Kirstine "Paprika" Steen (born 3 November 1964) is a Danish actress and director best known for her performances in

Dogme 95 Dogme 95 is a 1995 avant-garde filmmaking movement founded by the Danish directors Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg, who created the "Dogme 95 Manifesto" and the "Vows of Chastity" ( da, kyskhedsløfter). These were rules to create films ...

films ''

Festen ''The Celebration'' ( da, Festen) is a 1998 Danish dark comedy-drama film directed by Thomas Vinterberg and produced by Nimbus Film. The film tells the story of a family gathering to celebrate their father's 60th birthday, juggling subjects of ...

'', ''

The Idiots ''The Idiots'' ( da, Idioterne) is a 1998 Danish dark comedy-drama film written and directed by Lars von Trier. It is his first film made in compliance with the Dogme 95 Manifesto, and is also known as Dogme #2. It is the second film in von Tr ...

'',

Mifune Mifune () is a Japanese name, Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *Toshirō Mifune (三船敏郎) (1920–1997), Japanese actor who appeared in almost 170 feature films *Jiro Mifune (born 1972), game designer *Mifune Chizuko ...

, and ''

Open Hearts Open or OPEN may refer to: Music * Open (band), Australian pop/rock band * The Open (band), English indie rock band * ''Open'' (Blues Image album), 1969 * ''Open'' (Gotthard album), 1999 * ''Open'' (Cowboy Junkies album), 2001 * ''Open'' (YF ...

''. Steen was the first Danish actress since

Karin Nellemose Karin Nellemose (3 August 1905 – 5 August 1993), was a Danish actress in the theatre and in Danish cinema. She was the sister of sculptor Knud Nellemose (1908–1997). In ''Matador'' (Danish produced and first shown between 1978 and 1982) s ...

in 1994 to win both Best Actress (for ''

Okay ''OK'' (spelling variations include ''okay'', ''O.K.'', ''ok'' and ''Ok'') is an English word (originating in American English) denoting approval, acceptance, agreement, assent, acknowledgment, or a sign of indifference. ''OK'' is frequently ...

'') and Best Supporting Actress (''

'') in the same year at the

Robert Festival The Robert Award ( da, Robert prisen) is a Danish film prize awarded each year by the Danish Film Academy. It is the Danish equivalent of the American Oscars, British BAFTAs for films and Australian AACTA Awards. The award—voted only by aca ...

, the Danish equivalent of the Oscars.

Biography

Toves værelse - Paprika Steen og Lars Brygmann

Steen was born on 3 November 1964 in

Frederiksberg Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is formally an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the City of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of ...

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

, the daughter of musician and conductor and the actress

Avi Sagild Avi Sagild (22 February 1933 – 19 September 1995) was a Danish film actress. She appeared in 21 films between 1958 and 1993. She was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States and died in Denmark. Selected filmography * ''The Gree ...

. She is the sister of musician and actor . Steen applied to the Acting School of

Odense Odense ( , , ) is the third largest city in Denmark (behind Copenhagen and Aarhus) and the largest city on the island of Funen. As of 1 January 2022, the city proper had a population of 180,863 while Odense Municipality had a population of 20 ...

Theatre 13 times before being accepted and attending from 1988 to 1992. Steen performed on stage in Dr. Dante productions and been associated with the

Royal Danish Theatre The Royal Danish Theatre (RDT, Danish: ') is both the national Danish performing arts institution and a name used to refer to its old purpose-built venue from 1874 located on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. The theatre was founded in 1748, first ser ...

since 1997. In 1997 she wrote and performed in the satirical television series ''Lex og Klatten''. In 1998, Steen became an active participant in the

film movement as the only performer to appear in the first three movies:

Lars Von Trier Lars von Trier (''né'' Trier; 30 April 1956) is a Danish filmmaker, actor, and lyricist. Having garnered a reputation as a highly ambitious, polarizing filmmaker, he has been the subject of several controversies: Cannes, in addition to nominat ...

