

2010-12-31T02:05:00.000-08:00

The Danish Queen, Margrethe, found in the ruins.

On November 29th, Michael Plejdrup and cinematographer Peter Palm arrived in Santo Domingo. The next day they filmed me in my room in Hostal Tierra Plana. My new base. Michael sold to me a long time ago the idea of doing a tv-documentary about my first trip back to Haiti. On Monday December 1st, we arrived in Port-au-Prince at 11.45 a.m. Very strong feeling of coming back. A friend at the Diplomatic Lounge helped with formalities. My driver Johnny was waiting with my consular vehicle. We made stops at some of my preferred places in Pétionville. Had pizza at Fior di Latte, bought Dijon mustard and good Italien vinaigre from the Iranian merchant of luxury gourmet foods. Then the road towards Jacmel. We detoured at Leogane, the epicenter of the earthquake, to see the destruction. I told the story about what happened. The magic afternoon light over the mountains. Stopped to enjoy the view over the Jacmel bay.

The destroyed houses in Jacmel. Our beautiful rooms in the Florita, my former neighbour, offered views on Rue du Commerce. The manager Jean received us. Schilaine came and kissed me. She brought her babyboy. Beleque, now the bartender here, mixed his famous rhum sour. And now the big coup: my cook Madam Annette had been allowed to come and cook for us. Lobsters of course. With her famous mayonaise. André entered with his big smile. Ready to dance once more in spite of everything.

From the left: Vodou priestess Manbo Ninie, Beleque and Madam Annette.

Breakfast at Hotel Florita in Jacmel: Michael Plejdrup, Schilaine Cayo and Peter Palm.

We waited until next morning to go and see the ruin. Family scene: André and his wife and little daughter living in a tent in the garden. The debris not cleared. The ground floor intact, the two upper floors pancaked. Rubble everywhere. Later in the morning: the truck with Reynald Lally's people arrived to collect the artwork from the house, pack it and send it away. The sculptures in OK shape. Paintings torn and with many holes. Some could be repaired.

The gardener André with his wife and their small daughter in a tent in the garden.

Three days later we went to Port-au-Prince to stay a couple of night at the Oloffson. We visited the Sean Penn tent camp at the Pétionville Golf Club's steep terrain. 55.000 people. Very impressive organization. Good work. We knew there might come some trouble after the election result announcement Tuesday evening, so Michael and Peter decided to leave one day earlier. I had some urgent business to do with Schilaine. We were at the Oloffson when all hell broke loose at midnight. When election results were announced on national television, loud screams and many shots were heard all over the city. Next day it was impossible to leave the hotel. All parts of town a warzone. Barricades, fires, angry mobs. Once more I felt drawn into the Haitian drama. I sat down on the terrace and wrote a piece for the Danish daily, Information. Thursday we ventured out, it was still a total warzone, but rain had kept mobs inside in the morning. We sneaked out in a nightmarish zigzag to the airport which was closed, but I got out on a small Dominican plane. I wrote the second Information article from Santo Domingo.

I spent Christmas at Hotel Atlantis, Las Terrenas on the Dominican northcoast. This was where I recuperated in the first two months after being evacuated from Jacmel after the earthquake. Before going back to Santo Domingo on December 27th, I suffered a lot of pain in my back. A Dominican doctor gave me two injections. When arriving in Santo Domingo I couldn't get out of the car, a terrible pain hit me. I had to be assisted to get home. The French embassy's doctor, Dr. Amat-Pena came to see me next morning. She sent me to x-ray and scanning cliniques and wrote out a lot of medication. Today Frank Esmann arrived in Santo Domingo. We will spend New Year's Eve together at the roof terrace of this small hotel. And then fly out to Port-au-Prince on Sunday, January 2nd. We will produce a three part radio documentary series in Haiti. Two old storytellers coming back, telling about what we see. After seeing me again, Dr. Amat gave me permission to travel.

Leth at MOMA

2010-11-07T07:13:00.000-08:00

After a great Danish premiere of 'Erotic Man', Jørgen Leth is once again on his way. After the tragic Haitian earthquake last year left his home in ruins, Leth has decided to move his home base to the neighbouring country, Dominican Republic. On his way back to the Caribean, Leth will once again visit New York City, this time giving a unique presentation of Godard's work 'Vivre Sa Vie' at MOMA on the 8th of November 2010 at 5pm.

Danish premiere of Erotic Man

2010-11-02T10:08:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow, on the 3rd of November 2010, Jørgen Leth's long awaited film 'Erotic Man' (Det Perfekte Menneske) will premiere in Denmark at the grand opening of this year's CPH:DOX.

A big galla event at the famous Danish music venue VEGA will host the official premiere screening including a live talk with Mr Leth himself, which will be live streamed throughout Denmark in as many as 40 cinemas. That way, Danes all over the country get a unique chance to see both film and Jørgen Leth on the big screen.

For a selection of Danish interviews with Jørgen Leth prior to the screening, please visit the links below.

Politiken

Information

For more information on the event, please visit

CPH:DOX

Jørgen Leth Festival in Kolding, Denmark

2010-09-19T00:48:00.000-07:00

On september 23rd - 26th 2010, Danish town Kolding will be hosting a Jørgen Leth festival. The festival is a tribute to Leth and his æuvre with four days of film screenings, live debates, live concert with 'Vi Sidder Bare Her' (Simpson, Toksvig, Leth), art exhibitions with works from Leth's Haiti collection and a unique chance to see a 20 minutes excerpt of his latest film, Erotic Man. Leth himself will be present throughout the festival.
For more information, please visit the festival's own website or find them on facebook.

