About
Who is Robin Danehav?
Documentary filmmaker based in Stockholm, Sweden. I make films about people who choose to do something, instead of waiting for someone else to.
Why I do this
I believe in stories about change. Not the loud kind. The slow kind, where one good example quietly makes someone else try.
The world feels dark right now. I can’t fix that. But I can use what I’m good at, telling stories, to make it a little less dark. So I make films about people who use their skills to make something better.
If a film makes someone spend just one percent of their time and skills on something that makes things better, and they pass it on, it compounds. It doesn’t have to be big. Sometimes it’s a smile to a stranger who needed one.
How it started
My path into film started with loss. My brother died in an accident in 2004, and I realised I didn’t want to spend my life in an IT job I didn’t enjoy. In 2007 I went back to school to study TV production. Just before I finished, my father died. A month later my first daughter was born, and in January 2008 I started working in film.
For years I built production companies and made films for clients. From the outside it worked. Underneath, something felt tight: I was executing other people’s visions while my own curiosity kept getting pushed down. In 2020 I closed my company and kept doing the same kind of work on my own. It was great at first. Then I realised I needed a bigger purpose.
In 2022 I went to Web Summit in Lisbon. One evening I ended up at a tiny vegan Italian restaurant, and Alex, who runs it, and I found each other over limoncello. Two days later I was back, filming him all afternoon, drinking wine and talking about food. When I edited it at my kitchen table in the December dark, it hit me: this is what I’m supposed to do.
That was the start of 100 Documentaries. I made a film about the whole story.
What I mean by better
I use “making the world better” as a wide term on purpose, so I get to choose what it means. In practice, my films are about the environment, culture, craft, food, and research and inventions. At its core, it’s about spending your time on something that makes things better for someone else.
How it’s funded
Making room for these films meant taking a big cut in income. Today the balance comes from my studio, Impact Docs, where I make documentaries and films for brands. That work pays for my own projects, and the films stay free for everyone to watch.
What the films have taught me so far
- You don’t have to choose between a safe job and something that matters. You can start small. Harold
- Have a clear goal, then let go of control. Mattias
- Ask what happens if you succeed, not only if you fail. Sophie
- Every year you put into something makes it harder to stop. Martin
- Most of us need to see someone else do hard things before we believe we can. THAW
In short
- Documentary filmmaker and photographer, based in Stockholm, Sweden
- Working in film since 2008, with 600+ company clients
- Creator of 100 Documentaries, a film series about people who chose a different path
- Founder of Impact Docs, a studio for brand documentaries
- Films on YouTube at @storybydanehav, notes on Substack