Per Holst Dies: Danish Filmmaker-Producer Who Collaborated With Lars Von Trier Was 86
Danish filmmaker-producer Per Holst, who worked with fellow auteurs and countrymen Lars von Trier, Nils Malmros and Bille August, has died at the age of 86.
The Hollywood Reporter cited one of his four sons, actor Morten Holst. A cause of death was not given.
According to Denmark’s government-owned broadcast channel TV 2, son Anders Holst explained his father died peacefully in his sleep Saturday morning. “He leaves behind a cultural legacy that we are proud of on his behalf,” Anders Holst told the outlet, adding, “He has been active until the end. Of course not like in his youth, but to the extent he could. He loved to read, watch and talk about films.”
As a prolific producer of dozens of films beginning in the late ’60s, Holst helped bring to life the visions of Trier (1987’s The Element of Crime), Malmros and August.
Holst also directed 1985’s Walter and Carlo — Up on Daddy’s Hat, the first in the ’80s buddy comedy film series, which still occupies the No. 4 slot on the list of highest-grossing Danish films.
In 1965, he founded his own production company, Per Holst Film, and under that banner broke through as a producer with the cartoon Benny’s Bathtub in 1971. Throughout the years, he has held a number of posts at leading film organizations, including as the chairman of the board of the European Film Academy (2000-05) and director of distribution company Nordisk Film.
Holst is survived by his wife and sons.
