Nordic Animators Embrace Reindeer Born Out of a One-Night Stand, Viking Prince Who Teams Up With Drag Queens: ‘Compassion, Equality, Inclusion’
variety.comMarta Balaga Nordic animation makers need to embrace “compassion, equality and inclusion,” Kool Produktion’s Frank Mosvold told Variety. “As a gay producer, I’m alarmed by the growing negative attitude and harmful portrayals of the queer and trans communities in Europe, which is why I am developing ‘The Legend of Magnus the Good,’” he added, teasing the animated feature about “acceptance, regardless of gender and identity.” In the film, Magnus’ father is the famous Viking king Olaf.
When his uncle decides to steal the crown, the boy has to flee. He travels in time, landing in the middle of a drag show in Norway. “It’s important to make something that’s important to you,” Mosvold said later, during FFA’s panel Nordic Animation: How to Make New Classics.
A son of a “very successful businessman,” he also had to deal with high expectations. “With [previous animation] ‘Ella Bella Bingo,’ it was all about the little girl inside of me, finally coming out.
Don’t worry about making a ‘classic.’ Just make it personal.” Even if it means alienating some viewers – especially in the U.S. “In the U.S., they toned down the fact that, excuse my language, Niko is the fruit of a one-night stand between a ‘normal’ reindeer and one of Santa’s reindeers.
