
Photo: Press
Norwegian director Jens Lien was educated at the London International Film School. In his early career he made documentaries, commercials and short films, including Shut the Door (2000) and Natural Glasses (2001) which were both nominated for the prestigious Palme d’Or in Cannes. Lien’s stylish and edgy short films have won numerous awards all over the world.In 2003, Lien’s first feature film Jonny Vang had its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival. His acclaimed second feature The Bothersome Man premiered in 2006 to fantastic reviews, was selected for the Toronto International Film Festival and won both the ACID Award at the Cannes Film Festival and the Hampton Golden Starfish. Since its release it has further gone on to win more than 30 international awards.The successful and award-winning feature Sons of Norway saw its world premiere at Toronto International Film Festival 2011 and was the opening film for The Norwegian Film Festival the same year. Lien is also director of the TV series Viva Hate for SVT which won Prix Europa for ‘Best European TV Series’ in 2015. His latest project, the sci-fi satire Beforeigners (2019-2021), was HBO Nordic’s first Norwegian original. Beforeigners was an immediate hit and was met with rave reviews both in Scandinavia and internationally.Furthermore, Lien is a distinguished director of commercials for TV and cinema, for which he has received international awards including the Cannes Lion and the Gullfisken Award (Best Commercial of the Year) twice – in 2014 for the SAS commercial Daddy´s Girl and in 2020 for The Boy With the Lunchbox. The latter instantly went viral and has been streamed more than 700 million times.
Golden Screen Nominee (Best TV Drama) Norway – Beforeigners | 2020 |
Seriencamp (Audience Choice Award) Germany – Beforeigners | 2019 |
Seriencamp Nominee (Official Competition) Germany – Beforeigners | 2019 |
Zurich Film Festival Nominee (Best International Series) Switzerland – Beforeigners | 2019 |
Prix Europa (Best TV Fiction) – Viva Hate | 2015 |
Kristallen Awards Nominee (Best Television Drama) Sweden – Viva Hate | 2015 |
Gothenburg Film Festival Nominee (Best Nordic Film) Sweden – Sønner av Norge Sons of Norway | 2012 |
Ghent International Film Festival (Youth Jury Award - Special Mention) Belgium – Sønner av Norge Sons of Norway | 2012 |
Gothenburg Film Festival (FIPRESCI Prize) Sweden – Sønner av Norge Sons of Norway | 2012 |
Les Arcs European Film Festival Nominee (Crystal Arrow) France – Sønner av Norge Sons of Norway | 2011 |
Chicago International Movies and Music Festival (Best Fiction Feature) US – Sønner av Norge Sons of Norway | 2011 |
Tehran International Short Film Festival Nominee (Best Fiction) Iran – Høydepunkter Every Day Is a Fish Day | 2009 |
Kosmorama Nominee (Best Director) Norway – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2007 |
Rouen Nordic Film Festival (Young European Jury Award) France – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2007 |
Gothenburg Film Festival (FIPRESCI Prize) Sweden – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2007 |
Gérardmer Film Festival (SCI FI Jury Award) France – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2007 |
Gérardmer Film Festival (Youth Jury Grand Prize) France – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2007 |
Fantasporto (International Fantasy Film Award) Portugal – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2007 |
Cinequest San Jose Film Festival (Maverick Spirit Award) US – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2007 |
Gérardmer Film Festival (International Critics Award) France – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2007 |
Gérardmer Film Festival (Grand Prize) France – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2007 |
Arne Skouens Honorary Award Norway | 2006 |
Montréal Festival of New Cinema (Quebec Film Critics Award) Canada – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Cannes Film Festival (ACID Award) France – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Amanda Awards Nominee (Best Film) Norway – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Utopiales: The Nantes International Science Fiction Film Festival (Grand Jury Award) France – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Sitges - Catalonian International Film Festival Nominee (Best Film) Spain – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Montréal Festival of New Cinema (Special Mention) Canada – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Hamptons International Film Festival (Best Film) US – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Norwegian Movie Critic's Award Norway | 2006 |
Riga International Film Forum (FIPRESCI Prize) Latvia – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival (Narcisse Award) Switzerland – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Nordic Council's Film Prize Nominee – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival (Golden Méliès Award) Switzerland – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Festival du nouveau cinéma (Jury's Special Mention) Canada – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Amanda Awards (Best Direction) Norway – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Athens International Film Festival (Best Director) Greece – Den brysomme mannen The Bothersome Man | 2006 |
Cinequest San Jose Film Festival (Director's Award) US – Jonny Vang | 2004 |
Brussels European Film Festival Nominee (Golden Iris) Belgium – Jonny Vang | 2003 |
Salerno Shadowline Film Festival (Best Film) Italy – Jonny Vang | 2003 |
Berlin Film Festival Nominee (Panorama Audience Award) Germany – Jonny Vang | 2003 |
Amanda Awards Nominee (Best Film) Norway – Jonny Vang | 2003 |
Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Film (Canal+ Belgique Award) Belgium – Naturlige briller Natural Glasses | 2002 |
Nordisk Panorama (Canal+ Prize) – Naturlige briller Natural Glasses | 2001 |
Brussels International Festival of Fantasy Film (European Broadcasters Award) Belgium – Døren som ikke smakk Shut the Door | 2001 |
Cannes Film Festival Nominee (Palme d'Or - Best Short Film) France – Naturlige briller Natural Glasses | 2001 |
Amanda Awards Nominee (Best Short Film) Norway – Naturlige briller Natural Glasses | 2001 |
Chicago International Film Festival (Best Narrative Short Film) US – Døren som ikke smakk Shut the Door | 2000 |
Mannheim-Heidelberg International Filmfestival (Art of Film Award of Mannheim-Heidelberg) Germany – Hver søndag hos mor Sunday Dinner at Mom's | 2000 |
Cannes Film Festival Nominee (Palme d'Or - Best Short Film) France – Døren som ikke smakk Shut the Door | 2000 |
Action thriller The Nation’s Gambit is about to mark Norwegian director Jens Lien’s comeback to feature films after 10 years of directing TV series, including the HBO hit series Beforeigners.
The film is an adaptation of Johan Høst’s bestselling debut novel Delta: En nasjon i sjakk. In this story, the Prime Minister of Norway is kidnapped by a terrorist making a single demand: that the politicians in power join in on a game of chess over the Prime Minister’s life. With each chess piece representing various state employees and leaders of society, the Prime Minister will survive if the politicians win – but every piece lost to the terrorist means the loss of a human life. The politicians and their appointed rescue team, the Delta Squad, are faced with an impossible dilemma with only 24 hours to save the prime minister.
“I have long been a fan of Jens Lien, and the fact that he is going to make a film of my book is a surreal out-of-body experience for me,” Høst says.
The Nation’s Gambit is produced by the Norwegian production company Stig og Stein Studio with producers Stig Hjerkinn Haug, Fredrik Støbakk and Tale Bryn Teigene. SF Studios will distribute the film in the Nordics, while Reinvent Studios handles international sales.