Christian Slater, Trine Dyrholm and Dree Hemingway are set to star in Incidents of Intimacy, an upcoming Danish drama directed by visual artist Jesper Just. The film will be the second feature produced under Dogma25, a filmmaking initiative launched by Danish production company Zentropa that seeks to encourage a more stripped-back approach to cinema.
Danish actors Johannes Lilleøre, Julie Agnete Vang, Laura Drasbæk and Michael Moritzen have also joined the cast. The project marks Just’s feature directorial debut, bringing together performers with experience across independent cinema, international films and television.
Dyrholm will play Linda, an intimacy coordinator who struggles to recognise and access her own emotions. Rather than forming close relationships with people, Linda steals objects belonging to them and stores them in a cupboard that serves as her personal “archive of intimacy.” Through these objects, she experiences emotional reactions that she finds difficult to access independently.
Linda’s carefully organised system begins to unravel when a triangular relationship enters her life, disrupting the connection between the objects and the feelings associated with them. As emotions begin to exist independently of their original owners, the objects appear to take on a life of their own. Linda gradually loses control, turning her carefully maintained world into a setting for emotional horror.
The premise explores intimacy, emotional distance and the ways people attempt to understand their own feelings. Further details about the characters played by Slater and Hemingway have not yet been announced.
Slater’s casting brings him back to Danish cinema following his supporting role in Lars von Trier’s Nymphomaniac (2013). He is also known for playing the title character in the television series Mr. Robot, a performance that earned him a Golden Globe Award. His film credits include The Name of the Rose.
Hemingway, meanwhile, is known for her performances in Sean Baker’s independent drama Starlet and Noah Baumbach’s While We’re Young. She has also appeared in the FX limited series Love Story.
Dyrholm has built an extensive career across Danish and international cinema, with credits including Susanne Bier’s In a Better World, Nikolaj Arcel’s A Royal Affair, May el-Toukhy’s Queen of Hearts and Magnus von Horn’s The Girl with the Needle. She also appeared in Thomas Vinterberg’s The Celebration, the 1998 Danish drama made under the original Dogme 95 manifesto. Her involvement in Incidents of Intimacy establishes a direct connection between the earlier filmmaking movement and Dogma25, which revisits some of its principles through a new set of rules.
Just is an acclaimed visual artist whose work has been exhibited internationally. He represented Denmark at the 2013 Venice Biennale, and his artistic practice explores themes including gender, love, social norms and perception. Incidents of Intimacy will be his first feature film as a director.
Just has co-written the screenplay with Sissel Dalsgaard Thomsen, whose previous writing credits include Isabella Eklöf’s Kalak and Malene Choi’s The Quiet Migration.
The film is being produced by Zentropa, the Danish production company associated with the original Dogme 95 movement. Dogma25 is backed by Zentropa, Danish public broadcaster DR and Nordisk Film Distribution, with Netflix holding streaming rights for the Nordic region. Incidents of Intimacy has also received support from the Danish Film Institute, the Eastern Denmark Film Fund and Nordisk Film & TV Fond.
Dogma25 was announced at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival by a collective of five filmmakers: Just, May el-Toukhy, Milad Alami, Annika Berg and Isabella Eklöf. Inspired by the original Dogme 95 movement, the initiative introduces a new set of rules intended to encourage visual storytelling while protecting filmmakers’ creative freedom. Among its requirements, each production must limit the crew behind the camera to ten people and ensure that at least half of the film contains no dialogue.
Incidents of Intimacy is the second feature to be made under the initiative, following Mr. Nawashi. Produced by Zentropa, the film is expected to be released in 2027. Nordisk Film Distribution will handle its theatrical release in the region, while TrustNordisk will oversee international sales.
