A group of privileged Norwegian teenagers go on a trip to a friend’s coastal retreat on Norway’s south coast when news breaks out about a strange virus spreading around the world. Seemingly sheltered from the unfolding devastation in their remote holiday home, the teenagers fastidiously continue to eat, drink, play and make love. 

"I shot this film back in 2018, so I had no idea that this project would suddenly be so in line with what is going on in the world right now,” says Norwegian filmmaker Jakob Rørvik about the novel coronavirus pandemic. Describing his project as  “part essay, part existential horror”, the teenagers continue to live out their lives on social media in the shadow of an impending apocalypse. 

“I wanted to put Norwegian economic privilege and sense of security up against a danger that doesn't discriminate in terms of class or geography,” says Rørvik, who builds and sustains a heavy mood throughout the film with sound design and rhythm. “Looking at the situation through the eyes of Norwegian kids who struggle to reflect deeply on what is happening opens up a space where music and images can take over.”

Part of Rørvik’s project is filmed from the perspective of the protagonists in an unedited documentary style that creates an intimate bond between the audience and the characters. As they face their demise with trepidation and false levity, they hope their stories on social media will live on, even if they inevitably don’t.

“When nature is a beautiful backdrop to your modern existence it seems so serene, but it can obviously suddenly become a threat,” says the director. “Many people and societies know this all too well, but these Norwegian kids don't.”