Jens Östberg

 

Jens Östberg has a background as a prominent choreographer, having worked with many prestigious dance companies around the world, such as the Nederlands Dans Theater and the Cullberg Ballet. As a writer and director, Jens prefers dark subjects with a strong atmosphere and a slow-burn intensity. As an actor-focused director, he is always looking to create the strongest character work possible. A geek at heart and a lover of smart genre filmmaking, he nevertheless sets out to tweak the genre rules.

His short film Småvilt/Small Game, a minimalist tale of two brothers, received an honourable mention at the Göteborg Film Festival, and his feature film debut Flugparken/Blowfly Park, an icy psychological thriller, was nominated for two Guldbagge Awards, securing a win for lead actor Sverrir Gudnason.

An avid reader of screenplays, Jens is as dedicated to the craft of screenwriting as he is to bringing a vision to life as a director. Currently, he is working on several projects within the supernatural, crime, and psychological horror genres, serving as a screenwriter for other directors, as well as writing for himself to direct. One of his latest projects is Taelgia, which was released in 2023.

 
Jens Östberg
 

Selected works

Inkräktare - feature (writer/director) - in development

Taelgia - series (writer/director) - 2023

Spelskandalen - (director) - 2022

Jag är Zlatan / I am Zlatan - feature (football choreographer, second unit director football scenes) - 2021

Filip & Mona - series (writer/director) - 2019

Flugparken – feature (writer/director) - 2014

Småvilt – short (writer/director) - 2009

Awards & nominations

Taelgia

Nominated for Prix Europa - 2023

Nominated Best Male Lead - 2024

Flugparken / Blowfly Park

Stockholm Film Festival – Best Film - 2014

Thessaloniki International Film Festival – Best Film - 2014

Småvilt / Small Game

Göteborg Film Festival – Honourable Mention - 2009

Personal awards

The Cullberg Scholarship - 2004

Philip Morris Ballet Flower Award - 1997

The Sacred Man

Grand Prix Sélection Nationale de Rencontres Chorégraphique de Bagnolet - 1995