A very satisfying premiere

2010-09-12T06:27:00.000-07:00

A very satisfying premiere and second public screening. A warm introduction of my body of work and this film, which chief programmer Steve Gravestock thinks is one of my very best. Big applaus when Five Obstructions is mentioned. Everyone has seen it, and many know several other of my films, too.

No walk-outs!

The day prior to my screening, I went to see the new Godard film, which I think is magnificent. There half of the cinema walked out! I got nervous, thought to myself ' well mine is at least as experimental as his, breaking narrative conventions, allowing itself to be slow', guarding myself with my old avant-garde defiance mood: ' this is how it should be, otherwise something is wrong' etc. But no need! People stayed, and throughout my screening there was a vibrant atmosphere of genuine interest. Warm applaus afterwards. a good Q&A, civilized questions, no aggressions, me at the top of my game. Said among other things: 'Yes it's not a democratic film, but a rather egocentric, idiosyncratic film, only true to my own preferences, not wanting to be neither fair nor reasonable, only to take it as far as it needs to go. Many approached me afterwards, I was moved, thanks, and autographs.

Our own afterparty, producer Marianne as hostess. About 25 dinner guests at Le Select, a French bistro. Among my guests were Anders Leifer, Adam Philp, Jytte Jensen, Karina from Hot Docs (former Miami), Nicole (former Sundance, Miami, now Santo Domingo Festival), Cameron with Sarah, my new English publisher Jay, Lizette and Christian from Danish Film Institute, some people from Trust Nordisk.

Today a second screening, another full house. An even warmer atmosphere, people laughing in all the right places, they get it. Applaus once again for Five Obstructions, and a big applaus after the film. Good Q&A. Today a series of interviews and photo shoots, greatly managed by our publicists from Falko Ink. Everything went well, I was in good shape. a couple more lined up Sunday morning before take off at 2pm.

Jørgen Leth

World premiere of 'Erotic Man' today

2010-09-10T06:57:00.000-07:00

Photo by Adam Philp

Can one measure the erotic? Can one frame it? Can one define it? In his long-awaited film, 'Erotic Man', documentarist and poet Jørgen Leth touches on these simple yet comprehensive questions. In the film, that can be perceived as the magnum opus of Jørgen Leth's extensive artistic production over the past five decades, he, the now older European artist, travels the world and his inner self to register the erotic, to search its form and meaning. He is a man who watches women - who watches the woman.

'Erotic Man' premieres at Toronto International Film Festival today as part of the prestigious Masters programme, and both Jørgen Leth and his producer Marianne Christensen will be present at the screening.

Join the film's official facebook page here for further information, press stills and video clips from the film.

'Fragment d'une æuvre: Jørgen Leth' in Lussas, France

2010-08-22T02:12:00.000-07:00

The film festival in Lussas, France now presents a fine selection of Jørgen Leth's films in a retrospective called 'Fragment d'une æuvre: Jørgen Leth' (Fragments of a filmmakers work: Jørgen Leth). Leth himself will be present at the festival from today Sunday the 22nd till Wednesday 25th.

Kees Bakker: 'Jørgen Leth is an author-filmmaker of great originality who invites the spectator to take part in the elaboration of his films in the sense that he observes more than he attempts to provide answers. Work to be (re)discovered!'

For more information on the extensive programme and for further text about Leth's æuvre as described by the festival, please visit their website.

World premiere of 'Erotic Man' on TIFF

2010-08-22T01:53:00.000-07:00

On September 10th, 2010 Jørgen Leth's long awaited film, 'Erotic Man' (Det Erotiske Menneske) will world premiere at the prestigious Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) in Canada.

TIFF: "Danish master Jørgen Leth travels the globe in this sensual, provocative and sometimes autobiographical essay film about a man searching … searching the world for the nature of the erotic."

For the full festival review, including screening dates, please visit their website.

A retrospective at Bilbao Fine Arts Museum, Spain

2010-08-12T06:20:00.000-07:00

Friday 13th of August 2010, Bilbao Fine Arts Museum will open up a retrospective of Jørgen Leth's work with a total of 16 films, including classics like The Perfect Human, 66 Scenes from America, The Five Obstructions and featuring his latest piece, The Erotic Human.

For further information, click here

Vi Sidder Bare Her. 'Ikke Euforisk'

2010-06-25T02:24:00.001-07:00

Photo: Søren Solkær Starbird

The intriguing constellation of Mikael Simpson, Frithjof Toksvig and Jørgen Leth is back with album no. 2 titled 'Ikke Euforisk' (Not Euphoric), released on the 21st of June 2010.

Simpson and Toksvig have been in Paris to record conversations with Jørgen Leth, and the result is once again an amazing and poetic musical journey into Leth's unique freestyle poetry.

Just like the first album, 'Ikke Euforisk' consists of poetic contemplations over everday things like arrival, newspaper and rainy days, but this time combined with more sensitive topics like saying goodbye, being vulnerable, about depression and being alone.

For reviews and articles, visit the links below:

Politiken, Berlingske, Soundvenue, Gaffa, BT, Facebook

Photo: Søren Solkær Starbird

2010-04-19T04:18:00.000-07:00

Photo: Tomas Joshua Leth, 26th of January

Three generations in Las Terrenas, The Dominican Republic: Jørgen, Tomas' and Anika's son Woody and Kristian.

