In his director 's statement , Trier wrote that he had started to regret having made such a polished film , but that he hoped it would contain some flaws which would make it interesting . The director wrote : " I desired to dive headlong into the abyss of German romanticism ... But is that not just another way of expressing defeat ? Defeat to the lowest of cinematic common denominators ? Romance is abused in all sorts of endlessly dull ways in mainstream products . " The premiere took place at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival , where '' Melancholia '' was screened in competition on 18 May . The press conference after the screening gained considerable publicity . '' The Hollywood Reporter '' 's Scott Roxborough wrote that " Von Trier has never been very P.C. and his Cannes press conferences always play like a dark stand-up routine , but at the '' Melancholia '' press conference he took it to another level , tossing a grenade into any sense of public decorum . " Trier first joked about working on a hardcore pornographic film that would star Dunst and Gainsbourg . When asked about the relation between the influences of German Romanticism in '' Melancholia '' and Trier 's own German heritage , the director brought up that he had been raised believing his biological father was a Jew , only to learn as an adult that his actual father was a German . He then made jokes about Jews and Nazis , said he understood Adolf Hitler and admired the work of architect Albert Speer , and jokingly announced that he was a Nazi . The Cannes Film Festival issued an official apology for the remarks the same day and clarified that Trier is not a Nazi or an anti-Semite , then declared the director " persona non grata " the following day . This meant he was not allowed to go within 100 meters of the Festival Palace , but he did remain in Cannes and continued to give promotional interviews
2011 Cannes Film Festival
2011 Cannes Film Festival
Melancholia (2011 film)