As a “free colored” woman, Anna Elizabeth Heegaard is wealthy and owns her own slaves when she begins a love affair with the Danish colony’s governor-general Peter von Scholten. During communal feasts, they discuss social reforms while a slave boy hangs above the table and cools the diners with a feather. And in the shadows, whispers begin of a slave revolt.
The film "Den, der lever stille" is an adaptation of the bestselling book by Leonora Christina Skov. The story is based on the author's own life and touches on a number of taboos and highly topical themes such as sexuality, guilt and loneliness. The novel has been at the top of the Danish bestseller lists for a full 62 weeks, has sold 120,000 copies and, not least, secured the author the book prize De Gyldne Laurbær. The film adaptation is directed by Puk Grasten, who has previously been behind the drama 37.
One day at the end of the 1800s, 14-year-old Lise’s life is changed forever. She is the eldest of her siblings, the first in her family to go to school and full of hope and confidence in life. But when her mother goes into labour, it quickly appears that something is wrong. As night falls and the labour progresses, Lise begins to understand that a day that began in childhood might end with her becoming the woman of the house.