In New York

2010-04-06T07:21:00.000-07:00

In New York City, JME films me for the fifth installment in the trilogy of feature films, Being: itw, itc and its. JME's very unusual style of filmmaking takes twists and turns through unexpected adventures. I became hooked on this experience as it led me through many strange moments. The film will begin to appear in 2010.

www.itwpathway.com

24 Rue Sainte-Anne, HT 9110 Jacmel, Haiti

2010-03-01T12:40:00.000-08:00

Before

Photo by Marianne Christensen

After

Photo by Asger Leth

The earthquake

2010-01-25T22:22:00.000-08:00

I've lived in Haiti for over 20 years now. It's my home, and the people are my friends. With my own eyes I watched my hometown of Jacmel being swallowed by the apocalyptic destruction of the earthquake. Everyone I know has lost either their lives or their everyday lives.

The only possibility for them to move on is through massive help from abroad - help from all of us who have the opportunity to do something. Without us, they have no hope.

If you want to help, you can make a donation here. Thanks.

Tour de France trailer 2009

2010-01-10T06:42:00.000-08:00

In 2009, Jørgen Leth had his long awaited comeback as Tour de France commentator for Danish television network, TV2. See the already legendary Tour 2009 teaser here.

Balladeering

2009-12-23T00:42:00.000-08:00

The real Christmas present from the post office, when I came back to my home in Jacmel, was the complete package with Balladeering, Jakob Bro's music performed by some of the present jazz history's finest artists. A shellak record, a cd and a dvd with a film about the recording session in the legendary Avatar Studio.

I'm simply so moved after having seen the dvd. It is almost too overwhelming to witness tenderness mixed with experience and curiosity between the musicians. One feels so much the ignition all over, all the inexpressible, indefinable things which Bill Frisell speaks about.

Where I cannot hold back my tears is when Lee Konitz comes in and plays his heart out, that is simply too strong - like a testament, that's what you can think in a moment of frivolity - but also in everything the others are saying on their respective iinstruments, Jakob Bro's happy face, the obvious feeling of fullfilment, Paul Motian's wonderfully understated - and spectacular - presence, Frisell's and Ben Street's desire to explore every possibility. First of all, the fragility that's connected with Konitz' lyrical style and transparent sound. Bro is giving the lead with his simple, "naive" tunes which move ultra slowly, one foot in front of the other.

First I think I cannot bear to experience such things, I'm too soft for that, and next I tell myself, this is the kind of moments you live for. It goes without saying that I am proud of having been part of this, as well with my covernotes as with my personal presence in the studio.

Andreas Koefoed deserves praise for his sensitive camerawork and the director Sune Blicher for simple, yet elegant storytelling.

BALLADEERING: Lee Konitz (alto sax), Paul Motian (drums), Bill Frisell (guitar), Jakob Bro (guitar), Ben Street (bass). Recorded in September 2008 at Avatar Studios, Manhattan.

Filming in Manila, part 2

2009-11-19T11:08:00.001-08:00

This photograph was taken outside Café Adritico after wrap-up dinner with the Manila crew from The Erotic Human shootings in the Filippines. From the left: Erwin Romulo (publisher, organizer of masterclass, influential support of Filippino cinema), Herbert Relagio (our excellent sound man), Arlene Cuveas (producer), Robin V. Palmers (our great production assistant), our wonderful actresses Angeli Bayani and Sue Prado, Dhawn (with her smiles and good humour), Juan Canguira (stylish still photographer) - and behind this amazing entourage: Director Jørgen Leth and cinematographer Dan Holmberg.

In the photograph below, actress Angeli takes in the beautiful sunset over Manila Bay.

Filming in Manila

2009-11-10T14:39:00.000-08:00

Photographer Dan Holmberg arrived on November 2nd, I came on November 5th. Today we filmed a number of scenes with Angeli Bayani in Hotel Ambassador, room 1022, downtown Manila. She is one the two wellknown Filippino actresses, we selected from an audition last Saturday. Before my arrival, Dan had already been location scouting with our local production crew, line producer Rolly Palmers and his assistant Roland, and driver Ronny. They looked at hotel rooms and found several possibilities. Dan had also shot ambiance from this steamy tropical metropolis and then filmed the arrival of anthropologist / storyteller.

I have written some new lines for the actresses. We will continue filming with Angeli tomorrow at a more seedy hotel in the same neighbourhood. And will finish with Sue Prado in the hotel where we stay, Boulevard Mansion, overlooking Manila Bay.

Dan, Roland and Angeli filmed the last scene of today in a taxi. I had dinner at Café des Arts with Erwin Romolo and his co-editor of the elegant sexy fashion magazine, UNO Central. I had met Erwin in my masterclass at New York University in April this year. He is a friend of Khavn, and he is the son of this country's Minister of Foreign Affairs (who is, according to his son, an expert in European cinema!). He will have a busy day Thursday when Hillary Clinton is visiting.

Leth receives 'Contribution to the world cinema award' in Jihlava

2009-10-28T00:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, October 27th 2009, Jorgen Leth was honored at the opening ceremony of the prestigious 13th Jihlava International Documentary Film Festival in Czech Republic. Jorgen received a life-time achievement award for his 'contribution to the world cinema'.

Leth is in Jihlava as a member of this year's jury. During his stay, he will do a master class on his methods of filming and also a reading of a selected part of his memoirs, 'The Imperfect Human', uniquely accompanied by brand new photographs from his current work in progress, the film 'The Erotic Human'.

