Anna (De uskyldige)

Anna is a character in the Norwegian supernatural horror movie De uskyldige (The Innocents).

Character creation
Writer-director Eskil Vogt read works by Olga Bogdashina, an autism researcher and parent to a son with "regressive autism" (her son first communicated normally but lost these skills at age 3). Vogt considered the idea of losing contact with someone you love to be horror. He spoke with parents of autistic children and observed some of them, including in institutions. He also watched documentaries. The mother of one of the producers is, coincidentally, also and expert in the field, and she had worked with autistic children in the past.

The character of Anna was initially meant to be a 14-year-old boy but was changed to a younger girl when they found actress Alva Brynsmo Ramstad, whom Vogt considered perfect for the role.

Autism
Anna is stated to be autistic in the movie. She has no expressive speech but often makes non-word vocalizations. She has a picture board to communicate, though she's only shown to use this on one occasion.