Daniel Dencik (born 1972) is a Danish writer and film director. He has published seven books in Danish, ranging from poetry to short stories and essays as well as one controversial novel.
He has studied Philosophy at Stockholm University, where he wrote his thesis about the existentialism of Kierkegaard. He has studied film editing at the National Film School of Denmark. In 1998 he had his first book of poetry published by Gyldendal. His work has been divided between film and literature ever since.
He was the editor of the cult movie Nói albinói (2003) by Dagur Kari.
He has written essays on subjects ranging from the sport of professional cycling to the philosophical meaning of solitude and religion. He has covered Tour de France for the Danish daily paper Politiken 2016 and 2017.
As of 2012, he has been directing documentaries, most notably Expedition To The End of The World.[1] In 2012 he received The Reel Talent Award at CPH:DOX. His portrait of the painter Tal R entitled Tal R: The Virgin won a Danish Academy Award 2014 for best short documentary.
2015 marked his debut in narrative films with the historical drama, Gold Coast. The film revolves around the Europe’s colonial past in West Africa. It was shot on locations in Ghana and Burkina Faso and stars Jakob Oftebro and Danica Curcic. The soundtrack is composed by Angelo Badalamenti. It was a Danish-Ghanaian co-production with a budget of €2 million.
Gold Coast had its international premiere at the 2015 Karlovy Vary Film Festival.
He has received the biggest talent award in Danish film, the prestigious Nordisk Film Award, in 2014.
His novel Anden person ental (2014) was praised by the critics and the focus of a lot of attention in the Danish press. In 2016 he published a collection af short stories titled Grand Danois (2016). This work was nominated for Book of the Year in Denmark. A story from this book has been published in the American journal World Literature Today.
His latest book is called Sportshjerte (2017) – and is a collection of essays on the nature of professional cycling.