I Dropped My Popcorn: The Gala Premiere of Drama Kings

On Wednesday it was the gala premiere of Drama Kings at Filmstaden Sergel in Stockholm, and Patrik and I had to be there.

I’ve known the Omanovic twins for a long time and followed their filmmaking for years. Eighteen years ago, when I was just starting out making my own films, they were my mentors. They helped me early on, when I barely knew what I was doing. So sitting in the audience watching them up there wasn’t like any other premiere.

Five years

On stage they talked about the journey. Five years of work to raise the money for a film the industry didn’t really want to finance. A Swedish kidnapping comedy, made by two brothers who never went to film school, and who say that’s exactly why nobody has been able to tell them something is impossible.

And still, there they were. In front of everyone in Sergel’s biggest cinema, with SVT behind them, Lucky Dogs distributing, and a film going out in real cinemas. It was wonderful to see, and it moved me more than I expected.

I think everyone who makes films recognises this. You have an idea you know is good, and you meet door after door closing. Most people give up somewhere along the way. Adi and Mak didn’t.

Popcorn on the floor

Then came the film. Drama Kings is about Krille and Martin, two failed actors convinced a producer stole their film idea. So they decide to carry out the kidnapping from their own script and demand a million kronor. The problem is that the producer’s daughter, Felicia, quickly takes charge. And when feelings start growing between her and one of the kidnappers, the plan really goes off the rails.

The cast includes Charlie Petersson, Magnus af Sandeberg, Wilma Lidén, Sara Sommerfeld, Mahmut Suvakci and Lukas Loughran.

At one point I laughed so hard I dropped my popcorn. Really. And I was reminded, once again, how important comedy is in film.

We talk a lot about films that say something big: about the world, about people, about the times we live in. That matters. But it matters just as much to sometimes get an hour and a half to laugh away all the world’s problems. To sit in a dark cinema with hundreds of strangers and laugh at the same thing at the same time. It’s one of the best things cinema can give us, and it happens far too rarely.

At Awarehouse we like to say we want to make films that make you forget your popcorn. Adi and Mak took it one step further.

Go see it

Drama Kings opened in Swedish cinemas on Friday, 23 October. It runs 94 minutes and is already an Official Selection at the Buffalo International Film Festival and the Nordic International Film Festival. But above all, it’s funny.

So do me a favour: If you’re in Sweden, buy a ticket, bring someone you like, and laugh together in a dark room. And hold on to your popcorn better than I did.

TICKETS

Congratulations, Adi and Mak. Thank you for helping me all those years ago, and thank you for showing that it can be done.

dramakingsfilm.com · @dramakingsfilm

— Christian, The Awarehouse Studio, Stockholm