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A recent BBC interview with Sofie Gråbøl, the actor who places Sarah Lund, gives some clues (!) to the show’s appeal. She
says it isn’t a meal where all the dishes are served at once. Instead, things
are served up in a slow and incremental way that demands the imaginative
attention of the viewer. The audience isn’t allowed to be passive as this holding
things back demands co-creation on the part of the viewer. Significant details
emerge through time and have to be remembered. One crime is the focus;
presented in 20 episodes where each is a day in the investigation. Famously,
even the actors don’t know ‘whodunnit’ as the programmes are being filmed as
scripts are written as the story unfolds.
There’s a lot here any preacher or speaker should think
about. Perhaps it isn’t always necessary to serve up all the words at once, as
it were. It’s just too easy for preachers to fall into the trap of making every
sermon encompass ‘God, the universe, and everything.’ Important subjects can connect
in a much more piecemeal way, if there’s an evident suspenseful and engaging
development in what’s said. The audience will stay with it, even for very long
periods (20 episodes), if imaginations are being stirred and mental
concentration is provoked. In fact, people like to put this brain effort in –
it’s enjoyable and satisfying. The blindingly obvious served up in a tedious
stew of words neither satisfies nor encourages. Engaging the minds, imaginations
and hearts of the audience is the clear priority. Surely that’s the aim of
every preacher too? Let’s say it like Sarah Lund.
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