's ''

'', ''

'' by

Thomas Vinterberg Thomas Vinterberg (; born 19 May 1969) is a Danish film director who, along with Lars von Trier, co-founded the Dogme 95 movement in filmmaking, which established rules for simplifying movie production. He is best known for the films ''The Celeb ...

, and

Søren Kragh-Jacobsen Søren Kragh-Jacobsen (; born 2 March 1947, in Copenhagen) is a Danish film director, musician, and songwriter. He was one of the founders and practitioners of the Dogme95 project, for creating films without artificial technology or techniques. ...

's ''

Mifune's Last Song ''Mifune'' ( da, Mifunes sidste sang, "Mifune's Last Song") is a 1999 romantic comedy film, it is the third film to be made according to the Dogme 95 group rules. It was directed by Søren Kragh-Jacobsen. The film was a great success in Denmark a ...

''. Steen won her first

Bodil Award The Bodil Awards are the major Danish film awards given by the Danish Film Critics Association. The awards are presented annually at a ceremony in Copenhagen. Established in 1948, it is one of the oldest film awards in Europe. The awards are given ...

as the Best Supporting Actress in 2000 for ''Den eneste ene'' ( ''The One and Only''). In 2002, Steen won the

Robert Award The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, hono ...

and

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...

's Grand Jury Prize for her leading role as the controlling loudmouth Nete in ''

''. The same year she also won both the Bodil and Robert awards as Best Supporting Actress in ''Elsker dig for evigt'' (''

''). Steen made her directorial debut in with the 2004 tragedy-drama ''Lad de små børn...'' (''

Aftermath Aftermath may refer to: Companies * Aftermath (comics), an imprint of Devil's Due Publishing * Aftermath Entertainment, an American record label founded by Dr. Dre * Aftermath Media, an American multimedia company * Aftermath Services, an America ...

'') about the emotional trauma of a young couple after the death of their daughter. The film received awards at several film festivals including the Lübeck Nordic Film Days and the Film by the Sea International Festival. In 2007, Steen directed her second feature, the comedy film ' ('). Steen is married to producer .

Filmography

Actress

*' (1988) *'' Black Harvest'' (1993) *' (1993) *''

Frække Frida og de frygtløse spioner ''Frække Frida og de frygtløse spioner'' (English: ''Naughty Frida and the Fearless Spies''), often shortened to simply ''Frække Frida'', is a 1994 Danish children's film written and directed by Søren Ole Christensen. Christensen based the s ...

'' (1994) *' (1994) *' (1995) *''

The Biggest Heroes ''The Biggest Heroes'' ( da, De største helte) is a 1996 Danish comedy/road movie directed by Thomas Vinterberg. Synopsis Karsten, a bank robber on probation, gets the surprise of his life when one of his exes, Lisbeth, shows up out of the bl ...

'' (1996) *' (1997) *''

'' (1998) *''

Kirikou and the Sorceress ''Kirikou and the Sorceress'' (french: Kirikou et la Sorcière, ) is a 1998 traditional animation feature film written and directed by Michel Ocelot. Drawn from elements of West African folk tales, it depicts how a newborn boy, Kirikou, saves h ...

'' (1998) (Danish dub) *''

'' (1998) *' (1999) *'' The One and Only'' (1999) *' (1999) *''

'' (1999) *'' Max'' (2000) *''

Help! I'm a Fish ''Help! I'm A Fish'' ( da, Hjælp, jeg er en fisk; also known as ''A Fish Tale'') is a 2000 Danish-German-Irish traditionally animated science fantasy musical film directed by Stefan Fjeldmark, Greg Manwaring and Michael Hegner, and written by ...

'' (2000) *' (2001) *''

'' (2002) *''

'' (2002) *' (2002) *''

Stealing Rembrandt ''Stealing Rembrandt'' (original title ''Rembrandt'') is a 2003 Danish-language film. An action-comedy, the film concerns a father and son who accidentally steal a painting by Rembrandt. A Danish/UK co-production, the film was directed by Jannik ...

