Renate Reinsve Stars in ‘Butterfly,’ Exploring Tourism, the Male Gaze, Family Trauma, and Healing at Rotterdam — and that single line alone feels like an elevator pitch made for cinephiles.
Set against the sun-drenched landscapes of Gran Canaria, Butterfly brings together an evocative setting, a fearless cast, and a story that’s as emotionally raw as it is darkly humorous. The film centers on two estranged half-sisters who couldn’t be more different: Lily, a flamboyant and chaotic performance artist, and Diana, quiet, guarded, and emotionally restrained. Forced back into the same space after their parents’ deaths, the sisters reunite at their childhood home—only to discover they’ve inherited an unfinished resort and an offbeat spiritual retreat linked to their late mother, Vera, a former hostess who once thrived within the island’s tourism culture.
A Rotterdam Premiere With Personal History
The film marks the second feature from Norwegian writer-director Itonje Søimer Guttormsen, and it just had its world premiere in the Big Screen Competition at the 55th edition of the International Film Festival Rotterdam. The screening also represents a meaningful return for the filmmaker, whose debut Gritt previously played in Rotterdam’s Tiger Competition.
Alongside Reinsve, the ensemble includes Helene Bjørneby, Numan Acar, and Lillian Müller. International sales are being handled by Protagonist Pictures, with production backing from Mer Film, Quiddity Films, Zentropa International Sweden, and Nord Film, under producer Maria Ekerhovd.
A Film About Stories We Tell Ourselves
Festival director Vanja Kaludjercic describes Butterfly as a sharp reflection on how people construct—and often mythologize—their own identities. The film leans into humor without shying away from darker undercurrents, poking at vanity, self-invention, and the quiet absurdities that shape modern life.
That balance is central to Søimer Guttormsen’s voice. While the film grapples with grief, estrangement, and inherited trauma, it also finds levity in contradiction and emotional messiness.
How the Story Took Shape
According to the director, the idea arrived suddenly, almost fully formed. At its core was the image of two sisters shaped by the same unconventional upbringing, yet transformed by it in radically different ways. Their mother’s journey—rooted in escape, reinvention, and later collapse—became the emotional backbone of the story.
Though Søimer Guttormsen had no personal connection to resort tourism, Gran Canaria felt symbolically perfect. For decades, it has been one of the most popular destinations for Norwegians, complete with its own schools, churches, and expat communities. Despite its popularity, the island carries a quiet stigma back home, often dismissed as tacky or embarrassing. That tension—between glamour and shame—mirrors Vera’s own life arc.
From the Male Gaze to Reinvention
One of Butterfly’s most striking themes is its exploration of the male gaze and how it’s inherited across generations. Vera once thrived as the “pleasing woman,” deeply entangled in being seen and desired. That legacy fractures differently in her daughters: Lily leans into her beauty and chaos, while Diana recoils from sexuality almost entirely.
Rather than presenting this as a simplistic critique, the film treats patriarchy as a shared wound—one that requires both women and men to confront and heal. A male character in the film even articulates this idea, reframing objectification as a deep-rooted cultural poison rather than an individual failing.
A Living, Breathing World
During years of research on the island, Søimer Guttormsen chose to work closely with real residents. Many appear in the film as themselves, giving Butterfly a documentary-like texture. The result feels less like a polished narrative and more like a collage of lived experiences, rituals, and quiet transformations.
The director also brings back Gritt, the protagonist from her earlier film, reinforcing her intention to build a shared cinematic universe. In Søimer Guttormsen’s world, characters don’t disappear—they age, migrate, and resurface, carrying their histories with them.
Renate Reinsve, Reimagined
Casting Reinsve wasn’t immediate or obvious. Initially, the director worried the actor’s natural warmth might soften Lily too much. But after multiple meetings and revisions, Reinsve revealed a sharper, darker energy that fit the role perfectly. Her chemistry with Helene Bjørneby became one of the film’s emotional anchors.
The result is a performance that expands Reinsve’s range, pushing beyond charm into something more volatile and unsettling.
Healing in a Broken World
Beyond family dynamics, Butterfly is firmly grounded in the present. News reports about global politics, refugees, and economic instability quietly seep into the narrative, reinforcing the sense that personal healing doesn’t happen in a vacuum.
For Søimer Guttormsen, this context matters deeply. She sees the film as an invitation—not to despair, but to gather. To build community. To choose joy, even when the world feels unsteady.
At its heart, Butterfly is about reconciliation—not just between sisters, but between past and present, body and identity, isolation and b
