Gustaf Skarsgård starts shooting horror debut The Cannibal on Fårö
Gustaf Skarsgård has moved behind the camera for "The Cannibal," a psychological horror film that is his debut as a feature director.
Cameras started rolling on Fårö, the island off Sweden's east coast, with shooting scheduled to continue until the end of November, according to Variety. The production is based in the place where its story is set. That gives the shoot an unusual closeness to its subject.
The story follows David, a screenwriter in creative crisis. He travels to the estate of Ingmar Bergman on Fårö looking for inspiration for a film about Bergman's life, and the visit takes a dark turn.
Ardalan Esmaili stars as David, Variety reported. Claes Ljungmark plays Bergman himself. The pairing puts a contemporary writer face to face with one of cinema's most famous figures.
Much of the filming takes place in and around Bergman's estate on Fårö, alongside locations in West Sweden. The team was given access to the estate by the Bergman Estate on Fårö Foundation, which cares for the property.
The script was written by Peter Birro. The film is produced by Martin Persson and Mia Welin for Anagram, with Miira Paasilinna and Gunnar Carlsson from Anagram as executive producers, a role that usually involves overseeing finance or creative direction.
The list of co-producers, companies sharing costs and production duties, includes Film i Väst, Gotlands Filmfond, Sveriges Television, Just Republic and Can Film. Tall and Small is also credited as a co-producer, according to Anagram. Anagram is part of STUDIO TF1.
Scanbox Entertainment holds distribution rights in Scandinavia, meaning it will handle the cinema release there. An international sales agency, the company that sells a film to distributors in other countries, is still to be confirmed.
What makes this stand out is the location. Few debut features get to shoot inside the home of the artist they portray. The project was earlier described as a "genre-defying story about the possibilities and misadventures of filmmaking," according to Variety.
