Cosmos finds Place, strikes Nordisk deal

New Danish-German feature film A Place Under The Sun (working title), announced here in Cannes, promises to lift the lid on one of the darkest episodes in Danish war history.

To be directed by Martin P. Zandvliet (Applause) and produced by Cosmo Film’s Mikael Rieks the film tells of how the Danish population takes bloody revenge on the German soldiers who have occupied their country. In May 1945, after the German surrender, 2000 German soldiers are refused permission to go home. They are detained under miserable conditions and made to ‘volunteer’ to clear the Danish coast of about 2.2 million land mines, which the Germans had planted to prevent a possible British invasion. 250 German soldiers were killed and 600 were wounded.

Zandvliet is developing the script along with Nikolaj Steen. Producer Rieks (Applause, Ghosts Of Cite Soleil, Overcoming) is in Cannes looking for international investors and co-producers for the project, which is due to shoot in 2012.

The news of the new project comes as Cosmo has just announced a new first look deal with Nordisk Film. Nordisk will be backing A Place Under The Sun and will handle the film’s Scandinavian distribution.

The new agreement with Nordisk Film covers distribution of all feature films and TV productions for the next two years. The first project under the deal is a feature film based on Cosmo Film and TV2’s cult TV series Lærkevej. Shooting starts in July.

Cosmo producers Mie Andreasen, Rasmus Thorsen and Mikael Rieks’ development slate includes police thriller Atlantic Privateer about the biggest drug crime in Scandinavia. In development is also a teen thriller and a relationship comedy.