For the Danish Film Institute's comment on Jorgen's award, click here

For more information on Leth's masterclass, please go to docalliance.com

Simpson, Toksvig and Leth at the old theatre in Nørrebro

2009-10-21T01:09:00.000-07:00

One dark week in October 2009, Jørgen Leth joined forces with the magical musical wizard Mikael Simpson and his multi-talented crew of high-profile Danish musicians. At a completely sold out venue in Nørrebro, Copenhagen, Leth freestyled his way through numerous different topics, thus creating little pieces of spoken word poetry accompanied by the hypnotic sounds of Simpson and crew. Some of the pieces were live interpretations of scores from the successful album, "Vi sidder bare her", while others (like in the video clip below) were entirely new.

For a review of the concert, please check out Gaffa

Diary from Erotic Man shooting in Paris 2

2009-10-19T00:30:00.001-07:00

Photographer: Adam Philp

In half an hour, I am going to meet a film director called Nikolas Feifer at Hotel La Villa Saint-Germain-des-Prés. He is here to interview Adam and me about our working together as director and photographer. It's a good topic. I think I work very differently with my photographer from what is the norm in Danish filmmaking. I like my photographer to work creatively and contribute with ideas about how to narrate a particular scene. A couple of weeks ago, Adam suggested that we film through a glass plate in order to create a double picture when I talk to Dorothie. He's shown me examples of what you can acchieve with this method, and I think it looks intriguing. So I've given green light to that experiment. What I also like about this method is the fact that it feels like reinventing a really old method, something along the lines of Ole John's double exposure by rolling the film back through the camera when shooting the film, Motion Picture.

Now we've been to Dorothie's tiny flat on Montparnasse, shooting the whole conversation in different set-ups using the glass plate. It looks fantastic. It is somewhat touching to be able to have both parties of the conversation in the same reflector picture, and I think it fits perfectly with the fact that this is a conversation taking place after an 11-year-long break between us. It's also a scene which will set the frame for the very closely framed love scene which we recorded back then in Jacmel, Haiti, with Dorothie's face constantly within the frame of the picture.

Dorothie was wonderful today. So sincere, so full of optimism and humour which has always been her survival force through difficult periods of time. I am deeply impressed by her gaining a foothold in Paris. She now has a long-term visa as a political refugee (based on a wild story), and she has the same rights as permanent residents of France: healthcare, benefits etc. She's started a small business, providing beauty culture in her own home, and she struggles to pay the rent. Fortunately she has a boyfriend, a young French musician who doesn't earn a lot of money but who likes her and helps her out in her everyday life.

Today, she talked a lot about our time together, about what she got out of being with me, her true feelings, her gratitude. For me, it was very touching. She described her feelings about our lovemaking being filmed. She felt good about that. She forgot all about the presence of the camera, she just felt good, and also she agreed to do it because she understood that I "wanted to show how much you loved me in a beautiful film about love". I couldn't have wished for a better interpretation of that scene which I have always thought of as being both artisticly and intellectually bold. Due to its authenticity, I believe that this particular scene will be a very important element in the film, that is the defining point of the story where the anthropologist can't keep his distance to his subject and burns up in the act of love.

Dorothie is proud of having been able to take the leap from being poor in Haiti to a modest life in Paris. The only worry she keeps referring to is the fact that she doesn't earn enough money to support her mother and her little sister. Her mother is giving her a hard time, expecting her (as most Haitian families with sons or daughters abroad) to send money back home to cover the expenses of everyday life necessities. Dorothie often mentions how proud she is of never having prostituted herself in order to survive. She has her own plan, her own pride, and a will power which I can only admire. She just manages to pull through. And she still looks great.

Diary from Erotic Man shooting in Paris 1

2009-10-19T00:14:00.000-07:00

Sunday, late night. We've had dinner at Restaurant Christine in Rue Christine. Afterwards, we sit in a café corner, talking. We see two young girls, one of them reminding us of Mona Lisa. Adam is fascinated by her and wants to photograph her. I say: 'so go and aks her'. He has to gain a bit of courage for that but finally he does it. I can see them listening to him. I approach them.

Monday night. We go to mk2 at Quai de Loire. There are two mk2 cinemas, one on each side of the channel. I remember in which one I met Makena. We sit at a café across the channel, waiting for the lights to dim and the street-lights to be switched on. Chantal joins us. Later, Anne Lescot and her (and David Belle's) son join us. We sit and talk. Anne leaves. Chantal stays and keeps an eye on Adam's bag while we get started. I am to walk along the bank, over a foot-bridge, past a fountain, underneath a vaulted passageway on the other bank towards the café. Adam makes stop motion pictures of me walking, thus creating a narrative with the help of his new fantastic camera. After being granted permission to film inside, I enter the café. I walk towards the table where I met Makena nine years ago. I sit down. Adam finishes the narrative in pictures. This is where we part. I take Chantal out for dinner in Rue Mabillon, Aux Charpentiers. Adam is meeting with the two English girls we met on Sunday night. One of them is Mona Lisa.

