Bille August

Directing

Bille August

Born

1948-11-09 (77)

Known for

Directing

Credits

47 titles

Bille August  (born November 9, 1948) is a Danish Academy Award winning film and television director. His film Pelle the Conqueror from 1987 won the Palme D'or, Academy Award and Golden Globe. He is one of the very few directors to win the Palme D'or twice, winning the prestigious award again in 1991 for The Best Intentions, based on the autobiographical script by Ingmar Bergman. He was married to Swedish actress Pernilla August from 1991 to 1997. His son Anders August is a screenwriter.

Known for

Klovn poster
8.4

Klovn is a Danish sitcom, which first aired on the Danish TV channel TV2 Zulu. It focuses on the life of the main character Frank and Casper. The show builds its comedy around quiet everyday situations, social awkwardness, uncomfortable silences and general faux pas. Klovn usually gets compared to the American sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm by Larry David. It’s also shot handheld, in a pseudo-realistic style. Some have also mistakenly compared the theme to Curb Your Enthusiasm’s, despite it being a direct reference to Jacques Tati’s Mr. Hulot movies. The poster for the first film can be seen in Casper and Frank’s offices throughout the series. Klovn initially ran 6 seasons on TV2 Zulu from 2005-2009 and was renewed with an additional 3 seasons that aired from 2018-2022.

Klovn

2005

The Guldbagge Awards poster
5.5

The Guldbagge Awards is an official and annual Swedish film awards ceremony honoring achievements in the Swedish film industry. Winners are awarded a statuette depicting a rose chafer, better known by the name Guldbaggen. The awards, first presented in 1964 at the Grand Hôtel in Stockholm, are overseen by the Swedish Film Institute. It is described as the Swedish equivalent of the Academy Awards. The awards ceremony was first televised in 1981.

The Guldbagge Awards

1981

The House of the Spirits poster
6.9

A rancher, his clairvoyant wife and their family face turbulent years in South America.

The House of the Spirits

1993

Les Misérables poster
7.2

In 19th century France, Jean Valjean, a man imprisoned for stealing bread, must flee a relentless policeman named Javert. The pursuit consumes both men's lives, and soon Valjean finds himself in the midst of the student revolutions in France.

Les Misérables

1998

The Kiss poster
6.5

A romantic drama set in Denmark in 1913, the story follows Anton, a noble and conscientious young man whose top priority is to complete his training as a cavalry officer. During a training session, he orders his platoon to help Baron von Løvenskjold and finds himself invited to a ball at the castle, where he meets the baron’s beautiful daughter Edith who has been in an accident and ended up in a wheelchair.

The Kiss

2022

The Best Intentions poster
7.0

In this film about Ingmar Bergman's parents, Henrik Bergman is studying for the priesthood and trying to make ends meet when he encounters the lovely, affluent Anna. Despite their social differences, Henrik and Anna fall in love, wed and move to the country. They lead a quiet life as Henrik works as a priest, but it isn't long before the simple people and plain surroundings make Anna long for a more lavish lifestyle, which causes marital stress.

The Best Intentions

1992

Film credits

Series credits

Behind the camera

The House of the Spirits poster
6.9

A rancher, his clairvoyant wife and their family face turbulent years in South America.

The House of the Spirits

1993

The House of the Spirits poster
6.9

A rancher, his clairvoyant wife and their family face turbulent years in South America.

The House of the Spirits

1993

Les Misérables poster
7.2

In 19th century France, Jean Valjean, a man imprisoned for stealing bread, must flee a relentless policeman named Javert. The pursuit consumes both men's lives, and soon Valjean finds himself in the midst of the student revolutions in France.

Les Misérables

1998

The Kiss poster
6.5

A romantic drama set in Denmark in 1913, the story follows Anton, a noble and conscientious young man whose top priority is to complete his training as a cavalry officer. During a training session, he orders his platoon to help Baron von Løvenskjold and finds himself invited to a ball at the castle, where he meets the baron’s beautiful daughter Edith who has been in an accident and ended up in a wheelchair.

