Phoenix (2019)

Norwegian writer/director Camilla Strøm Henriksen makes her feature directorial debut with Phoenix, a gripping family drama starring actress Maria Bonnevie (Insomnia), Sverrir Gudnason (Borg vs McEnroe) and featuring a breakout performance by Ylva Bjørkaas in her debut film role as 14 year old Jill. Phoenix will be available from 13th January 2020 on DVD and to download from i-Tunes, Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, Curzon Home Cinema, BFI Player, SkyStore.

From a young age, Jill (Ylva Bjørkaas) has been the responsible adult in her small family. Caring for her loving, but mentally unstable mother Astrid (Maria Bonnevie) and her younger brother Bo (Casper Falck-Løvås), she looks forward to her 14th birthday, just two days away. When her estranged father (Sverrir Gudnason) calls with the news that he'll visit, Jill stops at nothing to have the best day - even if it means keeping a secret that could rip her family apart.

Writer-director Camilla Strøm Henriksen has previously directed multiple episodes of the longest running series in Scandinavia, 'Hotel Caesar', as well as the drama series 'Hvaler' and 'Occupied'. Inspired by her own experiences of growing up, Camilla explains the background to her film: "Phoenix is above all about children who take the role of adults. It's about the conflict between the responsibility they take, and the unanswered needs they have, as children. It's about the complex dynamics within a family where the roles are reversed: where the children become the small adults. I have had experiences that made me want to tell a story that explores this theme, in a way that felt relevant to others."

Maria Bonnevie, considered one of Scandinavia's finest actors, plays the part of the mother in Phoenix. Her credits include The Polar Bear King, Jerusalem, Insomnia, Dragonflies, I am Dina, The Shamer's Daughter, A Second Chance, Becoming Astrid and Thomas Vinterberg's upcoming film Druk. Sverrir Gudnason who plays the father in Phoenix, previously played Björn Borg in the film Borg vs. McEnroe and starred in The Girl in the Spider's Web, where he played Mikael Blomkvist oppposte Claire Foy as Lisbeth Salander. Ylva Bjørkaas Thedin delivers a breakout performance in her debut film role as 14 year old Jill. Ylva stars in the HBO Nordic series Beforeigners and the new Norwegian Netflix original series Ragnarok.

Please note - Disc special features are subject to change, may differ from format to format and/or may differ from region to region.