Rojda Sekersöz

Rojda Sekersöz
Born (1989-12-25) December 25, 1989
Stockholm, Sweden
Alma materStockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts
OccupationDirector
Years active2008–present
Notable workYoung Royals
Beyond Dreams
AwardsGuldbagge Newcomer Award

Rojda Sekersöz (born 25 December 1989) is a Swedish director of Kurdish descent. She began her career directing short and independent films, and has since directed multiple television series.

Sekersöz studied photography and film at Kulturama, and at 19 became the youngest person ever accepted to the directing program at the Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts. She made her feature film debut with Beyond Dreams (2017), which received critical praise and a number of accolades, including the Audience Dragon Award for Best Nordic Film at the Gothenburg Film Festival and the Golden Leaf for Best Film at the Duhok International Film Festival. Beyond Dreams also earned Sekersöz the Guldbagge Newcomer Award. She is best known to international audiences for the directing the first two seasons of Young Royals (2021–2022), which won Kristallen Awards for Best Program and Best Youth Drama.

Early life and education

She was born 25 December 1989 in Stockholm.[1] Her parents emigrated to Sweden from Turkish Kurdistan. She grew up speaking both Kurdish and Turkish at home.[2] She has a younger sister.[3] When she was ten, her family moved from Hallunda to Älvdalen in Dalarna to open a pizza restaurant.[4][5] She wanted to become a director after being inspired by Billy Elliot (2000) and The Believer (2001) — both films dealing with class issues and political themes.[6][7]

Sekersöz moved back to Stockholm alone to attend a film program for upper secondary school at Kulturama.[8][9] She graduated in 2008 having studied photography and film.[3] At the age of 19, she became the youngest person ever to be accepted to the directing program at the Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts.[10][11] While she was in school, she had a minor acting role, appearing in 7X – Lika barn leka bäst (2010) as Mi.[12] She graduated from the academy in 2012 with the short film Jungfrufärden.[13]

Career

Some of her early works were short films, including ”Selvi ska sova” (2011), ”Fittbacka – ett jävla ungdomshem” (2012), and "Fast” (2015).[14]

In 2017, Sekersöz made her directorial debut with Beyond Dreams, for which she won the Guldbagge Newcomer Award.[15] The film received praise from critics.[16] Writing for Dagens Nyheter, Helena Lindblad described it as a "glowingly strong feature film debut." She also added that Sekersöz and screenwriter Johanna Emanuelsson displayed "a rare keen eye for the structures in Swedish society that make it not always so easy to choose the 'right'."[17] The film also won several prizes, including the Church of Sweden's Film Prize, the Audience Dragon Award for Best Nordic Film, and the FIPRESCI Prize at the Norwegian International Film Festival.[18][15] It won the Golden Leaf for Best Film at the Duhok International Film Festival, which is the most significant Kurdish film festival.[19] Sekersöz received a scholarship of 30,000 SEK from the Botkyrka Municipality as a result of Beyond Dreams, as the film primarily takes place in its suburb of Alby.[2]

Her second film was My Life as a Comedian, an adaptation of Jonas Gardell's novel.[20] The film premiered on 11 October 2019 at the Toronto Film Festival.[21][22] Her direction was praised by Krister Uggeldahl in Hufvudstadsbladet.[23]

In 2020, she directed Dejta, an adaptation of the Finnish series Klikkaa mua.[24] Later that year, it was announced that Sekersöz would be directing a Swedish coming-of-age series for Netflix.[25] Sekersöz described it as being about the honor culture of the upper class, and "whether you get to choose your own life or not – who chooses for you?"[26][27] The first season of the series, eventually titled Young Royals, premiered on 1 July 2021 to positive reviews.[28][29] It also won Best Program and Best Youth Drama at Kristallen 2022.[30]

She directed Sweden's first TikTok series, Ruset, which premiered in 2023.[31]

She is directing Skiftet, a drama set in 1958 about the first female Swedish police officers.[32] Skifet is expected to be released in the fall of 2025, and she is also directing an upcoming adaptation of Nicolas Lunabba's novel Will You Care If I Die?[33] The film is expected to premiere in the autumn of 2026.[34]

