On the 100th anniversary of his birth, internationally-renowned director Margarethe von Trotta examines Ingmar Bergman’s life and work with a circle of his closest collaborators as well as a new generation of filmmakers.
This documentary presents key components of his legacy, as it retraces themes that recurred in his life and art and takes us to the places that were central to Bergman’s creative achievements.
“Ingmar Bergman inspired me to become a director,” said von Trotta. “Making this film, I tried to create a path that would lead to him, but in so doing also reflect who I am as a creative artist.”
“‘Searching for Ingmar Bergman’ was an active but inward process,” von Trotta added. “The film might appear to be an external quest, as it travels from Sweden, to Germany, Spain, and France. But the protagonists, and particularly his sons, his actresses, like Liv Ullmann, Gunnel Lindblom, Julia Dufvenius, former work companions and directors, and filmmakers of the next generation, like Ruben Östlund, Olivier Assayas, and Mia Hansen-Løve express themselves in such a very moving and intimate way that in those encounters I found what I was looking for: a world of personal experience that resonates with the films.”
“Margarethe Von Trotta’s many personal connections to Ingmar Bergman lend a fresh, distinctive flavor to ‘Searching for Ingmar Bergman.” — Allan Hunter, Screen International
“A valentine from one director to another. Evinces great appreciation for the writer-director's legacy and offers the testimonies of numerous eminent enthusiasts." — Todd McCarthy, The Hollywood Reporter