Roy Andersson facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Roy Andersson
Roy Andersson in 2014.
Born	Roy Arne Lennart Andersson (1943-03-31) 31 March 1943 (age 82) Gothenburg, Sweden
Nationality	Swedish
Occupation	Film director
Years active	1967–present

Roy Arne Lennart Andersson (born March 31, 1943) is a famous Swedish film director. He is known for his special film style. His movies often mix funny, silly moments with sad feelings about life.

Andersson's films are easy to spot because they use long, steady shots. They also show funny, exaggerated characters from Swedish culture. Throughout his career, he has won many awards from big film festivals. These include the Cannes Film Festival, Berlin International Film Festival, and Venice International Film Festival.

Before becoming a well-known director, Andersson made over 400 commercials. He also directed two short films. Over six decades, he has directed six full-length movies. His first feature film was A Swedish Love Story (1970). Later, he made Giliap (1975). He won the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival for Songs from the Second Floor (2000). His film A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014) won the top award, the Golden Lion, at the Venice International Film Festival. Other important films he directed include You, the Living (2007) and About Endlessness (2019).

Early Life and Education

Roy Arne Lennart Andersson was born in Gothenburg, Sweden. This was on March 31, 1943.

He first studied literature and philosophy at university. In 1967, he joined the Swedish Film Institute Film School. This is where he learned to make movies.

Roy Andersson's Film Career

Early Films: 1969–1992

Andersson directed his first full-length movie, A Swedish Love Story, in 1969. This film was about young love. It won four awards at the 20th Berlin International Film Festival. The movie was a big hit with critics and audiences.

After this success, Andersson wanted to try new things. He didn't want to make the same type of film again. His next film, Giliap, came out in 1975. This movie was not successful. After Giliap, Andersson took a long break from directing feature films. For 25 years, he mostly worked on making commercials.

In 1981, he started his own film company, Studio 24. It was in central Stockholm. Later, he made a short film called Something Happened in 1987. This film was for the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare. It was meant to teach students about AIDS. However, it was stopped before it was finished. People thought it was "too dark." It wasn't shown officially until 1993.

His next short film, World of Glory (1991), was very successful. It won awards at the 1992 Clermont-Ferrand Short Film Festival. This film is even on a list of the top ten best short films ever.

Later Works: 1996–Present

In March 1996, Andersson started filming Songs from the Second Floor. This movie took four years to finish. It premiered in May 2000 at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival. The film was a big hit around the world. It won the Jury Prize at Cannes. In Sweden, it won five Guldbagge Awards. These included Best Film and Best Direction. The movie used 46 long, still shots. It showed a mix of serious social ideas and Andersson's unique, funny, and dream-like style.

Andersson kept making commercials at Studio 24. His next film, You, the Living, was shown at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. It won the Nordic Council Film Prize in 2008. In 2009, the Museum of Modern Art in New York City showed a special collection of his films.

He then planned to make a third film that would connect with his two previous ones. He wanted it to be "enormous, deep and fantastic, humorous and tragic." This film, A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence, was released in 2014. It won the Golden Lion for Best Film at the 71st Venice International Film Festival.

In 2015, the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City also showed his films. This collection was called It's Hard to Be Human: The Cinema of Roy Andersson.

His fourth film, About Endlessness, came out in 2019. It won the Silver Lion at the Venice International Film Festival. Critics praised the film. They said it was another amazing collection of human moments. It showed people with pale faces in strange scenes. These scenes were funny and sad, like works by Tati and Monty Python. The film used great models and special effects. It showed moments of human weakness, tiredness, kindness, and sadness.

What Influenced Roy Andersson

Andersson has said that certain film styles greatly influenced him. These include Italian neorealism and the Czech New Wave. He also gets ideas from artists like Spanish painter Francisco Goya and Dutch artist Pieter Bruegel. Directors like Italian Federico Fellini and French filmmaker Jacques Tati also inspired him.

In 2012, Andersson shared his list of favorite films. He chose ten films for the Sight & Sound poll. This poll happens every ten years to find the greatest films of all time. Andersson said these films were "excellent and fascinating artistic expressions." He added that they teach us about "mankind’s both raw and delightful existence." He called Bicycle Thieves his "absolute favourite." He said it was the most caring and political film ever. He also called Viridiana the most intelligent and Hiroshima mon amour the most poetic.

Here are his top film choices:

Awards and Honors

Roy Andersson is seen as one of the most important film directors in Europe today. Four of his films have been sent to the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film as Swedish entries.

His 2014 film, A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence, won the Golden Lion award. This was at the 71st Venice International Film Festival. This made Andersson the only Swedish director to win this award. He is also only the second director from a Nordic country to win it. The first was Danish director Carl Theodor Dreyer in 1955.

Here are some of his awards:

• 2000: "Stig Dagerman Prize"
• 2000: Jury Prize from Cannes Film Festival for Songs from the Second Floor
• 2010: Lenin Award
• 2014: "Golden Lion for Best Film" for A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (71st Venice International Film Festival)
• 2020: Lifetime Achievement Award (Odesa International Film Festival)

Roy Andersson's Filmography

Feature Films

Short Films

Commercials

See Also

In Spanish: Roy Andersson para niños