Empire (2023 film)

Empire (Viften) is a 2023 absurdist period drama film directed by Frederikke Aspöck from a screenplay by Anna Neye. It stars Neye and Sara Fanta Traore.

The film had its world premiere on 29 January 2023 at the 2023 Gothenburg Film Festival. It won the 2023 Nordic Council Film Prize.

Premise
In the Danish West Indies in 1848, Anna Elizabeth Heegaard, a wealthy "free colored" woman, maintains a close friendship with Petrine, her housekeeper who is enslaved. Meanwhile, rumors of a slave rebellion begin to circulate.

Cast

 * Anna Neye as Anna Elizabeth Heegaard
 * Sara Fanta Traore as Petrine
 * Claus Riis Østergaard as Peter von Scholten
 * Jesper Groth as Admiral Irminger

Production
The idea of the film was conceived during Neye's trip to Saint Croix in 2015, where she filmed a documentary about the history of black Danes. In January 2021, the project received €144,700 funding from the Nordisk Film & TV Fond.

The principal photography took place in Canary Islands in May and June 2021.

Release
Empire had its world premiere on 29 January 2023 at the Gothenburg Film Festival, competing for the Dragon Awards. REinvent acquired the film's international sales shortly after the world premiere.

The film was released in Danish theatres on 20 April 2023. Netflix acquired its distribution rights, releasing it on 23 October 2023.