Renate Reinsve on Her 9-Times Oscar Nominated Film 'Sentimental Value'

Summary

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Podcast Summary: All Of It – Renate Reinsve on Her 9-Times Oscar Nominated Film 'Sentimental Value'

Host: Alison Stewart
Guest: Renate Reinsve
Date: March 6, 2026
Episode Theme: Culture, film, and the personal and creative forces behind the 9-time Oscar-nominated film "Sentimental Value"

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Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation between host Alison Stewart and Renate Reinsve, Best Actress nominee, about the acclaimed film "Sentimental Value." The discussion explores the film’s complex portrayal of family dynamics, artistic creation, and intergenerational conflict. Reinsve provides personal insights into her character, Nora, the rehearsal process with director Joachim Trier, and her collaboration with the legendary Stellan Skarsgård. The episode offers a behind-the-scenes look at the making of a celebrated international film and illuminates the emotional depth of its characters.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Family House as a Character

[03:50]

• The house is described as “kind of its own character.” Renate explains how it embodies the passage of time, family history, and unresolved emotions.
  • "The house in the movie is kind of its own character. It really sets the framework of the whole movie, that house." — Renate Reinsve
• To her character Nora, the house is a source of discomfort and estrangement due to a troubled upbringing under a famous but emotionally absent father.
  • "She really didn’t have a good time. They grew up in a very aggressive home. And also her father, being a director, … he wasn’t really present."

2. Nora’s Character and Emotional Complexity

[05:57]

• The film opens with Nora in a moment of crisis, reflecting her struggle to be present in her own life — on stage, she can channel her emotions, but in real life, she’s overwhelmed.
  • "She is struggling to be present in her life, but on stage, she can really go into what she’s carrying. She carries a lot of emotional weight from coming from that childhood in that house."
    [06:19]
• Playing the panic scene was both intense and comedic for Reinsve; she sees relatable humor in panicking over uncomfortable situations.
  • "I think it’s a comedic scene because I think it’s very relatable … so uncomfortable that you panic and you, you don’t want to go there … that to me has a lot of comedy to it."

3. Acting as a Way to Connect

[08:41]

• Nora’s motivation for acting is partly subconscious: a desire to be close to her father, who can only truly connect while directing.
  • "She wants to be part of her father's life... subconsciously she goes into acting because it might be a way to be close to him."

4. Relationships with Gustav and Agnes

[09:32]

• The dynamic between Nora, her sister Agnes, and their father is explored. Agnes experienced being “seen” by their father when she was cast in his film as a child, but the affection was transient.
  • "It was such a big grief because she had never felt so seen... but when production stopped, it was back to normal."

5. Stellan Skarsgård’s Portrayal of Gustav

[10:08]

• Skarsgård was cast for his warmth and complexity to offset a “mean” character on the page.
  • "Stellan is so beautiful in the character and gives so much dynamic and gentleness to that character."
• Despite brutal lines, Gustav is portrayed with clumsy kindness—he believes himself good, but fails in fatherhood.
  • "He just doesn’t know how to be good with his daughters. And you see him being a lot better version of himself with his actress."
    [12:22]
• Gustav's projection onto Rachel (Elle Fanning's character), including her altering her appearance, underscores his complex relationship with his daughters.
  • "He kind of tries to shape Rachel into his daughter. That is very funny and very sad."

6. Language and Authenticity

[13:22]

• The film mixes English and Norwegian. For Reinsve, performing in English introduces a sense of estrangement into the role that enriches her performance.
  • "You get a different sense of depth when you speak in your own language. But I could always be myself, just struggling a bit with the words."

7. Working with Joachim Trier

[14:39]

• Trier is lauded as a gifted storyteller and collaborative leader, creating a safe, artistically rich environment where actors and crew feel invested.
  • "He’s so wise and intelligent in the way he structures his movies... a pool of just artistic joy working with him."
• The set culture encourages exploration while maintaining structure.
  • "Because it’s so structured, we can be really flexible with improvising. The whole room is improvising together."

8. Exploring Mental Health Themes

[16:48]

• Nora avoids therapy out of fear—exploring one’s trauma might cause her to unravel.
  • "She’s really scared of what she’ll find. ...if I dig into it just a little bit... it might just all fall apart."
• Her sister is her anchor, but the fear of vulnerability is powerful and relatable.

