Martin Pieter Zandvliet’s ‘Under sandet’ (’Land of Mine’), a post-World War II drama that follows a troop of German POWs digging up landmines in Denmark laid by their own army years earlier, has been chosen as Denmark’s official entry in the Best Foreign Language Film category at the Oscars.
READ MORE: Danish film shortlist confirmed for Oscars
It fought off competition from Thomas Vinterberg’s ‘Kollektivet’ and Lisa Ohlin’s ‘De standhaftige’, and it will learn if it has made the nine-film shortlist in December – a list Denmark has only failed to make once in the last six years – and the final five-film shortlist on January 24.
US release imminent
‘Under sandet’ premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last year before being released at Danish cinemas in December, where it sold 175,000 tickets. A US release is expected in the next six months.
The selection committee, which is made up of representatives from the Danish Film Institute and the country’s film industry, said their choice was a unanimous decision.
The Oscars are on February 26.
