Ruben Östlund’s The Square, 2017 Palme d’Or winner, has been selected as Sweden’s official entry for the 2018 Foreign Language Oscar category.

Claes Bang, Elisabeth Moss, Dominic West and Terry Notary star in the satirical drama set in the art world,  about an art museum chief curator whose plans to promote an exhibit spiral out of control.

Christian is the respected curator of a contemporary art museum, a divorced but devoted father of two who drives an electric car and supports good causes. His next show is “The Square”, an installation which invites passersby to altruism, reminding them of their role as responsible fellow human beings. But sometimes, it is difficult to live up to your own ideals: Christian’s foolish response to the theft of his phone drags him into shameful situations. Meanwhile, the museum’s PR agency has created an unexpected campaign for ”The Square”. The response is overblown and sends Christian, as well as the museum, into an existential crisis.

This is Ruben Ostlund’s third time representing Sweden at the Oscars – Involuntary was the official submission in 2009, and he made the shortlist in 2014 with Force Majeure but was disappointedly not nominated. In response he made the YouTube video “Swedish director freaks out when he misses out on Oscar nomination.”