Acclaimed Swedish filmmaker Niki Lindroth von Bahr has recruited an impressive voice ensemble for The Rose, a new 15-minute stop-motion short currently in production at Stockholm-based Malade AB.
The film’s international cast is led by Noomi Rapace (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), Tuva Novotny (Annihilation), Alexander Skarsgård (Big Little Lies), Arja Saijonmaa, Denis Lavant, Kevin Rowland, Carl Johan De Geer, Marianne Lindberg De Geer, Johannes Kuhnke, and Anna Mouglalis.
Described as a darkly funny reflection on distraction, mortality, and modern life, The Rose‘s official synopsis reads:
The Rose is a story about death, set in the sprawling world of a major airport.
A plane has lost contact with the control tower, where the staff are too absorbed in a reality show to notice. A barista at an expensive smoothie bar loses their mind, while a mysterious figure moves quietly in the periphery — soon ready to collect us all.
Lindroth von Bahr’s acclaimed shorts The Burden, Bath House, Tord and Tord, and Something to Remember have screened at Cannes, Berlin, Toronto, and Sundance, and earned awards and nominations at Annecy, Ottawa, and Clermont-Ferrand. She was also a key contributor to Netflix’s Emmy-winning and BAFTA-nominated special The House.
The director says the voice ensemble has been essential to shaping the film. “Working with such a remarkable group of actors — each contributing their own tone and humanity — has made The Rose a truly special project,” she said in the announcement.
Speaking with Cartoon Brew, the director explained that working with such accomplished actors allowed for increased improvisation, “Small things that make it feel real or authentic,” she told us.
While most of the characters’ species were already nailed down during the writing phase, Lindroth von Bahr notes in the case of Rapace’s puppet design, a lamb was selected for the actor mid-process to echo her role in the recent festival and awards hit, Lamb.
Securing such high-profile actors required persistence. The director described a lengthy outreach process, often bypassing agencies entirely, relying instead on personal introductions within Scandinavia’s tightly knit film community. “Once I managed to make contact, I was quite certain they would be interested if they saw my work,” she said. “But that first part was super complicated.”
In the end, she was right, but still surprised by the giving nature of her cast. “These actors have been so generous with their time,” she recalled. “Just doing this for a very small project and being super friendly and super helpful. I’m so grateful to all of them.”
The production has nearly wrapped animation, with final grading expected in January. International sales are handled by New Europe Film Sales, longtime collaborators on the director’s previous shorts. The Rose is slated to premiere in 2026.