The Kiss

2022

The Kiss poster
6.5

A romantic drama set in Denmark in 1913, the story follows Anton, a noble and conscientious young man whose top priority is to complete his training as a cavalry officer. During a training session, he orders his platoon to help Baron von Løvenskjold and finds himself invited to a ball at the castle, where he meets the baron’s beautiful daughter Edith who has been in an accident and ended up in a wheelchair.

The Kiss

2022

The Best Intentions poster
7.0

In this film about Ingmar Bergman's parents, Henrik Bergman is studying for the priesthood and trying to make ends meet when he encounters the lovely, affluent Anna. Despite their social differences, Henrik and Anna fall in love, wed and move to the country. They lead a quiet life as Henrik works as a priest, but it isn't long before the simple people and plain surroundings make Anna long for a more lavish lifestyle, which causes marital stress.

The Best Intentions

1992

Night Train to Lisbon poster
6.5

Raimund Gregorius, having saved a beautiful Portuguese woman from leaping to her death, stumbles upon a mesmerizing book by a Portuguese author, which compels him to suddenly abandon the boring life he has led for years and to embark on an enthralling adventure. In search of the author, Gregorius acts as detective, pulling together pieces of a puzzle that involves political and emotional intrigue and the highest possible stakes. His voyage is one that transcends time and space, delving into the realms of history, medicine and love, all in search of true meaning to his life.

Night Train to Lisbon

2013

The Chinese Widow poster
7.2

It’s 1941 and the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor has destroyed America’s morale. The US President Franklin D. Roosevelt then decides to risk it all by bombing Tokyo and raise more hope for his citizens. After completing its mission, a unit of the US Air Force is forced to make an emergency landing in China. Its commander Jack Turner (Emilie Hirsch) barely survives but gets rescued by Ying (Crystal Liu), a local widow who will stop at nothing to hide him from the Japanese occupant.

The Chinese Widow

2017

Pelle the Conqueror poster
7.3

In the late 19th century, two Swedish emigrants, Lasse Karlsson and his son Pelle, arrive on the Danish island of Bornholm hoping to find work on a farm and save enough money to travel to the United States of America.

Pelle the Conqueror

1987

Pelle the Conqueror poster
7.3

In the late 19th century, two Swedish emigrants, Lasse Karlsson and his son Pelle, arrive on the Danish island of Bornholm hoping to find work on a farm and save enough money to travel to the United States of America.

Pelle the Conqueror

1987

55 Steps poster
6.7

The inspiring true story of Eleanor Riese, a mental illness patient herself, who brings a class action suit to give competent mental patients the right to have a say in their medication while they're in a hospital, and Colette Hughes, the lawyer appointed to her case.

55 Steps

2018

To Each His Own Cinema poster
6.4

Commissioned to mark the 60th anniversary of the Cannes Film Festival, "To Each His Own Cinema" brought together 33 of the world's pre-eminent filmmakers to produce short pieces exploring the multifarious facets of cinema and their perspective on the state of their chosen artform in the early 21st century.

To Each His Own Cinema

2007

Smilla's Sense of Snow poster
6.3

Smilla Jaspersen attempts to understand the death of a small boy who falls from the roof of her apartment building. Suspecting wrongdoing, Smilla uncovers a trail of clues leading towards a secretive corporation that has made several mysterious expeditions to Greenland.

Smilla's Sense of Snow

1997

Ehrengard: The Art of Seduction poster
6.0

When a self-appointed expert on love tries to teach a timid prince the art of seduction, the plan backfires, leading to scandal — and unexpected romance.

Ehrengard: The Art of Seduction

2023

A Fortunate Man poster
6.7

A gifted engineer flees his austere roots to pursue wealth and success among Copenhagen's elite. As he rises through the ranks of society, the pride propelling him threatens to be his ruin.

