Photo: Appendix fotografi
New Screenwriters – Matthew Reeve and Anna Lo Westlin
Matthew Reeve (b. 1979) is an American screenwriter, director and producer based in Stockholm. His debut film, the documentary Hope in Motion (2003), was nominated for an Emmy in the category ‘Best Non-Fiction Special’, and short-listed for a Bafta in the category ‘Best Television Single Documentary’. The film and its sequel, Choosing Hope (2004), were released on DVD in 2007.
Anna Lo Westlin (b.1984) is a screenwriter, director and producer based in Stockholm, Sweden. Westlin began her film career in New York as a Production Associate for Killer Films, working on movies such as I’m Not There (2007), Savage Grace (2007) and Then She Found Me (2007). She soon moved on to working as a manager of finance and later as an acquisitions executive at renowned film distribution company Magnolia Pictures. In 2014, Anna Lo received the Ingmar Bergman residency scholarship and has most recently written and directed the short drama thriller Ladies Who Lunch (2016).
Matthew Reeve and Anna Lo Westlin write separately as well as a duo.
‘The Rabbit’ and ‘The Blue Star’ No. 1 in Denmark
The Rabbit Who Wants To Fall Asleep by Carl-Johan Forssén Ehrlin and The Blue Star by Jan Guillou are both No. 1 on the Danish bestseller list, the former in the category of Family & Lifestyle and the latter in Fiction.
Oscar nominated Morten Tyldum acquires the film rights to Bobbie Peers’ ‘William Wenton’
The film rights to Bobbie Peers’ William Wenton and the Luridium Thief have just been acquired by Oscar nominated film director Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game) in a preemptive deal.
‘Norma’ No. 1 in Finland
Sofi Oksanen’s highly anticipated new novel Norma has gone straight to No. 1 on the official bestseller list in Finland. The stand-alone novel is a dark family drama with fantastical undertones, and introduces yet another facet of Oksanen’s authorship.
‘The Rabbit’ No. 3 in the US
The Rabbit Who Wants To Fall Asleep debuts at No. 3 on New York Times Bestseller list for Picture Books.
Photo: Appendix Fotografi
New Screenwriter – Simon Stålenhag
The acclaimed artist, concept designer and author of Ur Varselklotet (2014) Simon Stålenhag (b. 1984) is best known for his highly imaginative images and stories portraying illusive sci-fi phenomena in mundane, hyper-realistic Scandinavian landscapes. Ur Varselklotet was ranked by The Guardian as one of the ‘10 Best Dystopias’, where it is joined by works such as Franz Kafka’s The Trial and Andrew Niccol’s Gattaca.
Not only have Stålenhag’s unique and cinematic images earned him a worldwide fan base, but have also made him a go-to storyteller, concept artist and illustrator for both the film and computer gaming industry. Simon Stålenhag’s work can be seen in films such as Searching for Sugarman (2012), directed by Malik Bendjeloull, and in games such as Ripple Dot Zero (2013).
‘The Rabbit’ No. 2 in the UK
The Rabbit Who Wants To Fall Asleep debuts at No. 2 on the official UK bestseller list for children’s books.
Jo Nesbø and Erik Axl Sund on Der Spiegel’s bestseller list
Jo Nesbø’s “jewel of a novel” about a hitman in the 70s, Blood on Snow, and Erik Axl Sund’s “deeply touching” novel Glass Bodies, are No. 2 and No. 3 respectively on Der Spiegel’s trade paperback list this week.
‘Those Who Failed’ published in Sweden
A reality TV star is found murdered in an abandoned school building, shot in the head with a bolt gun. Tied to a classroom chair, he’s been positioned facing a corner of the room with a dunce cap on his head. A several pages long exam paper has been nailed to the back of the chair. Judging by the number of wrong answers, the victim failed the most important test of his life.
In Those Who Failed, the fifth book in Hjorth & Rosenfeldt’s internationally bestselling series about Sebastian Bergman, Sebastian and his team are faced with a complex and devious serial killer that will threaten the very existence of the team.
Photo: Appendix Fotografi
New Screenwriter – Jonna Bolin-Cullberg
Jonna Bolin-Cullberg (b. 1965) is a successful writer for television, known for her work on Sjätte dagen (1999), Dubbelliv (2010) and Mördaren ljuger inte ensam (2013), among others. Jonna has gained extensive experience from working on various film and TV-productions in different genres, spanning from children’s TV to crime novel adaptations. Bolin-Cullberg is also a qualified actor educated at the Rose Bruford College of Speech and Drama in London, but it was after starting working as a writer on the hit show Skilda världar (1996) that Jonna made the conversion from the art of acting to the art of writing drama.