Sophie Engberg

PUK SCHARBAU plays Lise Nørgaard in the epic film adaptation of her fascinating life story. In a chronicle of both love and war, masterfully directed by Peter Schroeder, we follow the woman who would later give us 'Matador', from her early childhood to her controversial career as a journalist with a Denmark of yesterday, and a Europe in flames as convincing backdrop.

Combining the exultant sweep of epic period drama with the subtle intimacy of biography in a social perspective, this is a tale of materially impoverished childhood, struggling early manhood and an unrequited first love turned into good musical fortune for Carl Nielsen, one of the great composers of the 20th century. Based on the composer's autobiography, the film itself is designed to soar like a symphony.