9. Unique Rehearsal Process

[17:58]

• Trier’s rehearsal process involves real problem-solving and personalization—the script is shaped by actors’ real dynamics and emotional truths.
  • "We share a lot of personal things in the room... he films the rehearsals so that he can alter the script."
• This method gives the cast deep ownership and contributes to the film’s authenticity.

10. The Film’s Emotional Range: Sadness and Hope

[19:35]

• The tone balances sadness with hope—the conclusion is layered and not pat, making the hope found at the end more moving.
  • "There is so much hope in the complexity of how it ends and how those relationships are seen in the end."

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the house as a metaphor:
  • “The house is kind of its own character … the walls in the house really holds information about all these families … and sets the framework of the whole movie.” – Renate Reinsve (03:50)
• On acting and parental connection:
  • "I think one of the things she doesn't know is that she wants to be a part of her father's life. …subconsciously she goes into acting because it might be a way to be close to him." – Renate Reinsve (08:41)
• On Stellan Skarsgård’s performance:
  • "He is so beautiful in the character and gives so much dynamic and gentleness to that character." – Renate Reinsve (10:14)
  • "He plays someone who really thinks he is a good person … but he's so clumsy, and he just doesn't know how to be good with his daughters." – Renate Reinsve (11:16)
• On working with Joachim Trier:
  • "He’s so wise and intelligent in the way he structures his movies... The crew and the cast members are really like integrated and we feel like a collective." – Renate Reinsve (14:39)
• On mental health representation:
  • "She's really scared of what she'll find … if I dig into it just a little bit … it might just all fall apart." – Renate Reinsve (16:59)
• On hope in the film:
  • "There is so much hope in the complexity of how it ends and how those relationships are seen in the end." – Renate Reinsve (19:44)

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Important Segment Timestamps

• 03:50 – The significance of the family house in the film
• 05:57 – Nora’s emotional state and panic scene
• 08:41 – Nora’s motivation for becoming an actress
• 10:08 – The character of Gustav and Stellan Skarsgård’s performance
• 13:22 – Bilingual script and performing in two languages
• 14:39 – Renate on Joachim Trier’s artistic and leadership style
• 16:48 – Nora’s avoidance of therapy and mental health
• 17:58 – Trier’s collaborative rehearsal process
• 19:35 – The tone of hope in the film’s conclusion

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Overall Tone and Takeaways

• The episode is thoughtful, personal, and warm, reflecting on family wounds, artistry, and healing.
• Renate Reinsve’s insights into her character and her creative processes echo the film’s nuanced portrayal of complex relationships.
• Listeners come away with a deeper understanding of "Sentimental Value," both as an emotionally resonant film and as a testament to the collaborative power of cinema.

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Transcript

[Renate Reinsve]

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[Alison Stewart]

This that is all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. Happy Friday, everyone. In case you haven't heard, it's awards season. All next week we'll hear conversations with Oscar nominees, including the director of Hamnet, Chloe Zhao, Wagner Mora and director Kleber Mendoza Filho of the Brazilian political thriller the Secret Agent, Delroy Lindo and Miles Caton from Sinners and Rose Byrne, star of the psychodrama if I had Legs, I'd kick you. We had so many great conversations that we decided to start a bit early. We'll talk with documentary filmmaker Geeta Gandabeer about her film the Perfect Neighbor. It's been nominated for Best Documentary Feature. We'll also hear from Best Actor nominee Ethan Hawke about playing Lorenz Hart, half of the famous songwriting duo Rogers and Hart. That film is called Blue Moon. But now let's hear from a Best Actress nominee, foreign. The new film Sentimental Value. Renata Rinesve plays an actress named Nora who has had issues with her father Gustav, who just happens to be a very famous Norwegian filmmaker, maybe past his prime. Nora and her sister really don't want to talk about their famous dad who walked away from the family when they were girls while they were still Young. But Gustav shows back up in the women's lives at a funeral from his estranged wife. He has a bit of an agenda. He's written a great script specifically for his daughter Nora. It might be his return to cinema, but Nora is not having it. She won't even read the script. But when Gustav goes ahead and casts a big Hollywood star in Nora's place, things get complicated. Sentimental Value has been nominated for nine Academy Awards this year, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Film Editing. Four of the film stars have been individually nominated, and one of them is Renate Reince, up for Best Actress. When the film was released, I started by asking her to talk about the importance of the family's house, which is an image that opens the film.