Tuesday. I look through Adam's photographs of the girls, taken Monday night on the bridge Pont des Arts which is the next one after Pont Neuf, crossing the Seine from Ile de Cité. A fantastic series of pictures, close to magic, the girls surrounded by gold, glittering contours, lines, water, buildings, passing diffuse cyclists. I come to think of the old impressionists. We don't want to hear what the girls are saying, just look at them not knowing what they talk about. Mona Lisa's name is Amelia, her friend with a hat, Artemis. Amelia's hair is scrutinized, her profile, her beautifully drawn mouth and chin. We have permission to get close, we thrive in the sense of permission. From one focus to another. The woman knows the photographer is watching, we are allowed to do so. She drinks a cup of coffee, we get to see her forehead. A profile of Mona Lisa on a bridge across the Seine. Eyebrows, eyes and the delicate skin. In a slightly larger frame, the street-lights on both sides of the river play along. Her hand on the railing. She has a firm grip and so she is in control of herself. Magic moments.

Det er derfor de knepper så meget i dette land

2009-10-04T05:16:00.000-07:00

Photographer: Martin Bubandt

For the past six months, Jørgen Leth and author/journalist Morten Sabroe have written a series of mails to each other. Now their mail correspondence has been published under the provocative and intriguing title: Det er derfor de knepper så meget i dette land (this is why they fuck so much in this country) The two authors challenge eachother on different subjects, including women, erotism and guilt.

Read more about the publication, the authors and their mail correspondence in Politiken, Information and Jyllandsposten. The book is out in stories from the 5th of October. The two authors will meet at different live events, including Diamanten and Louisiana.

Photographer: Martin Bubandt

The sixth box set

2009-10-01T04:12:00.000-07:00

The DVD collection of Jørgen Leth's work is now complete. Today, 1st of October 2009, the sixth and final box set is out in stores.

The sixth box set contains Jørgen Leth's experimental films made in the 60s and early 70s. The director experiments with picture and sound, seeking new ways of cinematic expression.

The films on this box set are low budget productions with no real actors, shot on location with cheap equipment. Some of them are harsh in their critic of society, others are like surreal picture poems thought up as an alternative to the established cinematic language.

The box set contains the following films:

Stop for Bud / Look forward to a time of security / Near Heaven, Near Earth / Ophelia's flowers / The Deer Garden Film / Eddy Mercx in the vicinity of a cup of coffee / Composer Meets Quartet / The Search + extra material

All six box sets can be bought here

Det meste af tiden / Most of the time

2009-09-20T22:45:00.001-07:00

In August 2009, Aarhus Festuge, a local arts and culture festival in Leth's childhood hometown, invited Jørgen to join forces with his long time friend, Danish singer / songwriter Steffen Brandt.

The concept was simple: within 24 hours, five pairs of film directors / musicians were to create each their own short film in which the film director makes a personal interpretation of the singer's work, thus replacing a traditional script with a song.

See the result of the collaboration between Brandt and Leth, the short film "Det meste af tiden / Most of the time", here.

Leth, Simpson and Toksvig at Nørrebro Teater

2009-09-19T06:52:00.000-07:00

On October 14th-16th, Nørrebro Teater will house three intimite concerts with Danish music wizard, Mikael Simpson. The concerts include a very unique live performance by Leth, Toksvig and Simpson of the highly acclaimed album "Vi sidder bare her".

On the album, Jørgen Leth freestyles his way through such subjects as first love, the magic of dancing and his famous notebook techniques on the background of a hypnotic sound universe created by Toksvig and Simpson.

Buy tickets for the concert here

Honorary Award in Athens

2009-09-19T06:36:00.000-07:00

On September 21th, Jørgen Leth will receive an Honorary Award from Athens International Film Festival at the Apollon Cinemax Class theater in Athens.

Engraved in the award is the inscription: "In recognition of his magnificent and multifaceted contributions to the art of filmmaking."

See more here and here

The Erotic Human: Shooting in Senegal

2009-06-20T00:47:00.000-07:00

Jørgen Leth & Star

In the period May 5 - June 8, I was in Dakar, Senegal, to shoot another segment of The Erotic Human. I first spent a week scouting locations with cinematographer Adam Philp. The rest of the crew - soundman Kjetil Mørk, camera assistant Jon Rudberg and producer Marianne Christensen - arrived Sunday May 31. Assisting us were my old friend Makena Diop, a renowned Senegalese film and theater director, and his brother Ahmet.

My first meeting with Makena dates to April 2000 at a café in Paris. The Racines Film Festival's director Catherine Ruelle had introduced us after I told her about my new film project. Makena is a great storyteller, and he told me so convincingly about the "culture d'erotisme" in Senegal, the beauty of his country's women, their rituals in the art of seduction etc., that I went straight to my hotel room and wrote an excited report to Marianne, suggesting to go to Senegal, which we did in 2001. Dan Holmberg shot stills from that trip.

And now finally we were there to shoot super 16 mm film. Makena had selected one of his country's leading actresses, Rokhaya Niang, and we had a very intense week of shooting: first a day on a beach, then two days in a great location, Café Journal, a big first floor room with windows ensuite and a bar in a busy quarter of Dakar, then a day in an outdoor nightclub, and finally some shots from the streets.

It has been very inspiring working with my new crew, and both Kjetil and Jon did an excellent job. It was also a great pleasure to work with Rokhaya. She is sensual, sophisticated and beautiful, and she has a lot of film experience. We shot ten rolls of film, and both Adam and I felt it was inspiring to work with such limitations.

After the very erotic Haiti segment, I feel the Dakar scenes add something new to the film, bringing freshness and a different sensuality.

