Nordisk Panorama 2025 in Malmö
24 documentary projects were pitched at this year’s Nordisk Panorama, edition number 32, with the participation of “Documentary Stakeholders” from 18 countries – broadcasters, sales agents, film institute consultants, and with a lot of potential co-producers, some observers with their own projects, present in the room, Moriska Paviljongen in Malmö. Two days of pitching, 15 minutes per project, half of the time for those who present the projects, half of the time for comments from those stakeholders, who sit at the table.
I attended – from a room in the Scandic Hotel, that streamed the Forum on a television screen. The reason why… there was a camera focus on moderators, on pitching teams, on trailers, on the stakeholders talking. Made it easy for me to get an idea of the projects to convey – some of them, those I liked – my impressions to you, who were there or are curious to know what happens in the Nordic documentary scene.
The second day (22-23 September) was the best. There was a flow in the presentation, the moderators seemed to be more free in the their comments to those around the table, always supporting the pitching teams and – first of all – many projects were interesting and well presented. Like the first one, “Mystery Package”, production A5 Film, Norway, director Silje Evensmo Jacobsen: from where does the xmas package come and has come from every year for 22 years? Sent to the grandparents. Two young kids, the grandchildren, become the detectives to find out. The filmmakers present – in the catalogue – the film to be “heartfelt, humorous, and thrilling…”. I believe in them. Release January 2026.
Veterans Gréta Ólafsdóttir and Susan Muska, production la Chana Iceland, are always very powerful on stage, also this time with Elisabeth Thoroddsen as director of “Ukulellur”, (PHOTO Jakob Johannson) with thirteen lesbians, who form a ukulele band to play and sing about queer life, stereotypes, discrimination and resistance, as the catalogue says. Humor and seriousness will be in the film as it was on the stage – the team left playing a tune on a ukulele. Release June 2027.
Finnish Kajo Productions presented with Sanna Liinamaa as director a very strong and important story called “The Runaway Brain”, an animation documentary with Nikke Liinamaa, who has Down syndrome with “a brain that walks, comments, reacts and escapes”; the trailer or rather the sketches shown in the clip made me think that here is something very important and new – to be invited into an inner world of a young man, who expresses himself as an artist. The team said that in the documentary part of the film and accompanying the animation from him, they will try to make Nikke speak. Necessary? I am not sure. Release July 2027.
Ida Kat Balslev was there with Sidsel Lønvig Siersted (her production company) as producer presenting, in pre-producton, “My Rebel Heart”, having on screen an excellent trailer that introduces the young actress Yara, who lives in Ramallah, The director has followed her for 6 years, an actress and an activist, ahh I hope so much for a good life for the young woman and her family, and I have no doubt about the film, that will finish the shooting, when Yara and her friends have finished their play about “their lives, challenges and dreams for the future”. It will be an important film. Release January 2027.
Swedish/French Morgane Dziuria-Petit came on stage just after, another talent with a project in development, production GõtaFilm, “The Days I Will Forget”, a father-daughter film, again an artistic trailer, a budget of almost 1million Euros, 38% covered, the father an alcoholic since he was 15 (!), who stops, or does he, moved from France to Sweden wanting to become a film director. Like his daughter who writes in the catalogue: “Every day my dad wakes up and fights the same battle. He is not done with alcoholism; he is always trying to stop. So I recreated the day of his failed shoot. Again and again. Until we felt trapped in an eternal loop, giving him a new chance at his dream everyday… Patrick (the father) confronts alcoholism anew, while Morgane grapples with her own hopes for their future”. Morgane said at the pitching that she has cancer. What does that mean for the film? For me, who had an alcoholic father, who had to leave his actor career, also because of that, this is a film I am looking forward to, indeed. Release May 2026.
And then, with so much pleasure for me, Virpi Suutari went to the stage, I am an admirer of her work, and her, due to her presence at the Magnificent7 film festival in Belgrade, where we saw “Garden Lovers” and “Once Upon a Time in the Forest”. Virpi has made her own production company, Euphoria Film, good name, why not… as in the latter she chooses, with “Crossing the River” that describes, according to Virpi, an environmental crime committed by a logger, who crossed the river with logs, causing, Virpi says, “massive damage to a river pearl mussel population”. The logger did his job for a forest company. A court case is coming up. Virpi will portray the loggers and present what is at stake: nature and man. Virpi tells stories in images, I am expecting another visual gem. Release March 2027.
And a flashback to Day One, this monday, mentioning a couple of projects that stood out. And let me also comment on the panelists around the table. Good to see so many from German ARD channels, connected to arte, to discover some – new for me – active ladies from SVT and NRK, well all the Nordic countries were represented and I hope for the pitching teams that they had good meetings in the afternoons. That contacts were made that can turn into some funding that they were all asking for.
“The Greatest Illusion” from Norway with Benjamin Ree, production company Medieoperatørene, Ingvil Giske and Danish coproducer Monica Hellström (Ström Pictures) could be called the highlight of the Forum 2025. The director stood behind “The remarkable Life of Ibelin” and “The Painter and the Thief”. About the latter, reviewed on this site, I wrote “…it’s a thriller about stolen art, a psychological drama, a love story, shot over years, with characters that develop, to say the least, a dramaturgy that breaks rules, with several twists, it’s lovely off mainstream documentary storytelling. I was hooked from start till end.” This is what I hope and expect from “The Greatest Illusion” that Ree presented in Malmõ, precise presentation, a lot of positive remarks from the so-called stakeholders, but as the representative from DR said, “I would like to take part but if Netflix comes in…” referring to the Ibelin-film that can be seen on Netflix. Let me quote what the new one is about, from the catalogue: … a magical and emotional journey about the illusionist Alexx Alexxander, known for his incredible skill and charisma, but behind the facade lies traumas and fading memories of his childhood. It all started when his mother disappeared… Lot of archive, family videos, including his siblings. The father is convicted for the murder. It’s tabloid stuff but Ree has shown his talent for making a creative and honest treatment of visual material. Release May 2027.
And finally the Finnish-Estonian co-production “Creaturama – Epic of the Animals” by Juha Suonpää, director and Liis Nimik, producer. Juha was at Baltic Sea Docs at the beginning of this month, won two awards for his pitch, one from Sheffield DocFest and the other from TV3 Group award so the film will be broadcast. The project is convincing and unique with animals “filming”, it can be magic as we saw with his “Lynx Man”, where cameras were placed on different stops in the forest, I think Juha said he has 20.000 or was it 200.000 clips that is to be put together into… that´s where, so to say, doctors disagree. Juha aims at a feature duration but less could do, I think, and/or, I was totally hooked with “Lynx Man” when it was shown in Belgrade at the Magnificent7. Sooo theatrical release of feature duration and shorter versions for television? Anyway, it’s a gem. Release November 2027.
That’s all. It was a good year with many films-to-be of high quality. Themes from the crazy world we live in and many projects that dig into family issues. All in a very polite and correct tone, perfect catalogue, perfect technique, have no idea of the individual meetings. We will hear from the pitchers I am sure.
