Ellen Gunilla Hillingsø (born 9 March 1967) is a Danish actress who is known primarily for her work in films. She is also a voice actress, narrating audio books.

Early life

Ellen Gunilla Hillingsø was born on 9 March 1967 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 ar ...

to Kjeld Georg Hilligsøe Hillingsø, then a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often sub ...

in the Danish Royal Life Guards, and Ellen Birgitta Hillingsø (née Juel), an antiques dealer. Hillingsø's maternal grandfather was Gregers Juel, a

chamberlain Chamberlain may refer to: Profession *Chamberlain (office), the officer in charge of managing the household of a sovereign or other noble figure People *Chamberlain (surname) **Houston Stewart Chamberlain (1855–1927), German-British philosop ...

and a Knight (1st Class) of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog ( da, Dannebrogordenen) is a Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single class known a ...

. Her paternal uncle was Lars Hillingsø, a fashion designer and founder of the ''Lars Paris'' brand. Hillingsø has one sibling, Jens Georg, who is three years older. Jens works at the

Rigshospitalet Rigshospitalet (meaning ''The National'', ''State'' or ''Hospital of the Realm'', but not usually translated) is the largest public and teaching hospital in Copenhagen and the most highly specialised hospital in Denmark. The hospital's main buildi ...

in Copenhagen and is a former chairman of

Médecins sans Frontières (MSF; pronounced ), also known as Doctors Without Borders, is a humanitarian medical non-governmental organisation (NGO) or charity of French origin known for its projects in conflict zones and in countries affected by endemic diseases. M ...

Career

Primarily a film actress, Hillingsø made her debut in the farce '' Huller i suppen'' in 1988, playing a small role alongside the comic duo John and Aage ( Povl Erik Carstensen and Morten Lorentzen). After appearing in ''En verden til forskel'' (1989), she began as a stage actress, appearing at the Århus Theatre from 1990 to 1994. In 1996, Hillingsø appeared in Peter Thorsboe's drama ''Krystalbarnet'', in which she starred with

Mirosław Baka Mirosław Michał Baka (born 15 December 1963 in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski) is a Polish actor. One of his best-known roles is Jacek in ''A Short Film About Killing'' (1988) directed by Krzysztof Kieślowski. He also appeared in the comedy televis ...

, Grażyna Barszczewska, and

Helene Egelund Helene Egelund (born 15 February 1965) is a Danish actress. She has appeared in more than thirty films since 1986. Selected filmography References External links * 1965 births Living people Danish film actresses {{Denmark-a ...

. In 1999, she starred in

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 ...

'' alongside

Iben Hjejle Iben Hjejle (22 March 1971) is a Danish actress, notable for starring in the Stephen Frears film '' High Fidelity'' (2000). In Denmark, she is perhaps best known for appearing in the Danish television sitcom '' Langt fra Las Vegas'' (''Far from ...

, Anders Hove,

Sofie Gråbøl Sofie Gråbøl (; born 30 July 1968) is a Danish actress. She has starred in a number of films, with her breakthrough role in the 1986 Danish film '' Early Spring'', directed by Astrid Henning-Jensen, playing the lead role in the film version of T ...

, and

Paprika Steen Kirstine "Paprika" Steen (born 3 November 1964) is a Danish actress and director best known for her performances in Dogme 95 films ''Festen'', '' The Idiots'', Mifune, and ''Open Hearts''. Steen was the first Danish actress since Karin Nellemos ...

. In 2007, she appeared in ''

Karlas kabale ''Karla's World'' ( da, Karlas Kabale) is a 2007 Danish movie based on the 2003 book of the same title written by Renée Simonsen Renée Toft Simonsen (born 12 May 1965) is a Danish former supermodel who works as a writer. Simonsen was one of ...

'', based on the 2003 book of the same title written by

Renée Simonsen Renée Toft Simonsen (born 12 May 1965) is a Danish former supermodel A supermodel, also spelled super-model or super model, is a highly paid fashion model who usually has a worldwide reputation and often a background in ''haute couture'' an ...

. Also in 2007 she starred in the Danish television police drama '' Anna Pihl''. In 2010 she starred in the film ''

Eksperimentet ''Eksperimentet'' ( en, The Experiment) is a 2010 Danish drama film written and directed by Louise Friedberg, and starring Ellen Hillingsø. The film premiered on 28 August 2010 in the Katuaq Culture Centre in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland. The ...