A Fortunate Man

2018

A Fortunate Man poster
6.7

A gifted engineer flees his austere roots to pursue wealth and success among Copenhagen's elite. As he rises through the ranks of society, the pride propelling him threatens to be his ruin.

A Fortunate Man

2018

The Pact poster
6.4

Aged 63, Karen Blixen is at the pinnacle of her fame and next in line to win the Nobel Prize for literature. It has been 17 years since she gave up her famous farm in Africa, only to return to Denmark with her life in ruins. Devastated by syphilis and having lost the love of her life, she has reinvented herself as a literary sensation. One day, she meets a talented 30-year-old poet whom she promises literary stardom if he in return will obey her unconditionally, even at the cost of him losing everything else in his life.

The Pact

2021

Silent Heart poster
6.6

Three generations of a family gather over a weekend. The sisters Sanne and Heidi have accepted their terminally-ill mother’s desire to die before her disease worsens; but, as the weekend progresses, their mother's decision becomes harder and harder to deal with, and old conflicts come to the surface.

Silent Heart

2014

Marie Kroyer poster
6.2

Marie Krøyer is hailed as “the most beautiful woman in Europe” and leads a happy marriage life with her husband the great Danish painter P.S. Krøyer and an adorable daughter. However, not everything in her world is as perfect as it seems, and Marie’s life is crumbling as her dreams of a beloved wife, good mother and successful artist are unfulfilled. After hospitalizing her mentally ill husband Marie leaves for vacation, and in search for peace and comfort she finds herself falling in love with the young composer Hugo Alfven. Once again, internationally acclaimed Bille August exhibits the weaknesses of human beings in comparison to the ruthless nature. The grandeur scenery of deserted Scandinavian oceans speaks in volumes for the protagonists living in silence despite their lives being full of pains.

Marie Kroyer

2012

A Song for Martin poster
5.6

Martin, conductor of a symphonic orchestra, meet Barbara, violine player and they start a relationship. Five years later Martin starts to develop loss of memory and becomes more and more confused. Finally he is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and Barbara tries to help as much as possible although Martin is often angry and violent towards her.

A Song for Martin

2001

A Song for Martin poster
5.6

Martin, conductor of a symphonic orchestra, meet Barbara, violine player and they start a relationship. Five years later Martin starts to develop loss of memory and becomes more and more confused. Finally he is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and Barbara tries to help as much as possible although Martin is often angry and violent towards her.

A Song for Martin

2001

A Song for Martin poster
5.6

Martin, conductor of a symphonic orchestra, meet Barbara, violine player and they start a relationship. Five years later Martin starts to develop loss of memory and becomes more and more confused. Finally he is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease and Barbara tries to help as much as possible although Martin is often angry and violent towards her.

A Song for Martin

2001

Goodbye Bafana poster
6.9

The true story of a white South African racist whose life was profoundly altered by the black prisoner he guarded for twenty years. The prisoner's name was Nelson Mandela.

Goodbye Bafana

2007

Return to Sender poster
6.4

While fighting for a woman who sits on death row, a lawyer happens upon new information which brings into question the motives of a man associated with her client

Return to Sender

2004

Jerusalem poster
7.3

Members of a devout Christian congregation try to start a new life in Palestine.

Jerusalem

1996

Jerusalem poster
7.3

Members of a devout Christian congregation try to start a new life in Palestine.

Jerusalem

1996

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: The Perils of Cupid poster
5.8

First love - or first infatuation - overwhelms Indy in Vienna, where he is smitten with the daughter of Archduke Francis Ferdinand. Needing emotional guidance, Indy consults Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung to discover what love is all about. In Florence, when Indy's mother is equally smitten with Giacomo Puccini, composer of Romantic operas La Boheme and Tosca, Indy must guide his parent safely back to her spouse.

