Edward af Sillén

Edward af Sillén (2009)

Edward af Sillén (born 1982) is a Swedish screenwriter and director for stage, film and TV. He has translated and directed many highly successful theatre shows including Twelfth Night[1] by William Shakespeare, The Drowsy Chaperone,[2] Steel Magnolias[3] and the Torch Song Trilogy.[4] Edward has worked on the Eurovision Song Contest as a director, commentator and screenwriter, including 2016 where he co-wrote and directed the globally acclaimed interval act "Love, Love, Peace, Peace" with Fredrik Kempe, while also directing and writing for Sweden’s most popular television show Melodifestivalen. Following his first film Medicinen, his second En underbar jävla jul became the biggest Swedish film of 2015.[5]

Career

Television

2004 brought Edward’s screen writing breakthrough with the script for host Maria Lundqvist at the Guldbagge Awards, the Swedish equivalent of the Academy Awards. He returned in 2007 not only as Sissela Kyle’s scriptwriter, but as director of the show live on SVT.

Edward was recruited by Melodifestivalen supervisor Christer Björkman to write and direct the 2009 contest.[6] His mix of humour, music and sparkle saw him return in 2010,[7] 2012[7] and 2013.[7] After a two year contest break, he came back in 2016[7] to much acclaim. His parody sketch song Här står jag by Charlotte Perrelli performed that year topped the Swedish iTunes chart.[8]

After a lifelong love of the contest, Edward became the Swedish commentator in 2009 for SVT. The following year he wrote his first Eurovision Song Contest for Oslo 2010.[9] His commentary continued until 2012 when Loreen won the competition for Sweden. Edward wrote and directed the 58th Eurovision in Malmö 2013.[9] In 2015 he was asked by the BBC to co-write the hosts script of Eurovision's Greatest Hits Graham Norton and Petra Mede, for a celebration of Eurovision’s 60th year.[10] 2016 returned to the role of writer and director for Eurovision in Stockholm 2016 which featured the musical number "Love Love Peace Peace" performed by hosts Petra Mede and Måns Zelmerlöw. Ally Ross from The Sun called it "TV GOLD"[11] and The Independent named it the "ultimate interval act, somehow even upstaging Justin Timberlake himself".[12] Buzzfeed said the presenters where the "best thing about this year's contest".

Theatre

Edward’s theatrical work includes Swedish translations of Steel Magnolias[3], Torch Song Trilogy by Harvey Fierstein,[4] Rock of Ages[13] and The Ladykillers.[14] He directed Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night,[1] the play V.D.[15] and the musical Hair[1] at Stockholm’s National Theatre. His direction of Priscilla the Musical[16] was followed by his translation and direction of the Tony Award winning musical The Drowsy Chaperone in 2015.[2] That same year Edward directed. as well as translated the plays Rumors and the Laurence Olivier Award winner Cock.[17]

Edward has written and directed national tours for major Swedish artists such as Tomas Ledinr[18] and Peter Jöback.[19] He teamed up with Alcazar to create their first full production concert. Disco Defenders was a greatest hits residency which début in the Rondo at Lisberg, Gothenburg Summer 2015. The production moved to Hamburger Börs, Stockholm in Winter 2015. After another sell out run, the group took the show on a national tour then returned to Hamburger Börs in 2016.[20]

Film

2014 saw Edward release his first feature film Medicinen. Based on the 2009 book of the same name, wrote by Hans Koppel (pseudonym Petter Lidbeck). The book was reworked into a screenplay by Edward and his writing partner Daniel Réhn. An all-star cast including Ewa Fröling and Maria Lundqvist, was led by Helena Bergström.

Edward’s second film was the Swedish comedy En underbar jävla jul, wrote again with Daniel Réhn. Starring Swedish acting legends Robert Gustafsson, Maria Lundqvist and Helena Bergström. Seen by 77,736 people during its premiere weekend, it broke records with the biggest opening for a Swedish film in 2015.[21] It went on to become the most viewed Swedish film of 2015,[5] and has grossed over $8 million at the box office.[22] The film won Film of the Year at the QX Gaygala 2016.[23]

Personal life

Edward af Sillén is openly gay. Born in Brazil he was adopted by a Swedish father and an American mother.[24] Edward started his career as an actor. Performing both at the Lorensbergsteatern and Stockholm National Theatre. Aged 18, he did stand-up comedy. Hungry to work in the creative side of entertainment and theatre, he knew he could get his foot in the door as an actor.[25]

