Who is … Susanne Bier?

A Danish film director

Why should we care?

Her film ‘In a Better World’ (‘Hævnen’) won the Oscar for best film in a foreign language in 2010. The award is traditionally accepted by the winning film’s director, but the rules categorically state it is “awarded to the picture”. Nevertheless, Bier was more than happy to soak up all the glory and attention singlehandedly.

So she’s a big shot now?

Yeah, she spent last summer shooting the film ‘The Bald Hairdresser’ (‘Den Skaldede Frisør’) on the Amalfi Coast in Italy, with former James Bond, Pierce Brosnan, in the cast. As if that wasn’t glamorous enough, she had 100 million kroner to play with for the film ‘Serena’, which was shot in the Czech Republic and is set for release next year.

The one Bradley Cooper’s in?

Yep, Bier probably has the hots for him. Well, after all, he was named the sexiest man in the world in 2011. But Bier gushed to Ekstra Bladet that “underneath his sexy charm, there is an incredibly good actor hiding”. We’re talking about the guy known for his role in the ‘Hangover’ films.

How come Bier’s signing up the big names now

She thinks it’s all thanks to the Oscar she won in 2010. In interviews, she does refer to it as “my Oscar” rather than giving some cred to her ‘In a Better World’ colleagues – it was an Oscar for best foreign film, not best director after all.  But the actors in ‘Serena’ will receive much less than their usual billing. Cooper will get about five percent of his usual earnings for a film.

Does that mean Bier is hogging all the moola?

Actually, she reckons she earns a lot less in Hollywood compared with what she’d take home directing a Danish film. But she did tell Ekstra Bladet that it would be nice to be rich, so she could afford everything she wanted. A panic room for her gold statue maybe?

So where is that beloved statue?

She wouldn’t say. But she strongly denied that she slept with the statue on the night she won the award. It’s difficult to comment on her taste in men though – especially when she forgot to kiss ‘Twilight’ star Robert Pattinson when he handed her the trophy. “My daughter still hasn’t forgiven me,” she laughed. But on the night, Bier only had eyes for one man, and he weighed in at 3.85kg.