[Renate Reinsve]

The house in the movie is kind of its own character. It kind of shows how time passes and how the walls in the house really holds information about all these families that has lived there through generations and all those little moments that has meant so much for all of the people that had lived there. And really sets the framework of the whole movie, that house.

[Alison Stewart]

What does the house mean to Nora?

[Renate Reinsve]

Well, actually to her, she doesn't really like being there, so she's kind of estranged to the house. And it was so funny because the way Joachim works, we get really, like, empathetically, very leaned into her character and in the rehearsals. And then he showed us the house and the actress playing my sister Inga, she plays Agnes, she was. She loved being there and she was so attached to the house. And then I. I couldn't really care less and I was so embarrassed. But it was because of the character. She really didn't have a good time. They grew up in a very aggressive home. And also her father, being a director, he was really present and so sensitive with everyone while working, but he was struggling to do that home. So even though he was there, he wasn't really present. And then he was also not present a lot of the time, physically. So I think that brings all the memories back for her being there.

[Alison Stewart]

The kind of house it is, is a special Norwegian style of architecture. So like a super Victorian. How did you feel, you, Renata, feel about the house? Did it have a vibe to it?

[Renate Reinsve]

Yeah, it was very special. It was actually a real family living there. And they showed us the pictures of. Of the actual house and times through or all the different, like, eras of the house. And it was actually pretty heavily docum, so. And we. I knew the family that lived there. It was so it. And we all had a relationship to the house while filming. So it was a really special place and it gave a lot of atmosphere to the movie and what we were going through.

[Alison Stewart]

When we first meet Nora, she's having sort of a breakdown in her dressing room. She's an actress. It's opening night of her play. She won't go on stage. She's ripping at her costume. She's trying to take her headpiece off. She even tries to run away at one point. What does this very stressful opening of the film tell us about Nora?

[Renate Reinsve]

So actually, just like her father, she is struggling to be present in her life, but on stage, she can really go into what she's carrying. She carries a lot of emotional weight from coming from that childhood in that house. And she's unable to process it and communicate it to the people around her and actually make relationships around her work based off of those emotions. But when she's on stage in controlled environments of good lines and a situation that's set up, she can be free in being in that. But to get to that point, to be a good actress and access everything in you, you have to open up to all of that. And she's so uncomfortable with it, so she runs away and rips off her dress and really ruins it for everyone right before she goes on. And then later, when she's actually physically pushed on the, on the scene, to the scene, you can see that all of that emotional weight really is what gives her the force as an actress. So it's. I love playing a good panic scene. It was a lot of fun playing that scene.

[Alison Stewart]

What do you need to play a good panic scene?

[Renate Reinsve]

Well, you need the dynamic or the. I think it's a comedic scene because I think it's very relatable, like how you don't really know it, but some things to go into, some things are so, so uncomfortable that you panic and you, you don't want to go there. And that kind of resistance in, in small things. And this is, of course, a very big scene, but you have it, I think, in everything in your life sometimes. So that to me is, has a lot of comedy to it.

[Alison Stewart]

Did you, have you ever had stage fright like that before?

[Renate Reinsve]

I get really scared, but I kind of know how to facilitate it in a way. So I, I, I, I can use it and it gives me energy, but I, I panic of other things, but I, let's not go into that. I've actually seen that happen to another actress. So it's kind of based off of what I've seen. Yeah. And of course, it's horrible to. To watch when someone's going through that, but it. It is always, on some levels, it is funny looking back. Not in the moment, but looking back, and kind of working with that in the scene was. Was fun.

[Alison Stewart]

So what has motivated Nora to become an actor?

[Renate Reinsve]

I think what I really loved about this character was playing around with what she knew about herself and what she didn't know about herself. And I think one of the things she doesn't know is that she wants to be a part of her father's life. And she knows that the only place he can be present and actually have, like, empathy with the people around him or, like, communicate that in any way is when he's directing, because then he can access it. So I think subconsciously she goes into acting because it might be a way to be close to him. But she is blinded by anger for what she's been going through in her upbringing, so she can't really get past that anger. So she struggles to talk to him, and when she gets the opportunity finally to work with him, she doesn't want to.