'', directed by Louise Friedberg. The film deals with social experiments and the problem of

cultural genocide Cultural genocide or cultural cleansing is a concept which was proposed by lawyer Raphael Lemkin in 1944 as a component of genocide. Though the precise definition of ''cultural genocide'' remains contested, the Armenian Genocide Museum defines ...

in Greenland. The film premiered on 28 August 2010 in the

Katuaq Culture Centre Katuaq ( da, Grønlands Kulturhus) is a cultural centre in Nuuk, Greenland. It is used for concerts, exhibitions, conferences, and as a cinema. Designed by Schmidt Hammer Lassen, it was constructed as a joint project of the Greenland Home Rule ...

Nuuk Nuuk (; da, Nuuk, formerly ) is the capital and largest city of Greenland, a constituent country of the Kingdom of Denmark. Nuuk is the seat of government and the country's largest cultural and economic centre. The major cities from other co ...

, the capital of

Greenland Greenland ( kl, Kalaallit Nunaat, ; da, Grønland, ) is an island country in North America that is part of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Greenland is t ...

. Aside from her work as an actress, Hillingsø has done notable work as a voice actress in cartoons, film and TV, and in audio books.

Personal life

Hillingsø married the director of

Saxo Bank Saxo Bank is a Danish investment bank specializing in online trading and investment. It was founded as a brokerage firm in 1992, under the name Midas Fondsmæglerselskab (English: ''Midas Stockbroker Company''), by Lars Seier Christensen, Kim F ...

, Christoffer Castenskiold, on 27 December 2000. They have two children together.

Filmography

Film

*'' Huller i suppen'' (1988) *'' En verden til forskel'' (1989) * '' Krystalbarnet'' (1996) * ''

Sekten ''Credo'' is a 1997 Danish thriller film. Its original Danish title is ''Sekten'', which means "The Sect". Written and directed by Susanne Bier, the film stars Sofie Gråbøl and Ellen Hillingsø, and was produced by Zentropa. Cast *Sofie Gråb� ...

'' (1997) * '' Mifunes sidste sang'' (1999) * '' Klinkevals'' (1999) * '' Når lysterne tændes'' (2001) * ''

Jolly Roger Jolly Roger is the traditional English name for the flags flown to identify a pirate ship preceding or during an attack, during the early 18th century (the later part of the Golden Age of Piracy). The flag most commonly identified as the Jolly ...

'' (2001) * '' En kort en lang'' (2001) * ''

Olsen-banden Junior ''Olsen-banden Junior'' is a 2001 Danish family-comedy heist film. It is a prequel to the long running Danish film series ''Olsen-banden'', and an implementation of the concept used by the Swedish ''Olsen-banden'' remakes prequels ''Lilla Jöns ...

'' (2001) * '' Drengen der ville gøre det umulige'' * '' Floden'' (2002 - stemme) * '' Silkevejen'' (2004) * '' Opbrud'' (2005) * '' Afrejsen'' (2005) * ''

Allegro Allegro may refer to: Common meanings * Allegro (music), a tempo marking indicate to play fast, quickly and bright * Allegro (ballet), brisk and lively movement Artistic works * L'Allegro (1645), a poem by John Milton * ''Allegro'' (Satie), an ...

'' (2005) * '' Den Rette Ånd'' (2005) * '' Sprængfarlig bombe'' (2006) * '' Anja og Viktor - brændende kærlighed'' (2007) * ''

'' (2007) * '' En forelskelse'' (2008) * '' Maj & Charlie'' (2008) * '' Karla og Katrine'' (2009) * '' Over gaden under vandet'' (2009) * '' Karla og Jonas'' (2010) *''

'' (2010)

TV

* ''Charlot og Charlotte'' (1996) * '' Hvor svært kan det være'' (2002) * '' Absalons hemmelighed'' (2006) * '' Anna Pihl'' (2007) * ''

Album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

'' (2008) * ''

Livvagterne ''The Protectors'' ( da, Livvagterne) is a Danish crime TV series from 2009 that follows the police bodyguard squad P.E.T. (Politiets Efterretningstjeneste), which is in charge of protecting VIPs, including Danish royalty and politicians. Ove ...

'' (2009) * '' The Bridge'' (2011–2018) * '' Rita'' (2012–2020) * '' Hjørdis'' (2015)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hillingso, Ellen Danish film actresses Danish voice actresses Audiobook narrators 1967 births Living people Actresses from Copenhagen