This comedy Public Service Announcement urges cyclists in Denmark to wear a helmet, an issue of pressing importance given the number of accidents and injuries inflicted on cyclists without protection.

The film, which was shot in Denmark during the coldest and shortest day of the year, is set in the year 893 during the Viking era. It centres on Svend, leader of his small army, who refuses to wear a helmet before heading to invade England, because it messes up his braids and causes an itchy scalp.

90% of the Danish population owns a bike, cycling an average of 3.46km per day. The World Economic Forum named Copenhagen the world’s most cycle-friendly city. And yet helmets have never become as popular as cycling itself: 50% of Danish adults still fail to put on a helmet when biking.

We were working off a pretty low budget, so we had to get pretty inventive. Especially considering that with a period shoot, there’s no room for half measures. Everything needs to convince. Even with details as small as teeth or makeup…every day we were yellowing the actors’ teeth, smearing their faces with mud, and so on. We made a deal with a local Viking museum, which allowed us access to our chosen location–in fact, the museum was kind enough to lend us some traditional Viking costumes, though these were almost “too” traditional–they didn’t bring the cinematic quality we were aiming for.

The village we shot in wasn’t an authentic Viking-era village–in fact, it was centuries older. We needed the film to win over hardcore Viking enthusiasts–of which there are many in Denmark–as well as the casual viewer, so our Production Designer had to totally redesign the houses in the village.