Copenhagen Does Not Exist (2023) — AI Story Visualization

Plot Analysis Summary

A fragmented account of a relationship gradually reveals Ida's deliberate escape and Sander's painful acceptance of her departure.

Story Structure — 5 Plot Phases

A Meeting Without Certainty

Sander recalls several possible versions of meeting Ida and says the encounter transformed his life. He is then questioned inside a locked, nearly empty flat.

Key Events

• Uncertain First Meeting — Sander recalls meeting Ida through shifting memories of a station, supermarket, and cinema. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Unspecified meeting place
• Meeting Changes Everything — Sander says meeting Ida changed everything in his life. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Unspecified
• Locked Flat — Sander is confined in a nearly empty flat with the door locked from outside. Characters: Sander Location: Nearly empty flat
• Questioned About Ida — Sander is questioned about his life with Ida and her disappearance. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Nearly empty flat
• Silent Domestic Routine — Ida listens to music for hours while Sander watches her in their isolated routine. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Flat

The Story of Isolation

Sander describes a quiet life in which Ida listens to music while he watches her. Questions about rent, friends, and their unequal domestic life begin to undermine his version.

Key Events

• Ida Suggests Cohabitation — Sander says Ida asked him to move in with her. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Flat
• Doubts About Their Life — Unpaid rent and Ida's distance from friends cast doubt on Sander's account. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Flat
• Family Gathering — Sander attends a gathering where he is introduced as Ida's boyfriend. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Gathering with Ida's family
• Friends Challenge Sander — The gathering questions Ida's absence from friends and Sander's limited contribution. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Gathering with Ida's family
• Father's Death Recalled — Sander recounts following Ida to a cinema after hearing his father had died. Characters: Sander Location: Unspecified

Conflicting Memories

At a gathering, Sander is identified as Ida's boyfriend and faces criticism about their relationship. Ida's objection to his cinema memory exposes a deeper conflict over how their past should be understood.

Key Events

• Cinema Memory Disputed — Ida objects that Sander turns their meeting into a story that distorts her memory. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Cinema
• Isolation Comes Under Fire — Others challenge Sander's description of their isolated life together. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Gathering with Ida's family
• Ferry Trip Begins — Sander says he and Ida traveled by ferry to an island before her disappearance. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Ferry

The Planned Disappearance

Sander recounts the ferry trip, island meal, and final night before Ida vanished. Bank evidence shows that Ida maintained a separate account and prepared to leave.

Key Events

• Island Inn Meal — Sander recounts eating at an inn and walking with Ida on the island. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Island inn
• Ida Vanishes Overnight — Sander says Ida was gone when he woke after their late return. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Place of return
• Missing Person Report — Sander eventually reports Ida missing after she disappears. Characters: Sander Location: Unspecified
• Separate Account Found — The investigation discovers Ida had a separate account and an extra card. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Investigation
• Village Withdrawal — Ida uses the extra card to withdraw money shortly after leaving. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Nearby village
• Planned Departure Suspected — The evidence suggests Ida planned her departure and wanted to get away from Sander. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Investigation

Letting Ida Leave

Ida says she and Sander have left Copenhagen and asks her father not to search for them. Sander accepts that he has let her go as they move toward an uncertain future.

Key Events

• Planned Departure Suspected — The evidence suggests Ida planned her departure and wanted to get away from Sander. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Investigation
• Sander Cannot Explain — Sander struggles to explain what happened as others debate what he should be told. Characters: Sander Location: Investigation
• Leaving Copenhagen — Ida tells her father they have left Copenhagen and will stay where Sander grew up. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Place where Sander grew up
• Ida Refuses Pursuit — Ida asks her father not to come looking for them as she and Sander prepare to leave. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Place where Sander grew up
• Sander Lets Ida Go — Sander accepts that he has let Ida go and reflects on holding back when it mattered. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Road away from Sander's hometown
• Waiting Without News — Ida and Sander leave while those waiting are left without further news. Characters: Ida, Sander Location: Unspecified

Story Breakdown

• Uncertain First Meeting — The film begins by questioning how Ida and Sander first met and how memory shapes their relationship.
  • Shifting Locations — Sander's memory moves among a metro station, supermarket, and cinema.
  • Transformative Encounter — Sander says meeting Ida changed everything.
• Locked Domestic World — Sander describes an isolated life with Ida while being held inside a nearly empty flat.
  • External Confinement — The flat door is locked from outside while Sander is questioned.
  • Silent Routine — Ida listens to music while Sander watches her for long periods.
• Cracks In The Story — Practical and social details begin to challenge Sander's account of their shared life.
  • Unpaid Rent — Questions about unpaid rent undermine the stability of their home.
  • Vanishing Friendships — Ida's growing distance from friends suggests dissatisfaction and isolation.
• Competing Memories — The couple's different accounts reveal that their shared past is not emotionally shared.
  • Public Introduction — Sander is introduced as Ida's boyfriend at a gathering.
  • Cinema Dispute — Ida says Sander's version turns their meeting into a distorted story.
• Disappearance Investigation — The account of Ida's final day is tested against evidence of preparation and escape.
  • Island Excursion — Sander recalls a ferry ride, an inn meal, and a walk with Ida.
  • Bank Evidence — A separate account and extra card connect Ida to a planned departure.
• Choosing To Leave — Ida confirms that she has left Copenhagen, while Sander begins accepting the end of their relationship.
  • No Search Requested — Ida asks her father not to come looking for them.
  • Release And Waiting — Sander lets Ida go as others remain without news.

Directed by

Martin Skovbjerg

Key Cast

• Angela Bundalovic — Ida
• Jonas Holst Schmidt — Sander
• Zlatko Burić — Porath
• Christopher Læssø — Marcello
• Vilmer Trier Brøgger — Viktor