Erik Poppe – Utøya 22. Juli #Berlinale2018

February 27, 2018

Erik Poppe - Utøya 22. Juli #Berlinale2018 fredfilmradio

Podcast | Download

PODCAST| Nicolò Comotti interviews Erik Poppe, director of the film Utøya 22. Juli.

Erik Poppe unveils a few of the many thoughts and dilemmas he has had through the making of Utøya 22. Juli, his latest feature that makes the audience relive the terror perpetrated by Anders Breivik 7 years ago. In competition at 2018’s Berlinale, Utøya 22. Juli will surely divide the critics and the public, but with the hope of becoming a vessel for remembrance and self-analysis for today’s society.

Utøya 22. Juli: On 22 July 2011 five hundred young people attending a summer camp on the island of Utøya were attacked by a heavily armed right-wing extremist. The murderous attack claimed the lives of 69 victims. It was a trauma that rocked Norway to the core, and still does to this day. Director Erik Poppe has dared to attempt to turn the events of that summer into a film. His drama opens with documentary footage of Oslo where, shortly beforehand, the same attacker had exploded a car bomb killing eight people; the scene then shifts to the island. The camera follows 19-year-old Kaja who is spending a few days of the holiday here with her young sister Emilie. The two are quarrelling because Emilie is in no mood for the camp and has absolutely no desire to go to the barbecue. And so Kaja ends up going alone. Suddenly, the first gunshot is heard. This first shot marks the beginning of a breathless 72-minute-long reconstruction of events, filmed in a single take, as seen through the eyes of the victims. Kaja’s desperate search for Emilie. The fear in the eyes of the young people. Their escape into the forest. Their desperate hope of rescue. And the unknown assassin, getting closer and closer.

Written by: fredfilmradio

Berlinale 2018 Erik Poppe Nicolo Comotti Utøya 22. Juli

Guest

Erik Poppe Nicolò Comotti

Film

Utøya 22. Juli

Festival

Berlinale

Rate it

Channel posts

Interview

Berlinale

“Saccharine”, interview with director Natalie Erika James

March 2, 2026

From Sundance to Berlinale, blending body horror and psychological thriller, comes Saccharine by Natalie Erika James

News

FRED Film Radio in Support of Tricia Tuttle and the Berlinale

February 26, 2026 5

FRED Film Radio joins the many voices across the international film community in expressing its support for Tricia Tuttle and for the Berlinale, one of the world’s most vital spaces for cinematic dialogue and cultural exchange. As a media platform …