Ruben Östlund (Swedish pronunciation: [ˈrʉːbɛn ˈœstlɵnd]) (born 14 April 1974) is a Swedish filmmaker best known for his satirical black comedy films Force Majeure (2014), The Square (2017) and Triangle of Sadness (2022). He is the recipient of various accolades, including two Palmes d'Or, four European Film Awards and nominations for three Academy Awards.
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Early life and education
Östlund was born Claes Olle Ruben Östlund in Styrsö, Gothenburg Municipality, Sweden. After high school, he started working in various ski resorts in the Alps during the winter seasons. There he began making skiing videos for his friends, which helped him get a job at a local production company.
He went on to study at the Gothenburg film school, graduating in 2001. He was accepted to the school based on his skiing films. Together with film producer Erik Hemmendorff, he co-founded the production company Plattform Produktion, which produces his films.
Career
2000–2011
His first three feature-length fiction films were The Guitar Mongoloid (2004), Involuntary (2008) and Play (2011). The Guitar Mongoloid won the FIPRESCI Award at the 27th Moscow International Film Festival. Östlund's short film Incident by a Bank won the Golden Bear for Best Short Film at the 60th Berlin International Film Festival and the Grand Prix at Tampere Film Festival in 2011.
2014–present
In 2014, his film Force Majeure was selected to compete in the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival, winning the Jury Prize. Sweden then submitted Force Majeure for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. After the Academy shortlisted but did not nominate it, Östlund released a humorous video of his response to the snub. In 2016, he was a member of the jury for the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes.
In 2017, his film The Square, loosely inspired by some of his own experiences and art installation with Kalle Boman, won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival. Alissa Wilkinson of Vox remarked that the film "at times feels more like longform performance art than a narrative film."
In 2020, he received the King's medal in gold for significant contributions to Swedish film.
His next project was Triangle of Sadness, a satirical film about the wealthy elite, which won him his second Palme d'Or in 2022, Best Director at the Guldbaggens gala, and won five other nominations. Triangle of Sadness received Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Original Screenplay.
Östlund was the Jury president of the 2023 Cannes Film Festival.
Personal life
Östlund has been in a relationship since 2014 with fashion photographer Sina Görcz, with whom he has a son. Until their divorce in 2008, he was married to his director colleague Andrea Östlund. They had twin daughters, born when he was working on The Guitar Mongoloid at the age of 28.
Filmography
Short film
Feature film
Other films
