Director Lars von Trier has responded to the controversy around his film "The House That Jack Built", which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival.
During its screening at the festival, several audience members exited after it showed a serial killer, played by Matt Dilllon, murdering women and children.
In an interview with Cineuropa, the Danish director said he was pleased by the reaction and he felt "very relaxed".
"It's quite important not to be loved by everybody, because then you've failed. I'm not sure if they hated it enough, though. If it gets too popular, I'll have a problem. But the reception seemed just about right, I think," Trier said.
The director said he read a lot of Patricia Highsmith while penning the script of the film.
"I don't know too much about serial killers, but I do know a bit about psychopaths. And I've never killed anyone myself If I do, it will probably be a journalist," Trier added.
This was Trier's first trip back to Cannes since he debuted "Melancholia" in 2011. The director was banned in the following years after joking about "sympathising with Hitler"
Talking about "The House That Jack Built", Cannes director Thierry Fremaux had earlier said that the film featured "a subject so controversial that it could only appear in an out-of-competition slot at the festival".
Trier said he received a "warm welcome" on his return to the festival.
"They made it very clear that I would not be in competition this time around, as a little piece of remaining punishment for me. Thierry Fremaux has been working hard for me for some reason, it was difficult to remove the persona non grata thing, very difficult. Anyway, it's kind of stupid to compete in film," he added.
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