Danish filmmaker Amalie Næsby Fick is making her live-action feature debut with “What Lies Between Us,” a suspense drama that has been selected for the Toronto International Film Festival’s Discovery section. The film is also among three Danish productions under consideration for Denmark’s official Oscar submission. Produced by Zentropa and handled by sales company TrustNordisk, the project reunites celebrated Scandinavian actors Sidse Babette Knudsen and Sofie Gråbøl for their first collaborative screen appearance.
The narrative centers on a sexual assault scandal that disrupts a small Danish suburban community, involving three mothers grappling with moral dilemmas. When Anne Sofie, a successful real estate agent portrayed by Knudsen, learns her son may be implicated in the accusations, she makes questionable choices to protect her family’s reputation and standing. Her actions strain longstanding friendships and set off a chain of consequences affecting everyone involved.
Fick drew inspiration from the unpublished novel “Dobbeltfejl” by Anne Mette Kirk, which immediately resonated with her as a parent. The filmmaker deliberately chose to focus on Anne Sofie as the protagonist, interested in exploring a character whose protective instincts lead her astray morally. Rather than depicting affluent suburbia, Fick emphasized that the crisis could affect ordinary middle-class families, making the story universally relatable while maintaining a thriller’s propulsive narrative structure.
Originally reported by Variety →
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