Without You
When Sine's daughter disappears, she gets the freedom she longed for, but only if Ida stays gone.
Sine's daughter, Ida, is demanding, and Sine feels trapped by motherhood. She longs for her lost freedom, the closeness of her friends, and the acting career she left behind. When Ida suddenly disappears without a trace, Sine's world is shattered. Yet in the wake of the tragedy, an unsettling truth begins to emerge. The life she thought she had lost slowly returns: her freedom, the attention of old friends, the support of the theatre world, and an unexpected second chance at the career she believed was over. Suddenly, everything she ever wanted is within reach – as long as Ida doesn’t return…
Screenwriters' note
When I became a mother almost three years ago, my world was turned upside down. I didn’t immediately feel the instinctive love I had expected, and for a long time, motherhood felt like survival. I knew these feelings were normal, yet they became a source of anxiety and shame. I wanted my son deeply, but at the same time, I also wanted myself. When he was only a few weeks old, I would walk the dog alone and cherish the feeling of breathing freely. I wrote in my diary: “I’m ashamed that I can’t cope with my child. That I want to shut myself away and let him cry.”
I believe many parents carry thoughts they barely dare admit to themselves. At some point, most of us wonder what life might have looked like without children. Would our relationships be stronger? Our careers more exciting? Our friendships closer? Would we have more room for ourselves? Some of it might be true – but what would we have lost in return?
It is precisely this emotional limbo that fascinates me about WITHOUT YOU. I want Sine to feel believable, fascinating, provocative and lovable at the same time.
As a woman, a mother and a writer working in a creative industry, I can bring my own experiences to Sine’s story and contribute a female perspective to her enormous dilemma. Working closely with Nils, I want to explore how we maintain empathy for a protagonist within a premise that is deliberately harsh, provocative and socially critical.
Director's note
When my son was two, his mother and I separated. I went from being a full-time father to suddenly spending every other week without my child. I miss him terribly and feel guilty about not being with him – but at the same time, I experience a shameful sense of relief. Relief at being able to lose myself in my work, see my friends, and live according to my own needs.
It is a confusing mix of emotions: How can I love my son so much and still enjoy being free from him? What if I actually enjoy the week WITHOUT him MORE than the week WITH him? Does that make me a bad father? These are the questions I want to explore in WITHOUT YOU.
Many parents I know share a longing for the life they had before children, always followed by the reassurance that, of course, they don’t regret having them. But perhaps, in fleeting moments, some of us do. Not because we are bad people, but because we demand so much of ourselves as parents while also being expected to pursue our own ambitions and dreams.
I want to push this conflict to its extreme in a film that is both sincere and entertaining. WITHOUT YOU is a drama, but humour and satire are essential. Its central, devilish irony is that Ida’s disappearance gives Sine everything she longed for when Ida was there. It feels forbidden – and that is precisely what draws me to it.
My ambition is to explore the darkness without losing warmth or humanity. We must understand and empathise with Sine, even when her feelings become morally ambiguous. Because our feelings often are. That is life – and that is where cinema has an important role to play.
Producer's note
We are a generation raised in a culture of perfection: get the right education, build an exciting career, find the right partner, and eventually create the perfect family. It sounds good on paper – but what happens when one dream stands in the way of another? When a child suddenly has to come before your career, ambitions, or relationship? You may find yourself with a child you deeply love and wanted, but who also stands in the way of the life you imagined for yourself.
With WITHOUT YOU, Nils has a deeply personal ambition for his debut feature and the courage to explore a relevant and uncomfortable question: Is it acceptable to have a life beyond your children?
Our parents partied late into the night while we fell asleep under the table. We were often left to ourselves, and adults rarely knew exactly what we were doing. Today, the opposite is true: we increasingly organise our lives around our children. While much of this is positive, where do we draw the line between being devoted parents and maintaining our own identities?
At the heart of the film is shame. Nils allows our protagonist to receive everything she secretly longs for precisely because she loses the person she loves most. How much is Sine allowed to enjoy her new life before it becomes unacceptable? Her greatest tragedy becomes a shortcut to fulfilling her personal dreams.
For me, this contradiction is the fascinating and provocative heart of WITHOUT YOU: the uncomfortable coexistence of unconditional love for a child and the longing for a life of your own.
Profile
At Hyæne Film, we bring together some of the brightest young talents in Danish cinema, placing directors side by side with hungry, progressive producers to create a collective ready to devour the world.
Our ambitions are bigger than our resources, but that won’t stop us. From Bornholm to Iraq, we want to challenge what films can be – and what they can cost. For us, the heart of the film is everything. We want to entertain, but something must always be at stake: our stories need something genuine at heart and something to feed the mind.
Our mission is clear: to be a defining force in Danish cinema while looking far beyond Denmark.