In addition to film and television, she directed a stage play titled Skuldsanering in 2017.[35] Sekersöz is also a spoken word poet.[36]

Directing credits

Film

Year Title Notes Ref.
2011 Selvi ska sova Short film [14]
2012 Fittbacka – ett jävla ungdomshem
2015 Fast
2017 Beyond Dreams [16]
2019 My Life as a Comedian [22]
2026 Will You Care If I Die?† [34]

Television

Year Title Notes Ref.
2020 Dejta [24]
2021–2022 Young Royals Seasons 1–2
2023 Ruset [31]
2025 Skiftet† [32]

Theater

Year Title Theater Ref.
2017 Skuldsanering Teatern under bron (English: Theater under the bridge [37]

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominee Result Ref.
2017 FIPRESCI Award Best Nordic Film Beyond Dreams Won [15]
Audience Dragon Award Won
Angelo Award Best Film Won [18]
Golden Leaf Won [19]
2018 Guldbagge Newcomer Award Best Newcomer Rojda Sekersöz Won [15]

References

  1. ^ "Fakta: Rojda Sekersöz" [Facts: Rojda Sekersöz]. Bohusläningen (in Swedish). 20 December 2019. Retrieved 8 May 2025.
  2. ^ a b Kronbrink, Hans (30 August 2017). "DN gratulerar: Rojda Sekersöz, filmregissör". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 26 July 2025.
  3. ^ a b "Rojda Sekersöz". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). 15 August 2010. Retrieved 24 July 2025.
  4. ^ Adolphsson, Juli (13 November 2023). ""Det ska ju alltid vara en så stor grej i filmer och serier att förklara folks sexuella läggning. I Ruset är det underförstått"" ["It's always supposed to be such a big deal in movies and series to explain people's sexual orientation. In Ruset, it's implied."]. QX (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  5. ^ Janson, Mari (19 October 2019). "En regissörs uppväxt" [A director's upbringing]. Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish) – via PressReader.
  6. ^ Galip, Özlem Belçim (19 March 2022). ""We all believe in the lie that we are all equals in Sweden"". Culture Project for Art, Feminism and Gender. Archived from the original on 3 April 2025. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  7. ^ Janson, Mari (17 October 2019). "Rojda Sekersöz: "Är övertygad om att film kan trigga människor att agera"". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). ISSN 1101-2412. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  8. ^ Sharon Krafft, Eyal (23 December 2019). "Rodja brinner för filmskapande" [Rodja is passionate about filmmaking]. Göteborgs-Posten (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 May 2025 – via PressReader.
  9. ^ "Rojda Şekersöz: "I am a part of Kurdish Cinema"". Medya News. 14 September 2020. Archived from the original on 16 July 2024. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  10. ^ Olsson, Hanna (28 June 2020). "En ovanlig person värd att lyssna på" [An unusual person worth listening to]. Aftonbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 7 May 2025 – via PressReader.
  11. ^ Svanström, Sanna (20 June 2021). "För Sverige i tiden". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish) – via PressReader.
  12. ^ Sigurdh, Eva-Lotta (15 August 2010). "Stjärnskott med agenda". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 24 July 2025.
  13. ^ Radio, Sveriges (9 April 2022). "Rojda Sekersöz: "Jag vill göra film som Charlie Chaplin" - Kulturlivet med Gunnar Bolin" [Rojda Sekersöz: "I want to make films like Charlie Chaplin"]. Sveriges Radio (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  14. ^ a b Bendjelloul, Wanda (16 March 2017). "Rojda Sekersöz: Jag förstår behovet av att bryta sig loss". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). ISSN 1101-2447. Retrieved 24 July 2025.
  15. ^ a b c d Ravindran, Manori (22 November 2022). "'Young Royals' Director Rojda Sekersöz Signs With CAA (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Archived from the original on 22 November 2022. Retrieved 9 May 2025.
  16. ^ a b "Succé för Rojdas debutfilm: Känns overkligt - P4 Dalarna" [Success for Rojda's debut film: Feels unreal - P4 Dalarna]. Sveriges Radio (in Swedish). 20 March 2017. Retrieved 22 May 2025.