Dakar Crew

Kristian Leth takes on 'Motion Picture'

2009-05-28T03:26:00.000-07:00

Kristian Leth, son of Jorgen Leth, is giving new life to his father's classic, 'Motion Picture' (1970) - an experimental film conveying the elegance and mystery of movement exemplified by tennis player Torben Ulrich - by using his father's recordings to create a music video for the band, 'The Informations'.

Kristian: "The thought of using 'Motion Picture' was an instant idea which from the very beginning seemed completely logical. The music of 'The Informations' is both unpredictable and strangely hyper-aesthetic, and it was a gift to just open up the film and steal freely from it. Everything worked. For me, it was completely natural. I think the aesthetics and the rhythm is somehow in the family. It's the first film I've edited. It took about three hours, and the very same evening the film was online."

See the music video here

Giro d'Italia and the Tour

2009-05-23T16:28:00.000-07:00

I have been watching the Giro d'Italia bicycle race for a couple of weeks now. I see that Lance Armstrong is using this race as a preparation for the Tour de France. That's obvious, and it's very promising. He struggles in the Giro, but is getting back in shape. What is clear is that he demands and gets the full support of his team.

How will he do in the Tour? What is his objective? Astana already has the super-favorite, Alberto Contador. What will Armstrong's role be? Will he work for Contador and try to recast himself as the wise experienced architect of his team mate's victory? Or will he try to unsettle him? That is the race within the race of this year's Tour. It could be a drama. And it certainly raises questions that will not be answered before the Tour is well underway. An eventual rivalry between the two Astana riders could open the door for young Andy Schleck from the Saxobank team.

Latest news

2009-05-22T11:21:00.000-07:00

I have been very busy lately, giving a number of lectures throughout the country on Tour de France, my life in Haiti and my memoirs. I've visited Aarhus, Oure, Askov, Viborg and Nyborg. Full house everywhere.

I have also completed a book of mail correspondence with Morten Sabroe, which Politikens Forlag will publish in September 2009.

As for The Erotic Human:

On Monday the 25th of May, I will travel to Senegal in West Africa with film photographer Adam Philp. Later, the rest of my crew - sound mixer Kjetil Mørk, focus puller Jon Rudberg and producer Marianne Christensen - will join us, and we will finish shooting on the 7th of June.

Together with Adam and editor Morten Højbjerg, I have now viewed the recordings from Haiti and am very satisfied with the result. The big find for the film was young actress Shilaine Cayo. I feel everything is about to take shape.

We now have Haiti, Brazil and Panama in the can. Will proceed with Senegal, and soon Dan Holmberg will start shooting atmosphere on the Orinoco River in Venezuela.

Jorgen visits Asger in LA

2009-04-24T13:28:00.000-07:00

After my masterclass at NYU and three days of scriptwriting with Frederik Jacobi in NYC. I went to LA to visit Asger. Asger is currently preparing for the film CARTEL which he will direct for Imagine Films and Universal Studios. The shooting will take place in Mexico City during the summer of 2009 with Sean Penn as lead actor. I thought that Asger was very calm and clear-headed. He has done his homework and is in control of the complicated process of development.

The day after my arrival, Asger had a big meeting at Universal where he succeeded in convincing the studio executives that it is in fact possible to shoot a complicated film in a megacity that is reknown throughout the world as one of the world's most dangerous cities. Asger has a good relationship with co-workers and producers, especially Imagine's strong man Brian Glazer. I spent some days at the cozy Petit Hotel in West Hollywood while Asger had daily casting sessions at the hotel.

A few days later Asger went on a final research trip to Mexico City with Sean Penn and a couple of production co-workers. Comprehensive security measures have been taken around set, and I consider it a big advantage for Asger that he has such a friendly relationship with Sean Penn.

Jorgen

The Expatriate

2009-04-24T13:16:00.000-07:00

A borrowed flat in NYC, overlooking Hudson River.

Frederik Jacobi is working on a script for the film project "The Expatriate". Jorgen's son Asger Leth has come up with the idea, and Jacobi - having already written the treatment for the film - is now developing first act with Jorgen, director of the film. Jacobi will be writing the film script in the fall of 2009.

Three radio programmes about Haiti

2009-04-05T23:51:00.000-07:00

Jorgen Leth is a part time resident in Haiti and has been for almost two decades. In three new radio programmes, Danish journalist Frank Esmann and Jorgen Leth take a closer look at Haiti.

The first radio programme will air on the Danish radio channel P1 on the 6th of April 2009 at 8.30 pm. For further information, click here

MASTER CLASS AT NYU

2009-04-01T03:03:00.000-07:00

THE CHAIR'S WORKSHOP PRESENTS:

JORGEN LETH, Wednesday April 1., 6:00 PM, Room 1027

Join us for what will surely be a memorable evening when esteemed filmmaker Jorgen Leth conducts a master class to discuss his vision of filmmaking that inspired the Dogme movement.

Jay Anania will host a Q&A and strongly urges you to see "The Five Obstructions", a documentary film in which Lars von Trier tasks his mentor, Jorgen Leth, with a series of filmmaking challenges.

