Do not miss this panel at Winston Baker Film Finance Forum
with Ari Aster & Lars Knudsen May 19th | 11:30am -
12:30pm
Shifter(s) Series: Fireside Chat with Ari Aster & Lars Knudsen Monday, May 19th | 11:30am - 12:30pm Plage des Palmes
Joining us after the premiere of their latest film, Eddington, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Emma Stone, Austin Butler, Deirdre O’Connell, Micheal Ward and Luke Grimes.
Co-Founders of Square Peg, Lars Knudsen and Ari Aster, are known for some of the most memorable and bold films in recent years, including HEREDITARY, MIDSOMMAR, and BEAU IS AFRAID, but also their work producing for other groundbreaking directors.
Join us for Part 2 of our International Film Finance Forum to hear them talk about their creative process at Square Peg, and what’s next for them in the world of cinema.
Ari Aster, Writer, Director, Producer
Lars Knudsen, Award-Winning Producer
Moderated by: Georg Szalai - Global Business Editor, The Hollywood Reporter London
Ari Aster - Writer, Director, Producer
Writer-director-producer Ari Aster’s debut feature Hereditary, starring Toni Collette, became a critical and box office success hit for A24 in 2018. Aster continued his genre-challenging work for A24 with his 2019 thriller Midsommar, starring Florence Pugh and Jack Reynor, and again in 2023 with Beau is Afraid, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Patti Lapone.
In addition to writing, directing and producing his feature films, Aster along with his producing partner Lars Knudsen, formed their production company Square peg in 2019 to collaborate with a host of fellow auteur filmmakers, including Robert Eggers (The Northman), Kristoffer Borgli (Dream Scenario, The Drama), Guy Maddin and Evan and Galen Johson (Rumours), and Yorgos Lanthimos (Bugonia).
Lars Knudsen - Award-Winning Producer
Lars Knudsen is an award-winning film producer of over 40 films, including Ari Aster’s Hereditary, Midsommar, and Beau is Afraid, Robert Eggers’ The Witch and The Northman, Andrea Arnold’s American Honey and Mike Mills’ Beginners. Collaborating with other auteur filmmakers such as Yorgos Lanthimos, Kristoffer Borgli, David Lowery, and Kelly Reichardt, Knudsen has been instrumental in bringing unique and ground-breaking stories to global audiences. As co-founder of Square Peg alongside Ari Aster, Knudsen’s commitment to nurturing bold and compelling storytelling, has established him at the forefront in shaping contemporary cinema.
Upcoming work includes Aster’s Eddington, starring Joaquin Phoenix, Pedro Pascal, Emma Stone, Austin Butler, Deirdre O’Connell, Micheal Ward and Lucas Grimes for A24, and Yorgos Lanthimos’ Bugonia, starring Emma Stone and Jesse Plemons for Focus Features.
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