[Alison Stewart]

And that plays differently for the woman who plays your sister Agnes, because she was in one of his movies when she was little, so she did have that sort of commitment from her father.

[Renate Reinsve]

Yeah. And I think the way she talks about it and the way I see it, too, is that it was such a big grief because she had never felt so seen and so taken care of. But when production stopped, it was back to normal, where she wasn't able to be with him in the same way, so she never wanted to do it again. So it's kind of marrying each other in that sense.

[Alison Stewart]

Stellan Skarsgrd plays your father Gustav in the film. What did he bring to that part?

[Renate Reinsve]

Well, Joachim and Eskild, they're saying that they kept writing a director that was, like, meaner and meaner and got worse and worse in the writing process. So they really needed to cast someone who was a nice person.

[Alison Stewart]

And

[Renate Reinsve]

so. So Joachim knew, and he had dreamed of working with Stellan Skarsgrd for many years, but this was kind of. He. It got more and more in the process. It was clearer and clearer that they had to cast Stellan. So he went to Sweden, had a big lunch, and Stellan talks about it like he was playing hard to get, and then eventually said yes, when Joachim half started begging him to do the role. Yeah, but Stellan is so beautiful in the character and gives so much dynamic and gentleness to that character.

[Alison Stewart]

Do you find him Likable in the film. You personally.

[Renate Reinsve]

Well, I do. I think that he's saying so many quite horrible things to his daughter, and he is judging her, but so he had to play up. He had to play against those lines. And I think Stellan does that in such a beautiful way, where he plays someone who really thinks he is a good person. And he is. But he's so clumsy, and he. He just doesn't know how to be good with his daughters. And you see him being a lot better version of himself with his actress that is played by Elle Fanning, Rachel Kemp. And, yeah, it's just very interesting how he built. I feel all the act actors in this movie has been given the opportunity to be really smart with their character and. And Joachim really writes very complex or he writes complex characters, and they're so layered and has so much dynamic to them. So it's really easy to play around for us, and we were giving the space to do that.

[Alison Stewart]

One of the things I loved in the film is when Elle Fanning dyes her hair.

[Renate Reinsve]

Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

And looks quite a bit like you. Yeah, that was kind of. I didn't see that coming. And I was like, wow.

[Renate Reinsve]

I was shocked because we looked so similar when she had done that. It was. Yeah, it was. It was great because sometime people seeing the movie for the first time, they don't really see, but suddenly they're really similar. But you can't really tell what it is the minute you see it. But, no, it's. It's a great idea. I think Gustav is also projecting the relationship he wants with his daughters to the role, and he really wants Nora to do the character and knows that it's. It's only her that can do it. So he kind of tries to shape Rachel into his daughter. That is very funny and very sad.

[Alison Stewart]

My guest is Renata Reinsve. She stars in the movie Sentimental Value. The movie's in English and Norwegian. Was it written that way?

[Renate Reinsve]

Yeah. Yeah, it was.

[Alison Stewart]

So that was in the script. It was Joachim's choice.

[Renate Reinsve]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

What is it like to go back and forth between the language for you as an actor?

[Renate Reinsve]

Well, of course, you get a different sense of depth when you speak in your own language. But I think all the roles that I have done in English, American, I've gotten to play someone that has moved from Norway to the US So I could integrate kind of the estranged, like trying to communicate something that you have inside so you can put it into the acting and kind of make a dynamic from that. Yeah. That obstacle. So. So for Me, it's been. I haven't played someone who's supposed to be American. And then you have to, of course, integrate more of the culture. But I could always be myself just struggling a bit with the words.

[Alison Stewart]

That's interesting because we just got a text that from someone who said she is astounding in the worst person in the world. Can't wait to see her again.

[Renate Reinsve]

That's so nice.

[Alison Stewart]

Tell me what you like about working with Joaquin Trier.

