Riding the Wave - creative preferences, spatial tension and transnational story components in the collaborations of Susanne Bier and Anders Thomas Jensen

An edited extract from a paper presented at the 7th Screenwriting Research Network Conference Screenwriting and Directing Audiovisual Media in Potsdam in 2014, this article used a case-study approach to analyse the creative dimensions and narrative components present in two of the collaborations between filmmakers Susanne Bier (as director) and Anders Thomas Jensen (as screenwriter). I note in particular how the Bier/Jensen filmography represents a significant shift in Denmark’s international cinematic visibility and will look closely at two Bier/Jensen films: After the Wedding (2006) and In a Better World (2010). The article also explores how the utilization of what I term the trans-prefix paradigm as a methodological tool may contribute towards a better understanding of the story mechanisms within the screenplay as text and its transnational capacities.