Work

Television

Guldbaggegalan

Screenwriter
Director and Screenwriter

Eurovision Song Contest

Director and Screenwriter
SVT Swedish Commentator

Melodifestivalen

Director and Screenwriter

Junior Eurovision Song Contest

SVT Swedish Commentator

Theatre

Director and Writer

Director and Translator

Director

Translator

Writer

Films

Awards

QX Gaygala

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Årsredovisning 2011" (PDF).
  2. 1 2 3 "Göta Lejon | Förklädet". www.gotalejon.se. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  3. 1 2 3 "Shirley Clamp och Edward årets kommentatorer - Schlagerbloggen med Tobbe Ek". Schlagerbloggen med Tobbe Ek (in Swedish). Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  4. 1 2 3 "Arnold". Kulturhuset Stadsteatern. Retrieved 2016-03-23.
  5. 1 2 "EN UNDERBAR JÄVLA JUL är 2015 års mest sedda svenska film". Mynewsdesk. Retrieved 2016-03-23.
  6. 1 2 3 4 "Edward af Sillén och Daniel Réhn ska säkra succén i Eurovision 2016". svt.se. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Han står bakom stjärnparaden: Edward af Sillén tillbaka till Melodifestivalen 2016". svt.se. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  8. ↑ "Wow! #1 på iTunes | Charlotte Perrelli". Retrieved 2016-03-23.
  9. 1 2 3 4 "Press conference with presenter Petra Mede". Eurovision.tv. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  10. 1 2 "Mede tokhyllas i Storbritannien". Aftonbladet. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  11. ↑ "Ally Ross: No ifs or butts, Graham Norton really is the new Wogan". www.thesun.co.uk. 2016-05-16. Retrieved 2016-05-20.
  12. ↑ "Watch Sweden's hosts steal the show with the perfect Eurovision song". The Independent. 2016-05-15. Retrieved 2016-05-20.
  13. 1 2 http://www.justinkase.se/, Justin Kase Digital Design & Development -. "Rock of Ages - Chinateatern". Chinateatern (in Swedish). Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  14. 1 2 http://www.justinkase.se/, Justin Kase Digital Design & Development -. "Ladykillers - Komedi på Oscarsteatern". Ladykillers (in Swedish). Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  15. 1 2 "V.D. – Teater på Kulturhuset Stadsteatern i Stockholm". Kulturhuset Stadsteatern. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  16. 1 2 "Göta Lejon | Priscilla". www.gotalejon.se. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  17. 1 2 "Cockfight". Kulturhuset Stadsteatern. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  18. 1 2 "Showtime | Tomas Ledin". www.tomasledin.com. Retrieved 2016-03-23.
  19. 1 2 "Peter Jöback - Official site - Nyheter - Svenska". www.peterjoback.com. Retrieved 2016-03-23.
  20. 1 2 "Alcazar kvällsföreställning - Hamburger Börs". Hamburger Börs (in Swedish). Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  21. ↑ "Publikrekord för julfilmen "En underbar jävla jul" - DN.SE". DN.SE (in Swedish). Retrieved 2016-03-23.
  22. ↑ "En underbar j�vla jul". www.boxofficemojo.com. Retrieved 2016-03-23. replacement character in |title= at position 14 (help)
  23. 1 2 "Här är vinnarna på QX Gaygala 2016". QX.se. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  24. ↑ "Sverige! - Avsnitt 11 | SVT Play". SVT Play. Archived from the original on November 16, 2015. Retrieved 2015-12-24.
  25. 1 2 Melin, Inger. "Edward af Sillén – en skämtare i skymundan - Borås Tidning". Borås Tidning (in Swedish). Retrieved 2016-03-23.
  26. ↑ "Det ar jul igen".
  27. ↑ "Skvaller". Uppsala Stadsteater (in Swedish). Retrieved 2016-03-22.
  28. ↑ "Extraföreställningar och biljettsuccé! Stjärnregissören Edward Af Sillén med skådespelarna Allan Sve | Promotion: Musik, Turneér, Konserter, Teater, Nöje och Krogshower - werecki promotion company". www.werecki.com. Retrieved 17 June 2016.
  29. ↑ "Boka artister och köp biljetter - Blixten & Co". Blixten & Co. Retrieved 2016-03-23.
  30. ↑ "Här är Gaygalans pristagare". QX.se. Retrieved 2016-03-22.
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