[Renate Reinsve]

He is both really artistically talented, so he writes characters that are so interesting and his movies are character driven. So it's always fantastic to work in that environment. He's so wise and intelligent in the way he structures his movies and his scenes and the way he casts. So it's such a pool of just artistic joy working with him. But he's also a really good leader, so he knows how to run a production and we feel really safe and we can go really far because the way he gives time to everyone working and. And he's really good at involving everyone and get everyone very emotionally attached to his vision. So the. The crew and the cast members are really like integrated and we feel like a collective trying to make something. It's never about us. It's about the project, it's about the scene. It's about something. And then it's really easy when you don't have the responsibility of kind of making something good. You just try to find it there and then. And then it also gets really authentic and raw, I think.

[Alison Stewart]

When on this film was Joaquin Trier a good leader?

[Renate Reinsve]

Every single day. So he. Even from the beginning, like the way he structures his production from the beginning, it's so extremely. He goes into every single detail. So then you're so prepared. Everyone, every department is so prepared. So you can go really fast and you don't spill energy on something that hasn't been made a decision off. Everyone knows what they're doing. And then you are actually get to be very flexible in that because everyone's so on point with. With what they know that they're gonna do. We have an ideal version of the scene. Everyone has that in the whole crew, the whole cast. But because it's so structured, we can be really flexible with improvising. And then it doesn't feel like only the actors are improvising. The whole room is improvising together. So it really feels like a collective.

[Alison Stewart]

I won't give it away, but we learn that Nora has mental health issues in this film, but she refuses to go to therapy.

[Renate Reinsve]

Ye.

[Alison Stewart]

Why won't she go to therapy?

[Renate Reinsve]

I think she's really scared of what she'll find. And I think if you have this feeling of any time, this could just fall apart if I dig into it just a little bit. And that's why she's so scared of going on stage and panics when she goes on stage, because if she gets in there too deep, it might just all fall apart. And I think the only really safety she has is her sister. But I. Yeah, I think she absolutely should talk to someone, and she deserves that. But I understand also the fear of going into those topics and going into that, because it's really hard work once you go into that.

[Alison Stewart]

A good chunk of the movie focuses on the rehearsal process for a film. As Gustav starts to embark on it with Rachel. What was your own rehearsal process like?

[Renate Reinsve]

So Joachim has very specific rehearsal process. Like he. He will go in, and it's not that you have to nail a scene or find the ideal version there in the room, but you start talking about things. You test some things out, and then when you get to a point where almost kind of a problem is solved, then you stop and you go out of the room. And then you. You don't talk about it more. You just let it kind of sink in. So it becomes a part of your subconscious that way. And we get to know each other really well as actors and as people in there because we share a lot of personal things in the room. And so that the movie kind of becomes very personal to us. And he films the rehearsals so that he can alter the script together with Eskid Vogt.

[Alison Stewart]

Oh, that's interesting.

[Renate Reinsve]

Ye. Yeah. So the dynamic that occurs between actors on rehearsals, he will alter the script to match that dynamic and also, like, match what comes from us, truthfully. So it really feels like we're a big part of creating it in the last parts. And what happens on set is then you have so much ownership to it because of that process.

[Alison Stewart]

That's wonderful that you really feel like you have ownership of your film.

[Renate Reinsve]

Yeah, yeah.

[Alison Stewart]

Everybody involved.

[Renate Reinsve]

Yeah, yeah, we do. Even though it's. It's like very. We. We all think are actors that love following a director's vision and can be free in that space. But it is fantastic to. Yeah. Feel that ownership.

[Alison Stewart]

The movie at sometimes is very, very sad. But there's also a lot of hope in the film. What do you find hopeful about the film?

[Renate Reinsve]

Well, then I. I can't talk about the last scene.

[Alison Stewart]

No, you cannot.

[Renate Reinsve]

No. But that is very hopeful. And it. It's not a I I love that the movie not necessarily comes to some like a beautiful ending where it's everything is solved. But there is so much hope in the complexity of how it ends and how those relationships are seen in the end of the movie. But I don't want to say what it is, but it's very helpful.

[Alison Stewart]

That was my conversation with Renata Rinesve. She's nominated for best Actress for her role in the film Sentimental Value, which is up in eight other categories at this year's Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and best Film Editing. Coming up, we'll turn to the documentary category with director Geeta Gandwear. Her film the Perfect Neighbor is nominated for best Documentary Feature Film. This is all of it.

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