At Holebrook, we like to connect with people who feel close to us and inspire us. Meet Swedish actor, director and screenwriter Pelle Holmström in a conversation about the craft of storytelling, the desire to move people, and a mind in open air.

Ever since Pelle was young, he has been creating stories. What began as small, imagined worlds for himself and his family, has grown into work shared with audiences far beyond. We met him to talk about craft, everyday life and the quiet act of becoming one with a character.

“I created worlds, told stories, dressed up constantly,” he says. “As I got older, much of that faded, but the dream of doing it properly never disappeared.”

As a child in Sollefteå, imagination was a constant companion. ”I created worlds, told stories, dressed up constantly,” he says. “As I got older, much of that faded, but the dream of doing it properly never disappeared.” It wasn’t until his final year of school, when he took part in a performance, that the feeling returned. He threw himself into every part of it, and the response was enough to know this was what he wanted.

A few years later, Stockholm became home. He worked in a clothing shop, often singing to himself as he moved through the day. A colleague overheard him and insisted he apply to a theatre programme. He continues: “I had never even seen a musical. But I auditioned, got in and spent three intense years there.”

In his final year he signed with Universal. Theatre followed, then a television series, and eventually his own writing began to take shape. Letting others into something so personal is still a delicate process. “You try to protect the heart of a story, what it truly is,” he says. “But working with others can make a piece stronger. It’s a balance.”

In a field where opinions are constant, he relies on something quieter: the desire to move people. “When you reach that moment, especially in theatre, where a room full of people feel the same thing at the same time... it’s powerful. It becomes almost like a collective ritual.” It’s part of why he worries we’re losing something. “More screens, more isolation, more watching things alone. Experiencing something together matters.”

His way into a role shifts depending on the character. When he played someone raised in nature for the TV series Partisan, he found himself returning to the outdoors, reconnecting with parts of himself he’d drifted from. Nature is essential in his work and in life, and we ask what MIND IN OPEN AIR * means to him.

“I’m not particular when it comes to fashion. I express myself through clothes in my own way, but in nature it’s purely the practical side that matters.”

His way into a role shifts depending on the character. When he played someone raised in nature for the TV series Partisan, he found himself returning to the outdoors, reconnecting with parts of himself he’d drifted from. Nature is essential in his work and in life, and we ask what Mind in open air* means to him. “I live in the city, but I don’t think this is where I’m meant to be,” he says. “I spend too little time away from the concrete.” During summers, he escapes to any patch of green he can find, and he tries to go home to Sollefteå every year. “It will always be home. Most of what I write is connected to that place and to nature.”

Thank you for letting us take part of
your story, Pelle.

* Read more about MIND IN OPEN AIR