Henning Carlsen (4 June 1927 – 30 May 2014) was a Danish film director, screenwriter, and producer most noted for his documentaries and his contributions to the style of cinéma vérité.
[1] Carlsen's 1966 social-realistic drama Hunger (Sult) was nominated for the Palme d'Or and won the Bodil Award for Best Danish Film.
Carlsen began by writing and directing short documentaries and industry films, and with this background he flourished in the production of the cinéma vérité style.
[3] His documentary trilogy, De Gamle (The Elderly – 1961)), Familiebilleder (Family pictures- 1964) and Ung (Youth – 1965), created a classic portrait of 1960s Denmark as the nation revolutionized and transformed into a modern welfare society[4][5] Especially noted was Carlsen's technique of rhythmic editing in De Gamle which produced a lyrical portrait of retirees without any needed commentary.
[4] In 1962, Carlsen continued in cinéma vérité style with his first feature film: the harsh social drama Dilemma, released as A World of Strangers in the UK due to a naming conflict.
The following year, Carlsen changed pace from his realistic dramas and made the comedy People Meet and Sweet Music Fills the Heart (Mennesker mødes og sød musik opstår i hjertet) based on the work of Jens August Schade.
[7] He also released his film, Memoria de Mis Putas Tristes (Memories of My Melancholy Whores), adapted from the 2004 novel by Gabriel García Márquez.