How are things with Dogville (Lars Von Trier's next film), have you got a UK distributor yet?
I'm about to meet someone about that so I will know after that meeting. Trier has never made it in this country, he hates the British.

Why do you think that is?
I don't know, maybe they hate him and it runs both ways. (laughs)

You must be really pleased with the success of Together here?
Yes, it's fantastic that it's doing so well, and in the States also. A Swedish language film about a hippie commune in the 70's; it's really funny and I'm amazed at how it's been received - it's not exactly a spectacular film. Hopefully we are able to tell stories in Scandinavia that are a little bit more interesting for an international audience. Remember that it's us in Scandinavia that are the exotic people. People don't understand how you can live somewhere that's dark most of the year and the rest of the year you commit suicide. (laughs)

Executive Protection, as a commercial thriller (no. 1 in Sweden since August) seems like a new direction for Trust.
You could say that, for our sales company, Trust Film Sales, it's not a sensible film. They warned all the arthouse buyers when they picked it up that it could be a commercial film. They all turned up for the screening anyway. (laughs)

There was a co-production deal, announced at Edinburgh last year, between Trust, Antonine and a German company I forget the name of. Did anything ever come of that?
Yes, we are working in Scotland with a Scottish producer and this is formalised now. Well our thinking is that, with the size of Scotland and the size of Denmark being practically the same so the idea of working with smaller companies is more appealing than working with big, imperialist nations. We will never forgive England for sinking our fleet twice at the beginning of the Eighteenth century - there are still some open wounds you know! (chuckles) We are trying to open a back door into the industry via Scotland.

Which UK producers do you admire?
I'd say Nick Powell and Jeremy Thomas are two of my favourites.

Did Nicole Kidman need to be pushed a little to sign for Dogville?
Well I lost my temper for a moment but I apologised for it.

Will Lars' move into opera in 2006 be echoed in film?
Well he's getting older and more and more right wing, the bastard. He started as a commie and now he's directing Nazi opera. I think he's getting old and a little crazy, he should be making films…opera? Come on!

Do you think Dogme needs revising?
No, and you'll see from the new film, Italian for Beginners, it's so good you won't think it's a Dogme film. We also have a wonderful film here called Chiara's Reason which is Dogme as well. I think with the first Dogme films the camera had to move like that to prove that there was no order to anything but now it's possible for the cameraman to keep it steady.

How did you meet Lars?
We met on a commercial that I produced and he directed for a big French company that we fucked for lot of money, so that was the starting point.

Was Zentropa born out of that?
Yeah, we're seven years old not but Lars and I have worked together since '88.

The US version of The Kingdom, are you co-producing that?
No, we just said, 'give us the money' and we wouldn't think for more than a second about it.

What can we look forward to in the next few years?
Well, in the footsteps of Lars von Trier, Thomas Vinterberg and Lukas Moodysson you'll be seeing two or three new directors coming through next year…certainly one. It's rather like football, you have to have youth coming through.

Can you tell us who that director is?
Yes, a director called Annette K Oleson who has made a fantastic film called Small Accidents. That's the one

Can you tell us a bit about Dogville?
It's a great story with a great cast. The story takes place in the city of Dogville, it will be shot in a studio with chalk lines on the floor, that's the city, the buildings - everything is up to the actors. If you've ever thought Dogme films are over produced then Dogville will be the answer.

Has Dogme been a curse in the sense that it has grown so big?
No. Until now we've made seven Dogme films and all of them have been internationally successful so why stop?

How do you feel about other producers doing Dogme with the same set of rules?
That's their choice.

Have you liked any of them?
Yes, some. But for some reason what's always needed is the Scandinavian climate and mentality, that tends to give the best results.

Would you like to tell us which of your films at London Screenings have been picked up?
I know absolutely nothing about it. (laughter)