Salmon
2023 · 23m · Denmark
Directed by Mattis Heurlin
Genres: drama
An ambitious young chef lands a coveted position at a prestigious Nordic Michelin-starred restaurant, where a brutal evening service under an uncompromising head chef pushes him to his limits — and his fear of failure leads him to conceal his mistakes with escalating, catastrophic consequences.
Picked by Zoe
The scouts
Twenty-two minutes of Nordic Whiplash with a jazz score that 'deliberately echoes Whiplash' — that's not influence, that's xerox. Skip.
A Copenhagen brewery converted into a Michelin set, shot nocturnally, scored to deliberately echo Whiplash — Heurlin is openly courting Chazelle territory rather than transcending it. Capable mimicry.
Twenty-three minutes filmed on a nocturnal schedule (10 PM to 8 AM) over four days inside a Copenhagen brewery converted into a Michelin kitchen set, with a jazz score that deliberately echoes Whiplash — that production discipline gives the film genuine grimy authority. Lucas Lynggaard Tønnesen (1899, The Rain) anchoring it is a real cast get.
Reviews
The kind of gripping, immersive filmmaking you just can't take your eyes off... the level of technical craft on show is of the highest standard. Driven by excellent performances, kinetic cinematography, an energetic edit and a pulsating, jazz-infused score.
Festivals
- Short Shorts Film Festival & Asia 2023
- Norwich Film Festival 2023