A note from Jorgen Leth:

"I will select some clips and discuss things like "pure filmmaking", deconstruction, language, grammar, putting the single image above context, working with a single roll and "hypnotic implicity", making films like notebooks, the existential feeling of time passing through a film scene, working with movements and time, inspirations like The Living Theatre, Grotowski, Godard, Cassavetes, Dreyer, Julie Rainer, Warhol, talk about "cinema pauvre, using Bolex, the film roll counts down of eternity, about fascination and curiosity as the motor for my filmmaking, about the necessity to reinvent film language, to question what is image, what is sound, what is editing, or discuss my confidence in chance. I see chance always as a gift in fiction as well as in documentary, my idea that film should be like poems, don't know where it goes and why, never wrote a script, not even for my fiction films, the idea of studying human actions and being under a microscope, people doing simple things, facing camera, no need to move around and be busy etc., and basic thoughts like bringing order in chaos, the clarity of tableaux. There are many angles to talk about my method, as you can see - also how to travel, how to use your senses. I work with rules of game, as in "The Five Obstructions", limitations, in some films camera can't move, in other no editing. I would like to discuss all these kind of basic and maybe shocking ideas with the students."

The DVD Collection

2009-02-15T05:13:00.000-08:00

With an oeuvre spanning nearly five decades, Jørgen Leth is among the most distinctive artists in Danish Cinema. His films on the whole are remarkable for their experimentation, as he has consistently explored the possibilities and limitations of the film medium. Now, the Danish Film Institute is issuing Jørgen Leth's complete works on DVD in a six-volume box set.

Read more about the films and buy the DVDs here

Gifts of Chance - Texts about Film

2009-02-14T23:48:00.000-08:00

Jørgen Leth is one of the world's leading avant-garde directors. His creations are film festival fodder, and he has achieved star status both nationally and internationally with a number of films throughout the years. This newly published book is a collection of Leth's finest writings on film, covering his entire career. It includes poetics on film, texts on his best known films and synopses of those that were never produced. The book is a treasure for film buffs.

"Chance is my good friend. We enjoy an intimate relationship. It often comes to my aid in crucial situations. It moves things on, stepwise or in leaps. Sometimes I have a feeling of being in contact with chance. What invites chance in is that I keep my door open so that it can come in. Keeping the door open during a work in progress is a kind of invocation."

In production: The Erotic Human

2009-02-14T23:30:00.000-08:00

The anthropologist, in the shape of Jørgen Leth, gathers material in order to study the nature and significance of eroticism. He does not know very much but wants to know more. On his journey, his starting point is that of the observer but he ends up being drawn into the erotic universe, himself.

Leth has identified a number of destinations where he wants to search for eroticism; countries where he knows it exists. Leth want to examine what it is that makes eroticism so significant in the lives of human beings. "The Erotic Human" is not based on a traditional script but on a web of documents, letters, photos and poems written by Leth himself.

Leth, Toksvig and Simpson: Vi sidder bare her

2009-01-14T05:24:00.000-08:00

In the fall of 2008, Jørgen joined forces with Danish music wizards Toksvig and Simpson to create an album based on spontaneity and creative curiosity. Listen to the album here

Back in Jacmel

2007-12-27T01:00:00.000-08:00

I'm back in my home in the sleepy dusty town of Jacmel on the Caribbean coast to the South. I had a bad start when I discovered that 700 USdollars had been stolen from me on my trip from Cap to Jacmel. That led to a terrible outburst of anger - Haiti a country full of thiefs and so on. Finally after the analysis of every minute of the day before I came to the conclusion that the money was picked by one of the policemen who controlled bags in Cap-Haitien airport. Trivial lesson: Always keep money on your body.... Saw Chantal Regnault for dinner in my house. It's a long time since last time we met. She is my best friend in Haiti, and we always talk politics and local gossip. She is quite pessimistic about Haiti's future. The cruelty of some of the latest kidnappings is not a good sign of what to expect. Can Préval stop this new wave. With a police force of which 50% is corrupt, according to a highplaced inside source. Madame Annette is the best cook in town, she made ceviche (raw fish Peruvian style) and sauteed filet de boeuf with sauce creole. Packing today, going to Miami tomorrow to meet a good friend from Denmark. We will stay at Shore Club on Colllins Avenue on the South Beach.

Cormier Plage

2007-12-23T05:22:00.000-08:00

Arrived to Cormier Plage, on the North coast of Haiti, yesterday to spend Christmas here. Good food, simple routines. This is my favorite place for writing, it was here I wrote The Imperfect Human and lots of poems. My family has been here too, my youngest son Tomas took a scubadiver license with the famous diving school run by the hotel's owner Jean-Claude Dicquemare (who has been member of the Cousteau crew - he was the man in the underwater cage attacked by sharks. As an actor he was playing a supporting part in my film Traberg, 1991. It is a place that calmes me down totally, It is almost hypnotic, the sound of the sea, the simple pleasures.

About Jørgen Leth

2007-10-16T10:13:00.000-07:00

Filmdirector & producer, writer, TV-commentator. Born 14 June 1937 in Aarhus, Denmark. Studied literature and anthropology in Aarhus and Copenhagen, Denmark. Journalist, critic (jazz, theater, film) for leading Danish newspapers (1959-68). Travelled in Africa (1961), South America (1966), India and Southeast Asia (1970-71). Creative consultant for the Danish Film Institute (1971-73, 1975-77). Chairman of the Board of The Danish Film Institute (1977-82).

Honorary Consul of Denmark in Haiti 1999-2005.

Has made forty-two films, many distributed worldwide. First book published in 1962; first film in 1963. One of the founding members of the avant garde film-group Abcinema in the sixties.

Ten volumes of poetry and six nonfiction books; represented in English, French and Italian anthologies of modern Danish poetry. Latest books: The Picture Is Showing (poems ,2000), Stories from Haiti (2000), Collected Poems (2002), The Imperfect Human, Scenes from My Life( memoir ,2005), It Doesn’t Matter (poems ,2006).

