Renate Reinsve could hardly come to Los Angeles for our interview.
Three years ago, while traveling to campaign for an Oscar for his breakout role in The Worst Man in the World, he accidentally canceled his ESTA visa application on the plane. “I managed to cancel it. I didn’t realize what I had done,” she recalls with characteristic self-deprecation. Five police officers questioned her in a back room of the customs house and debated whether to let her go home. This is the kind of absurd and tragic accident that follows Reinsve. Reinsbe, who describes herself as an “unwilling rebel,” says she has been graciously asked to quit almost every job she’s ever held other than acting. That includes Girl Scouts and grocery store workers.
But when it comes to acting, there’s nothing accidental about Reinsve’s work. In Joachim Trier’s Sentimental Value, she gave her most shocking performance to date, playing a woman grappling with her complicated feelings about the director’s late father. The role was written specifically for her, building on the deep creative partnership she had with Trier since Oslo, August 31st, and cementing her status as one of the most fascinating actor-director collaborations in modern cinema.
“I really identified with this role,” Reinsve explained on the Variety Awards Circuit podcast. “It’s not like a specific story, it’s not detailed. It’s not my story, but it’s kind of. We share that perspective on how complex things are and how you can say very dramatic things about small moments in everyday life and drama.”
The film’s emotional centerpiece, the scene in which Rijnsve’s character finally breaks down in bed with her sister, played by Inga Ybsdotter Lileas, required a delicate balance between preparation and spontaneity. “You can’t go anywhere during rehearsals, because then events won’t happen when you’re on set,” she says.
A profound moment born from instinct and trust that was not in the script was reflected on the screen. When her co-star climbs into bed and her character whispers a heartfelt “I love you,” Rheinsve can only answer honestly, and it’s hard to say anything back.
Rijnsve, who grew up in Norway, surrounded by forests, joined the Girl Scouts, but was asked to leave after two weeks. “I was trying to do everything a little differently, or I just couldn’t understand why it had to be done in such a particular way. Why can’t a hive have five windows?”
His scout leaders suggested he try acting instead, inadvertently launching his career. Her connection to nature remains central to who she is. In the midst of the overwhelming whirlwind of her first Oscar campaign, she found solace by taking her tent into the woods. “I just grab my tent and go to the woods and just relax,” she says. “When you’re on the[Oscar prediction]list, that kind of force pulls you. Should you really strive for it? What should you do now? Do you have to change now? You just have to go back to the woods and wait and think this is enough.”
It’s that honesty, that refusal to pretend to be anything other than herself, that makes Rijnsve so compelling on and off screen. She admits that she’s “not very good at networking,” preferring to slowly build relationships with trusted collaborators.
While the awards season conversation revolves around “sentimental value,” Reinsve remains grounded in gratitude rather than anticipation. “Just being on the list and someone thinking your performance is so important to them is enough for me, because that’s so insane,” she says. “No matter what happens next, I will be very, very happy.”
This is a refreshing perspective in an industry that is often obsessed with ambition and calculation. In this episode of the Variety Awards Circuit Podcast, Reinsve talks about the movies that influenced her, her ambitions as an actor and director, and her connection to Mother Earth.
Listen below!
Renate Rheinwe, Jonas Jacobsen “Sentimental Value”. (Neon / Provided by Everett Collection)
Courtesy of Everett Collection
Read an excerpt from her interview below. Edited and condensed for clarity.
How did you get the acting bug?
In another interview today, I remembered that where I grew up was a house, a road with several houses on it. There were very few people living there and it was surrounded by forest. So we were in the forest. Since I attended forest school, I naturally joined Girl Scouts. Two weeks later, I was told to resign. Either I was trying to do everything a little differently, or I just couldn’t understand why it had to be done that particular way. Why can’t a hive have five windows?
One day they came to me and said, “You should do something else.” They kindly asked me to leave, but suggested I start in the theater. And I had a really good teacher when I was young. Because he lived in the town next to where I lived. He gave me so much joy. That joy drove me to try other jobs, but I was told to quit them all. All of them. It’s very sad.
What was the last job you were fired from?
Well, I moved to Oslo to attend drama school and then worked at a grocery store, where I was also asked to quit. I also organized things on the shelves and worked at the cash register. They said, “Don’t do that. It has to be in this order.” And I don’t have much talent for structure.
So are you a rebel?
Unconscious rebel. I’ve always tried to be a good girl, but then things like that keep happening.
What early films moved you deeply?
