Det er i Jorden (In the Soil)
2021 · 14m · Denmark
Directed by Casper Rudolf Emil Kjeldsen
Tones: contemplative, dark, surreal
When Karoline's father Kjeld begins manically digging a pit in their family backyard, her life descends into a waking nightmare as the land — held by the family for generations — pulls him deeper and deeper. The film leaves deliberately ambiguous whether his obsession stems from psychological illness, inherited trauma, or something supernatural.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
Three-shots-per-scene Danish dread about a father digging a generational pit. Cannes 2021, deliberate slow pushes, no shock — this is the version of folk-horror I actually want.
Kjeldsen uses roughly three shots per scene with slow pushes — formal restraint as dread-generation in the lineage of Robert Eggers and Ari Aster's quieter registers. The pit as inherited land, inherited illness; serious horror.
Cannes 2021 Official Selection using roughly three shots per scene with long uninterrupted takes and slow pushes — that's extreme compositional restraint trading shock for dread, exactly right for inherited-trauma folk horror. 14:53 sustained at that pace is real craft confidence.
Reviews
Kjeldsen is one of the new masters of atmospheric horror.
A wonderful creeping, crawling, unnerving tale of obsession — the editor was on another level.
Festivals
- Cannes Film Festival 2021
- Fantasia International Film Festival 2021
- Palm Springs International ShortFest 2021
- Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival
- Castrovillari Film Festival 2021, Audience Award, Best Cinematography
- TOHorror Fantastic Film Fest 2021, Audience Award
- FANTBilbao 2022, Best Short Film