  17. ^ Lindblad, Helena (16 March 2017). "Dröm vidare av Rojda Sekersöz". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish).
  18. ^ a b "Rojda Sekersöz". Göteborgs-Posten (in Swedish). 2 February 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2025 – via PressReader.
  19. ^ a b "Double win for Beyond Dreams". Swedish Film Institute. 19 September 2017. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
  20. ^ ""En komikers uppväxt" snart på bio" ["My Life as a Comedian" soon in the cinema]. Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). 10 August 2019.
  21. ^ Sigander, Miranda (19 August 2019). "Skandaler och gamla favoriter i höstfilmerna". Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). ISSN 1101-2412. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  22. ^ a b TT (8 August 2019). "Premiär för Gardell-filmatisering i Toronto" [Premiere of Gardell film adaptation in Toronto]. Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish). ISSN 1101-2412. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  23. ^ Uggeldahl, Krister (29 November 2019). "Lika gripande som gastkramande, Gardell!" [As touching as it is gut-wrenching, Gardell!]. Hufvudstadsbladet. Retrieved 20 May 2025 – via PressReader.
  24. ^ a b Slotte, Malin (24 February 2020). "Klikkaa mua blev Dejta". Hufvudstadsbladet. Retrieved 20 May 2025 – via PressReader.
  25. ^ "Rojda Sekersöz regisserar ny svensk serie för Netflix" [Rojda Sekersöz directing a new Swedish series for Netflix]. Svenska Dagbladet. 9 July 2020 – via PressReader.
  26. ^ "Svenska Netflix-serien "Young Royals" skildrar hederskulturen i överklassen - Kulturnytt" [Swedish Netflix series "Young Royals" depicts the culture of honor in the upper class - Culture News]. Sveriges Radio (in Swedish). 29 June 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
  27. ^ "Skildrar hederskultur inom kungafamilj" [Depicts a culture of honor within the royal family]. Aftonbladet (in Swedish). 24 June 2021. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
  28. ^ Fjellborg, Karolina (28 June 2021). "Så bra är Netflix nya svenska serie "Young royals"" [This is how good Netflix's new Swedish series "Young Royals" is]. Aftonbladet (in Swedish). Retrieved 21 May 2025.
  29. ^ "Young Royals: Season 1 | Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
  30. ^ Willander, Frida (2 September 2022). "Kristallen 2022 – här är årets vinnare". Aftonbladet. Retrieved 31 July 2025.
  31. ^ a b Adolphsson, Juli (13 November 2023). ""Det ska ju alltid vara en så stor grej i filmer och serier att förklara folks sexuella läggning. I Ruset är det underförstått"" ["It's always supposed to be such a big deal in movies and series to explain people's sexual orientation. In Ruset, it's implied."]. QX (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 May 2025.
  32. ^ a b Forsell, Mikael (19 March 2024). "Netflix gör serie av Romares succéroman" [Netflix to make a series of Romare's best-selling novel]. Hallands Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 May 2025 – via PressReader.
  33. ^ "Sekersöz gör film av Nicolas Lunabbas hyllade bok" [Sekersöz will make a film of Nicolas Lunabba's acclaimed book]. Aftonbladet (in Swedish). 15 May 2025. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
  34. ^ a b Pham, Annika; Keslassy, Elsa (15 May 2025). "Nordic Drama Queens Ventures Into Feature With 'Will You Care If I Die' From 'Young Royals' Rojda Sekersöz (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 29 July 2025.
  35. ^ Ring, Lars (19 August 2017). "Skuldsanering. Flyktförsök och skuldkänslor under bron" [Debt settlement. Escape attempts and guilt under the bridge]. Svenska Dagbladet (in Swedish) – via PressReader.
  36. ^ "Rojda Sekersöz | Nordic Women in Film". Nordic Women in Film (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 23 March 2025. Retrieved 21 May 2025.
  37. ^ Lundström, Jacob (20 August 2017). "Skissartat sorgearbete. Spontan ansats som faller platt mot asfalten". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 29 July 2025.
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