Most recent films: I’m Alive (a portrait of Danish poet Søren Ulrik Thomsen ,1999), Dreamers, (about Haitian naivist painters ,2001), New Scenes From America (2002), The Five Obstructions (2003), Aarhus, (about his childhood town, 2005).

Commentator for Danish television since 1989.

Professor at the National Film School in Copenhagen, Denmark. Lectured at UCLA, Berkeley, Harvard and other American universities.

Among awards: the Oberhausen Hauptpreis 1971; the Thomas Mann Award 1972; the Danish Academy’s Special Prize 1983; the Paul Hammerich Award 1992; the Drachmann Award for his literary oeuvre 1995; Prix de France 1997 for cultural reporting from France; the State Art Foundation’s Special Award 1999; the Danish Film Academy’s Robert Award 1996 and 2000. Grand Prix for Best Feature Film at the Odense International Film Festival 2004.

Recipient of a life-long grant from the Danish State for his achievements in film-making.

Retrospective presentations at National Film Theatre, London 1989; in Rouen, France, 1990; at the American Film Institute, Washington, 1992; in Mumbai, India, 1996; in New York City,2002; in Sao Paolo, 2003; in Toronto, 2004; in Firenze, 2005; in Rome, 2006; in San Sebastian, 2007.

Films shown in the United States on PBS, the Discovery Channel, the Bravo channel, the Sundance Channel, and in theatres in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, London, Rome, Paris, Copenhagen, Oslo, Stockholm, and on many European television channels.

Two biographies about Leth have been published in Denmark, and two documentary film portraits have been produced: Tomas Gislason’s award-winning Heart and Soul (1995), and .Jørgen Flindt Pedersen’s The Price of Sensuality (2007)..

Has a daughter and three sons. Divorced. Residence in Haiti since 1991.

Audio: Poetry

2007-10-15T17:32:00.000-07:00

Poetry by Jørgen Leth: Rundstrækning, Sportsdigte, Gyldendal 1967:

Poetry by Jørgen Leth: Min Store Match, Sportsdigte, Gyldendal 1967:

Han Er Nu Malet Blå is an album from 2004 featuring Jørgen's poetry, music by Jonas Engberg and Abdullah S. Listen to album in iTunes here!

Video

2007-10-15T13:09:00.000-07:00

Jørgen Leth, Abdulla S & Engberg, Roskilde Festival 2007:

Jørgen Leth & Lars von Trier: The Five Obstructions 2003:

Jørgen Leth & Andy Warhol: 66 Scenes From America 1982:

Jørgen Leth in 'De Uaktuelle Nyheder' 2007:

Christel Wiinblad's poem about Jørgen Leth:

A rough cut of selected scenes from Truls Lie's upcoming portrait of Jørgen Leth:

Sunset Productions

2007-10-15T12:25:00.000-07:00

With a keen and specific focus on producing or co-producing films with high artistic integrity, Sunset Productions have had a number of international successes through many years.

Sunset Productions have had the honor of screening films at most major film festival. These include Venice, Toronto, Sundance, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Berlin and Telluride.

Among the films Sunset Productions have been involved in recently are The Five Obstrutions by Lars von Trier and Jorgen Leth, and Ghosts of Cite Soleil by Asger Leth.

Sunset Productions is a small film production company with a long list of credits. The company is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, United States.

Sunset Productions has several documentaries and feature films in development, pre-production and production.

Jorgen Leth makes most of his films with Sunset Productions in his corner.

Filmography

2007-10-13T04:03:00.000-07:00

Stopforbud, 1963, 14 mins;

Look Forward to a Bright Future, 1965, 6 mins;

The Perfect Human, 1967, 13 mins;

Near Heaven, Near Earth, 1968, 26 mins;

Ophelia’s Flowers , 1969, 7 mins;

Motion Picture, 1970, 24 mins;

The Search, 1970, 35 mins;

The Deergarden, the Romantic Forest, 1970, 42 mins;

Chinese Table-tennis, 1970, 12 mins;

The Theatre in the Green Mountains (1970)

Life in Denmark, 1971, 37 mins;

Stars and Watercarriers, 1973, 91 mins;

Klaus Rifbjerg, 1974, 35 mins;

Good and Evil, 1974, 81 mins;

A Sunday in Hell,1976, 111 mins;

Peter Martins - A Dancer, 1978, 54 mins;

Kalule, 1979, 45 mins;

Dancing Bournonville, 1979, 52 mins;

66 Scenes from America, 1981, 42 mins;

Step on Silence, 1981, 58 min;

Pelota, 1983, 47 mins;

Haiti Express (Udenrigskorrespondenten), 1983, 93 min;

Moments of Play, 1986, 82 min;

Notebook from China, 1986, 79 mins;

Notes on Love, 1989, 90 mins;

Danish Literature, 1989, 51 mins;

Traberg, 1992, 93 mins;

Michael Laudrup - A Football Player, 1993, 58 mins;

Haiti, Untitled 1996, 85 mins;

I am Alive - Soren Ulrik Thomsen, Poet, 1999, 40 mins;

Dreamers, 2002, 58 mins.

New Scenes from America, 2002, 35 mins.

The Five Obstructions (with Lars von Trier), 2003, 80 mins;

Aarhus (2005), 35 mins.

Works in progress:

The Erotic Human, in production, release 2009.

The Expatriate, in development.

The Tropic of Capricorn, documentary