'' (2003) *''

De drabbade ''De drabbade'' (The Affected in English) is a 2003 Swedish TV series. It was partly inspired by the Danish TV-Series '' De udvalgde'' from 2001, but has even more been the inspiration for the American TV series '' Heroes''. Plot summary A sup ...

'' (2003) *''

Adam's Apples ''Adam's Apples'' ( da, Adams Æbler) is a 2005 Danish black comedy-drama film directed and written by Anders Thomas Jensen. The film revolves around the theme of the Book of Job. The main roles are played by Ulrich Thomsen and Mads Mikkelsen ...

'' (2005) *' (2006) *'' Vikaren'' (2007) *''

Fear Me Not ''Fear Me Not'' ( da, Den du frygter) is a Danish psychological thriller film released in 2008, directed by Kristian Levring.O'Hehir, Andrew (April 24, 2009)Handicapping Manhattan’s spring movie fling. Salon.com The film premiered at the Toront ...

'' (2008) *''

Applause Applause (Latin ''applaudere,'' to strike upon, clap) is primarily a form of ovation or praise expressed by the act of clapping, or striking the palms of the hands together, in order to create noise. Audiences usually applaud after a performance ...

'' (2009) *''

Everything Will Be Fine Everything, every-thing, or every thing is all that exists; the opposite of nothing, or its complement. It is the totality of things relevant to some subject matter. Without expressed or implied limits, it may refer to anything. The universe is ...

'' (2010) *''

Skeletons A skeleton is the structural frame that supports the body of an animal. There are several types of skeletons, including the exoskeleton, which is the stable outer shell of an organism, the endoskeleton, which forms the support structure inside ...

'' (2010) *''

SuperClásico Superclásico is the football match in Argentina between Buenos Aires rivals Boca Juniors and River Plate. It derives from the Spanish usage of "clásico" to mean derby, with the prefix "super" used as the two clubs are the most popular and su ...

'' (2011) *''

Keep the Lights On ''Keep the Lights On'' is a 2012 American drama film written by Ira Sachs and Mauricio Zacharias and directed by Sachs. It premiered at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival, and was released on September 7, 2012 by Music Box Films.

'' (2012) *''

Love Is All You Need ''Love Is All You Need'' ( da, Den skaldede frisør, Lit.: The Bald Hairdresser) is a 2012 Danish romantic comedy film directed by Susanne Bier and starring Pierce Brosnan and Trine Dyrholm. Plot Danish hairdresser Ida ( Trine Dyrholm), who ha ...

'' (2013) *''

Silent Heart ''Silent Heart'' ( da, Stille hjerte, Quiet heart) is a 2014 Danish drama film directed by Bille August, and starring Ghita Nørby, Morten Grunwald, Paprika Steen, and Jens Albinus. The film was nominated for the 2015 Nordic Council Film Prize. ...

'' (2014) *' (2016) *' (2016) *''Modus Séries 2'' (2017) *'' Below the Surface'' (2017) *''

The City and the City ''The City & the City'' is a novel by British author China Miéville that follows a wide-reaching murder investigation in two cities that occupy the same space simultaneously, combining weird fiction with the police procedural. It was written ...

'' (2018) *''

Domino Dominoes is a family of tile-based games played with gaming pieces, commonly known as dominoes. Each domino is a rectangular tile, usually with a line dividing its face into two square ''ends''. Each end is marked with a number of spots (also ca ...

'' (2019)

Director

*''

'' (DK, 2004) *' (DK, 2007) *''

That Time of Year ''That Time of Year'' ( da, Den tid på året) is a 2018 Danish comedy film directed by Paprika Steen. It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2018 Toronto International Film Festival. Cast * Sofie Gråbøl as Barbara * ...

'' (2018)

References

External links

* * *
Paprika Steen
reviewed in the New York Times For Her Performance in ''Applause'' (2010) {{DEFAULTSORT:Steen, Paprika 1965 births Best Supporting Actress Bodil Award winners Danish actresses Danish film directors Danish people of American descent Danish women film directors Living people People from Frederiksberg Best Actress Robert Award winners