Thirty years after Lars von Trier and Thomas Vinterberg gave the arthouse movie world a much-needed kick in the pants with the Dogma 95, also known as Dogme 95, movement, a new generation of Nordic filmmakers is picking up the torch.

A collection of four up-and-coming Danish directors, May el-Toukhy (Queen of Hearts), Milad Alami (Opponent), Annika Berg (Team Hurricane), Isabella Eklöf (Kalak), and Jesper Just (Vanishing Woman) are launching Dogma 25, a manifesto-driven initiative designed to rescue artistic integrity from the pressures of the modern film industry.

“Dogma 25 is a rescue mission and a cultural uprising,” the collective declared in a statement released in Cannes on Saturday. “We stand together to defend artistic freedom as a shield against pointlessness and powerlessness.”

The five filmmakers are backed by some of Denmark’s most established production entities. The project was spearheaded by el-Toukhy, who approached Zentropa last year. Zentropa producers Louise Vesth (Melancholia, Nymphomaniac) and Sisse Graum Jørgensen (The Hunt, Another Round) will oversee the rollout, with support from the Danish Film Institute, DR (Danish Broadcasting Corporation), Nordisk Film Distribution, and international sales agent TrustNordisk.

“In ’95, we made films in the certainty of peace and created a revolt against conformity,” von Trier and Vinterberg said in a joint statement. “In ’25, new dogmas are created, now in a world of war and uncertainty. We wish you the best of luck on your march toward reconquering Danish film.”

Von Trier and Vinterberg, together with directors Kristian Levring and Søren Kragh-Jacobsen, formed the Dogme 95 Collective, with strict “vows of chastity” requiring directors to use handheld cameras and natural light, and banning the use of diegetic music or genre conventions.

Films made under the Dogme label included Vinterberg’s Cannes Jury winner The Celebration (1998), Von Trier’s The Idiots (1999), Kragh-Jacobsen’s Mifune (1999), and Levring’s The King is Alive (2000). The movement went international with Lovers (1999) from French director Jean-Marc Barr and Julien Donkey-Boy (1999) from American bad boy Harmony Korine. The movement is credited with revitalizing indie cinema in the late ’90s.

Like its 1995 predecessor, Dogma 25 is underpinned by a stringent vow of chastity and ten dogmas that set strict creative and production rules. But while Dogma 95 was primarily about aesthetics, conceived as an attack on the vanity of the director class and on overly-produced, superficial art house films (primarily from France), Dogma 25’s prime target is the means of production, with a focus on how films are made, not what they look like.

The 10 dogmas of Dogma 25 are: “Scripts must be original and handwritten to preserve creative intuition; at least half of each film must be free of dialogue to emphasize visual storytelling; the internet is banned from the creative process to ensure connection to the physical world. Funding can only be accepted if it comes without editorial influence, and no more than ten crew members are allowed behind the camera. Films must be shot in their real-world locations, with no cosmetic alterations to faces or bodies unless required by the story. All materials — sets, props, costumes — must be reused or found, rejecting consumerism. Productions must be completed within a year to preserve urgency and creative flow. Above all, each film must be made “as if it were the filmmaker’s last.”

“In a world where formulaic films based on algorithms and artificial visual expression are gaining traction, it is our mission to stand up for the flawed, distinct, and human imprint,” reads the group’s manifesto. “We fight against the forces working to reduce cinematic art to an ultra-processed consumer product.”

DR’s head of drama Henriette Marienlund added, “We agree with the necessity of finding new directions in order to build talent and bring new voices into Danish film. We were there for Dogma 95, so of course we are also along for the journey in 2025.”

Nordisk Film Distribution’s SVP Kenneth Wiberg pointed to the relevance of the moment: “Dogma has always centred around relevant stories, and the market today needs a good story more than ever.”

TrustNordisk’s managing director Susan Wendt called the launch “the perfect way to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Dogma 95,” saying she looked forward to bringing the new slate of films to global audiences.

The first Dogma 25 films are expected to enter production later this year. A global launch and festival premieres are anticipated for 2026.