from The Seagull in having Minus write a play. Bergman dedicated the film to his then-wife Käbi Laretei, with influence from what he described as their "complicated, staged relationship". Casting In keeping with his idea of the film being a "chamber play" in the mold of the work of August Strindberg, Bergman referred to his cast as a "string quartet". Bergman sent Andersson the screenplay, with Andersson initially declining, saying the role would be too challenging for her. She said Bergman replied with "Don't give me that load of shit!" To prepare, Andersson contacted a nurse to discuss schizophrenia. At the time, Lars Passgård was a novice actor. Filming Through a Glass Darkly was filmed on the island of Fårö, at cinematographer Sven Nykvist's recommendation. It was Bergman's first film shot there, where he would film several more. Nykvist developed his style with the film, employing few camera movements. The director and cinematographer had very serious conversations in which they rethought how lighting should be employed. Nykvist and Bergman also planned to make Through a Glass Darkly as their first colour film collaboration, but were unhappy with the look of the colour shots they tested. The film relies on natural sounds to convey silence in the characters' lives, with cello music after the incest scene being an exception. Four interpretations of Sarabande from Suite No. 2 in D minor for Cello, BWV 1008 by Johann Sebastian Bach are used in the film, with cellist Erling Blöndal Bengtsson providing all of them. Release In Sweden, the film was released by SF Studios on 16 October 1961. The film also screened at the 12th Berlin International Film Festival during June and July 1962. Janus Films launched the film's U.S. release in New York City on 13 March 1962, delaying it until the finalists for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film were announced. Janus also promoted its Oscar campaign by screening it for Academy members in Los Angeles before voting occurred. On 19 August 2003, The Criterion Collection released the film on DVD in Region 1, along with Begman's films Winter Light and The Silence and Vilgot Sjöman's documentary Ingmar Bergman Makes a Movie. On 20 November 2018, Criterion included a Blu-ray version, along with 38 other Bergman films, in the set Ingmar Bergman's Cinema in Region A. Reception Critical reception In Sweden, the film received positive reviews for its characters,