The actors were trained in mine clearance 'anno 1945' at the Military Training Compound 'Oksbøl.' During training, they found a 'live' mine that had been there for 70+ years--and it was in fine working condition. The mine was removed and disarmed by the Danish de-mining experts.
The film was shot at historically authentic locations, including in Oksbøllejren and areas in Varde.
In the movie, the Danish Sgt. Rasmussen leads the mine clearing operation. In real life, these missions were controlled by the British forces, but with German Officers in command of each team.
The use of German children for post-WWII mine-sweeping has by many historians been declared as the worst case of war crimes ever conducted by the Danish state. Specifically, the Geneva Conventions explicitly forbid any Prisoner of War to be forced to perform dangerous and/or unhealthy labor.
PROLOGUE: "Denmark, May 1945. Five years of German occupation have just ended."
EPILOGUE: "After the war more than 2,000 German POW's were forced to remove over 1.5 million landmines from the west coast of Denmark. Almost half of them died or were severely injured. Many of them were just young boys."
EPILOGUE: "After the war more than 2,000 German POW's were forced to remove over 1.5 million landmines from the west coast of Denmark. Almost half of them died or were severely injured. Many of them were just young boys."
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