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: The Perils of Cupid

2000

In My Life poster
4.4

A young man finds love and settles down, but when his young wife spirals into depression they both have decisions to make.

In My Life

1978

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Tales of Innocence poster
5.8

In Italy, Indy's espionage work takes him behind enemy lines where he embarks on an important propaganda assignment that he hopes will bring a swift end to the war. Along the way, he engages in a comic rivalry with Ernest Hemingway over the affections of a beautiful Italian girl. After being wounded in action, Indy is transferred to North Africa where he joins the French Foreign Legion. While trying to uncover the identity of a traitor in his own ranks, Indy battles hostile Berber tribesmen and engages in an innocent flirtation with author Edith Wharton.

The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones: Tales of Innocence

1999

Twist and Shout poster
6.8

Danish teens come of age in 1963. Bjorn and Erik are close friends. Bjorn is pursued by Kirsten, a future Stepford wife, but he falls for Anna, who initiates him into love and sex. Erik is somber, caring for his home-bound mentally-ill mother while his strict father rules his life. He desires Kirsten, but she's unattainable. Pregnancy, a horrific abortion, an engagement party, and a revelation about the rectitude of Erik's father lead to a climax: Bjorn and Erik must stand up to controlling adults.

Twist and Shout

1984

Twist and Shout poster
6.8

Danish teens come of age in 1963. Bjorn and Erik are close friends. Bjorn is pursued by Kirsten, a future Stepford wife, but he falls for Anna, who initiates him into love and sex. Erik is somber, caring for his home-bound mentally-ill mother while his strict father rules his life. He desires Kirsten, but she's unattainable. Pregnancy, a horrific abortion, an engagement party, and a revelation about the rectitude of Erik's father lead to a climax: Bjorn and Erik must stand up to controlling adults.

Twist and Shout

1984

Zappa poster
7.0

Denmark, 1961. Bjørn, a middle-class boy in his early teens, wants to be accepted by Steen, a bullying peer of his with wealthy but freezingly cold parents. Bjørn's other good friend is Mulle, a cheerful and more childish working-class boy. All three seem friends at first, but gradually Steen starts pushing Mulle away while pulling the impressionable Bjørn with him towards more and more violence.

Zappa

1983

Zappa poster
7.0

Denmark, 1961. Bjørn, a middle-class boy in his early teens, wants to be accepted by Steen, a bullying peer of his with wealthy but freezingly cold parents. Bjørn's other good friend is Mulle, a cheerful and more childish working-class boy. All three seem friends at first, but gradually Steen starts pushing Mulle away while pulling the impressionable Bjørn with him towards more and more violence.

Zappa

1983

May poster
9.0

An everyday story about a young girl from the countryside and the people she meets when she moves to the big city to train as a hairdresser.

May

1983

Me, You poster
NR

On a remote Italian island in the early 1960s, a teenage boy haunted by memories of the war falls in love with an older girl who holds a dark secret. Based on the novel "Tu, Mio," by Erri De Luca.

Me, You

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Buster's World poster
6.7

The television series was based on a play by Danish author Bjarne Reuter. In 1984 Reuter published his collection Tre skuespil ("Three Plays"); a collection containing also En dag i Hector Hansens liv ("A Day in the Life of Hector Hansen") and Kom der lys i neonrøret, gutter? ("Was There Light in the Neon Tube, Boys?") – in addition to Busters Verden.

Buster's World

1984

No artwork available
NR

A look at the life of Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace who rose to fame in the late 1970s.

Versace: The Medusa Eyes

—

No artwork available
NR

A look at the life of Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace who rose to fame in the late 1970s.

Versace: The Medusa Eyes

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No artwork available
NR

Follows the personal and professional evolution of Giorgio Armani, who passed away in September 2025, aged 91, and is widely regarded to be among the most influential designers in 20th and 21st-century fashion.

Armani: The King of Fashion

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