Persona Non Grata

The meticulously structured life of Irina, a hip young Danish author, is rocked when she returns to her rural family after a long absence. Once there, she discovers that her brother is going to marry Catrine, who tormented her throughout childhood. Catrine proves to have nestled herself into the spot Irina once decisively fled. It doesn’t take long for conflict to arise, fed by the seemingly insurmountable differences and a painful history. Everyone in this family needs to take a long, hard look at themselves.

Director Lisa Jespersen used facets from her own life for this drama-comedy. She too wrestled with the divide between her artistic urban life and her rural upbringing as a farmer’s daughter. How do you find acceptable common ground with respect and understanding for both?