Nikolaj Arcel (born 25 August 1972) is a Danish

filmmaker Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion picture is produced. Filmmaking involves a number of complex and discrete stages, starting with an initial story, idea, or commission. It then continues through screenwriting, castin ...

and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

. He is best known for his 2012 film '' A Royal Affair'' which won two prizes at the

Berlin International Film Festival The Berlin International Film Festival (german: Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin), usually called the Berlinale (), is a major international film festival held annually in Berlin, Germany. Founded in 1951 and originally run in June, the fest ...

and was nominated for

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

, as well as the 2017 American film '' The Dark Tower''. He is based in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

, where he is working on a feature adaptation of

Don Winslow Don Winslow (born October 31, 1953) is an American retired author best known for his award-winning and internationally bestselling crime novels, including '' Savages'', ''The Force'' and the Cartel Trilogy. Early life Winslow was born on Oct ...

's '' The Power of the Dog''.

Early life

Arcel was born and raised in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan a ...

. His mother, Libby Tata Arcel, is a psychologist from the Greek city

Mytilene Mytilene (; el, Μυτιλήνη, Mytilíni ; tr, Midilli) is the capital of the Greek island of Lesbos, and its port. It is also the capital and administrative center of the North Aegean Region, and hosts the headquarters of the University o ...

, on the island of Lesbos, while his father, Arne Arcel, is an architect from Denmark. His parents divorced when he was seven. His elder sister is actress Nastja Arcel. He attended Bernadotte School in Hellerup and secondary school at Øster Borgerdyd Gymnasium. He then enrolled at the

National Film School of Denmark The National Film School of Denmark ( da, Den Danske Filmskole) is an independent institution under the Danish Ministry of Cultural Affairs. It was established in 1966 and is based on Holmen in the harbour of Copenhagen. History The National ...

from where he graduated as film director in 2001. His graduation project, the short film ''Woyzeck's Last Symphony'', won the Grand Prix at

Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival The Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival (French: ''Festival international du court métrage de Clermont-Ferrand'') is an international film festival dedicated to short films held annually in Clermont-Ferrand, France. History In ...

Career

Arcel made his debut in 2004 with the political thriller '' King's Game'', which won him the award for Best Director at the Danish Film Academy Awards. It was followed by the adventure film '' Island of Lost Souls'' in 2007 and the generational comedy '' Truth About Men'' in 2010. After experiencing an international breakthrough with '' A Royal Affair'', he moved to

to pursue a career in filmmaking there. He directed the

film adaptation A film adaptation is the transfer of a work or story, in whole or in part, to a feature film. Although often considered a type of derivative work, film adaptation has been conceptualized recently by academic scholars such as Robert Stam as a dia ...

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...

's '' The Dark Tower''. The film began principal photography in early 2016 and was released on 4 August 2017. Arcel will be directing the movie '' Fables'' for Warner Bros. in 2022, He reunited with Mikkelsen for ''The Bastard''

Filmography

Feature films

Short films

* ' (2001)

Television series

* ''

Millennium A millennium (plural millennia or millenniums) is a period of one thousand years, sometimes called a kiloannus, kiloannum (ka), or kiloyear (ky). Normally, the word is used specifically for periods of a thousand years that begin at the starting ...

'' (2 episodes)

Awards

* 2004 Best Director, Danish Film Academy Awards (won) * 2012 Dreyer Award

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Arcel, Nikolaj 1972 births Danish people of Greek descent Film directors from Copenhagen Living people Danish male screenwriters Silver Bear for Best Screenplay winners