THE EXPERIMENT is the story of the nurse Gert, who is appointed as headmistress of a special children's home, owned by the Danish state in Greenland, 1951. The children's home is intended to accommodate 16 carefully selected Greenlandic children, who have just come home after a year of civilization in Denmark. Now they are to be introduced into the Greenlandic community as role models. Gert, who lives alone and has no family, accepts the assignment with pride. She is idealistic and ambitious and feels passionate about saving Greenland from destitution. The means to this end is to educate and civilize the 16 children in the Danish language and culture, so they can spearhead Greenland's transformation from being a poor hunter society to being an equal part of Denmark. Due to her blind faith in the experiment, Gert underestimates the obvious personal costs to the children. And when the children as well as the Danish state fail her...
Acting
Ellen Hillingsø's terrifying conviction as true-believer Gert.
Direction
Friedberg lets dread accumulate like Greenlandic snow.
Production
Meticulous 1951 period detail that feels like a trap.
Director
Louise Friedberg
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Based on the real 1951-1952 Danish experiment that forcibly separated 22 Greenlandic children from families; most never recovered, several died young. Denmark only apologized in 2020.
The film sparked renewed debate in Denmark about historical accountability—some critics called it 'anti-Danish,' proving Gert's spiritual descendants are alive and voting.
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