I think the first movie that stuck with me was David Lynch’s Mulholland Drive. It was so mysterious and hit me in places I wasn’t aware of. I think I watched this movie too soon, too, but I read about it online and seeing some people so engrossed in trying to understand it made me even more intrigued – like the power that’s in the movie. Then I went down the path of watching dark and strange movies and was obsessed with that kind of perspective for a long time.
In “Sentimental Value,” you give a very emotional performance. The film explores complex feelings about fatherhood. Did you have a personal connection to the character?
In fact, after “The Baddest Man in the World,” Joachim and I started talking about different themes and other character traits that we wanted to explore. He got to know me better as an actor and as a person. So he wrote the role for me and I really identified with it. “The Worst Person” was also written for me, because through “Oslo, August 31st” we got to know each other a little, but only a little. We were meeting here and there and he wrote it based on what he saw and what little he knew about me. But this was a deeper dive into what we had already discussed.
The sisterhood in Sentimental Value is so great because there are no ongoing fights or major conflicts. They recognize their own deficiencies in each other. I really love the subtlety of Joachim’s films and the way he deeply explores the details with his actors, not only when he’s on set, but also from the stage when he reads the script all the way through.
The final scene in bed with his sister is shocking. How much did you rehearse it and how many takes did it take to pull it off?
That was the problem – to rehearse. Because you can’t actually go somewhere during rehearsals and events don’t happen when you’re on set. So, we talked about it, and I actually auditioned with Inga, who plays Agnes, but in the end we weren’t satisfied with the role.
When we were on set, everyone was nervous because we knew this was a pivotal scene in the movie and we needed to convey a lot of complexity and nuance. It’s a very sentimental and emotional thing and you really have to feel the balance between how far you can go and how much you’re willing to put up with in a situation like that. Space must also be left for the audience so that they can feel their feelings and put the story into the film.
Everything that happened that day is scripted, but there are some very deep moments that aren’t scripted. Joachim is the director and sits by the camera. He’s never behind the monitor, especially not in the big emotional scenes. Inga had that instinct, but she wanted to climb onto the bed because she was afraid of ruining the situation, but she didn’t. Joachim sensed that instinct in her and whispered, “Try it.” Then she climbed up and said to Joachim what she could never write: “I love you.” She says that because of the authenticity of the scene and the character. And in that moment, my character answers as best he can, but it’s very difficult to talk back. That was the moment. I think we probably did it many more times, but I think we all knew that was the moment that came together.
You and Joachim Trier have had this great partnership. Do you feel that same sense of kinship when he calls you and says, “I have a role for you?”
Well, it’s hard to explain that collaboration, so I didn’t know what to do. Because when you find someone you can express something with, you become very close in a sense. You have the same taste. You understand something about the other person, you understand what they want to express, and you know how to express it because you are similar.
Is there a performance bug? Do you feel like you’ll be directing someday?
I’m very interested. But the editing and the camera. I like it all. i will do it. I directed a few theater productions when I was a teenager, and I kept getting really good roles after that. So I haven’t reached it. And now, I haven’t had any time since I did it back then, but in a very teenage way.
It might even be nominated for an Academy Award. What does something like that mean to you?
It’s very far from Norwegian Forest. Being on those lists is such a shock to me, but I’m trying to stay calm because it’s so insane. I’m so grateful right now — to be on those lists and to have someone think your performance is so important to them — that’s so crazy that that’s enough for me. So, whatever happens from now on, I will be very happy.
Have you received any mainstream offers lately? Did Marvel call you?
Of course, I respect that a lot and I really enjoy it. However, I don’t think I can really do it well. I’m impressed. I would be fired. I think I’m very interested in these kinds of stories and personal films, personal stories in movies and directors who have a vision that everyone follows. You can support it or oppose it. You can’t oppose it, but there are dynamics within that structure that allow you to have autonomy.
I really love that way of working and being able to get into the character in a way that I haven’t been able to do in the last few years. I want to continue that. I just worked with Sebastian (Stan) again on Christian Mungiu’s next film. Working with the same people, gaining their trust, and building relationships through deeper collaboration. I’m not very good at networking or anything, so I’m slow at building relationships.
What’s next?
Next up is Alexander Payne. he’s a really good person. So he may have the answer as to what we can do to solve everything.
Variety’s Awards Circuit podcast, hosted by Clayton Davis, Jazz Tunkay, Emily Longeretta, Jenelle Riley, and Michael Schneider, who also produces, is your one-stop destination for lively conversations about the best in film and television. Each episode’s “Awards Circuit” features interviews with top film and TV talents and creators, discussions and debates about the awards race and industry headlines. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or wherever you download your podcasts.
