ARTE “Generation Ukraine” at DOKLeipzig/ 2

I was there in my armchair with my computer to follow the DOK Industry Talk yesterday afternoon about Generation Ukraine, “a new initiative by the ARTE Group aimed at supporting the Ukrainian filmmaking industry by co-producing 12 documentaries that explore Ukrainian reality in the throes of the ongoing war”, to quote the festival press release. I wanted to hear the visions behind 6 of the 12, including introductions and clips. Was looking forward for a long time as there were quite a lot of words from representatives of the ARTE group, but for once you got to see and hear the many commissioning editors behind the project that “… are financed by the ARTE group (ARTE France, ARTE GEIE and ARTE Germany), through co-productions or pre-sales, and in collaboration with the broadcaster’s European partners. Projects completed by autumn 2024 will be included in the ARTE Media Library. All films will be broadcast on ARTE at a later date…”. So patience was needed before the filmmakers came to the stage to present their works-in-progress. Unfortunately the technique failed a couple of times, black screen, so I did not get an impression of all 6 but two of them drew my attention:

“The Days I would Like to Forget”, directors Alina Gorlova, Yelizaveta Smith, Maksym Nakonechnyi, Simon Mozgovyi, production Eugene Rachkovsky, Maksym Nakonechnyi, Karina Kostyna (Tabor Films / UKR), Ralph Wieser (Mischief Films / GER), SWR / ARTE… SWR represented by Bernd Seidl, who was at Baltic Sea Docs this year and made a very strong impression with his comments. Eugene Rachkovsky and Maksym Nakonechnyi were there as well as veteran Austrian producer Ralph Wieser. Maksym Nakonechnyi is very well known for his strong feature “Butterfly Vision”, Alina Gorlova for her masterly done documentary “This rain will never Stop” – the upcoming film is a collective film, a triptych with the themes “Human and War”, “Death and Life” and “Space and Time”, festival versions in the coming three years and the tv version in 2026. From the site of Tabor “…different personal experiences combine a holistic collective one, showing war´s influence and presence on all levels of existence”. (PHOTO from Tabor website). The team showed a strong clip. I have high expectations… the same goes for

“Another Man’s Diary”, directors Oleksandr Tkachenko, Dmytro Dokunov, production Illia Gladshtein (Phalanstery films / UKR), BR / ARTE, that I knew in beforehand as it was pitched at the Baltic Sea Docs in Riga. Tkachenko and Gladshtein presented the film-to-be with Dokunov as the protagonist, “a soldier, pacifist, vegetarian” and cinematographer, who is filming himself and reflecting on whether he can keep his humanity. The clip that was also shown in Riga uses split screen, it’s a very exciting and original approach.

I would have loved to write about “The Blessed Ones” as well – director Andrii Lysetskyi, production Olha Beskhmelnytsina, Gennady Kofman, (MaGiKa-film / UKR), Uldis Cekulis (VFS Films / LAT), Erik Winker (Corso-Film / GER), MDR / ARTE with four contemporary artists, it was pitched in Riga 2022, it looked nice but there were many words but no subtitles… alas

Heidi Fleisher was the moderator saying that this was not a pitching session – well, all the presenters mentioned that they were looking for more funding, sales agents etc. so the pitching aspect was indeed there, fair enough and that will probably also be there at the 3-day workshop that starts today at the impressive MDR building in Leipzig. Good luck and Slava Ukraine.

DOKLeipzig: Panorama

”DOK Leipzig is opening a window on the world of Central and Eastern European cinema. The short and feature-length works presented here span the range from the socialist past through the times of upheaval to the present – personal, funny, dramatic, existential, lyrical or enigmatic, but always original and engaging.” Words from the site of the festival that started yesterday and runs until October 15. A focus of the festival has always been a look to the East – actually it was part of the East, I remember being there at the first edition “Nach der Wende” 1989/1990 together with my friend Andreas Steinmann and many thought that this would be the end of a festival that was very much run according to what was approved by the GDR government and cultural censorship. I remember that Danish documentary legend Jørgen Roos had made a film about Carl Nielsen, Danish composer, where a lot was shot in Israel… the film was selected because of its quality but the censorship went into action: No films from Israel!

Andreas and I had to hire a car to get home from the festival as the new situation – one united Germany also brought a train strike…

Back to 2023 and the program of 8 films in the Panorama, where I look forward to see Marianna Kaat’s “The Last Relic” described like this on the site: “Insights into the Russian opposition before the war in Ukraine. In the Yekaterinburg metropolis, only a few take to the streets against Putin. There is a lack of support – but not of courage.” Danish Jesper Osmund is the editor and talked enthusiastically about the collaboration with the Estonian documentary veteran at a workshop in Skopje this August.

And of course the beautiful, personal essay “Selfportrait Along the Borderline” by Georgian Anna Dziapsh-ipa is there, original in narration, full of humour, a winner at festivals that appreciate the art of documentary. (Photo).

Wish I was there, luckily I can watch several of the films from my armchair here in Copenhagen.

https://www.dok-leipzig.de/programm/filme?f%5B0%5D=section_film_finder_%3A5610&f%5B1%5D=section_film_finder_%3A5610

Arndt Ginzel: White Angel – The End of Marinka

It makes no sense for me to make a review of this shocking documentary from Hell on Earth with heroes, who literally drive from house to house to help the population be evacuated, mostly old people, convincing is needed for many of them, who do not want to leave, others leave with wounds from the shelling, others leave in black plastic bags… It’s what the Germans call a “Dokumentation”, war crimes documented, touching, sometimes unbearable to watch. I saw it online, when this is published the audience is gathered for the opening of DOKLeipzig. Here is what Christoph Terhechte, director of the festival wrote in the festival catalogue:

”The small town of Marinka lies in the Ukrainian Donetsk Oblast. Almost 10,000 people lived there, even though the town was under constant attack by pro-Russian separatists since 2014. When the war escalated in the spring of 2022, however, Marinka came under heavy artillery fire and practically all residents had to leave the town by September. The local police helped get them out. One of the policemen is Vasyl, the protagonist of this film. In a white van, soon christened the “white angel” by the population, he and his colleagues pull civilians out of the line of fire, recover the wounded and the dead. Vasyl’s helmet camera records the dramatic events of their missions: evacuating scared people from their cellars, first aid for the seriously injured, the hasty gathering of personal belongings, the painful and permanent partings.

Six months after the end of Marinka, the Leipzig-based investigative journalist Arndt Ginzel and his crew return to eastern Ukraine. They find the survivors, rescued persons and rescuers, and let them comment the action cam images. They speak of losses, of pain and grief, but also of hopes and dreams. “White Angel – The End of Marinka” is more than a film about war. It is a document of humanity and the longing for peace.”

Germany, 2023, 103 mins.

Fisher Stevens: Beckham

I could not leave it, the four part series on David Beckham, a superstar in football history, a businessman, one part of a celebrity couple, married to Victoria, one of the Spice Girls, nicknamed Posh Spice. It’s a well made, good, constantly entertaining story that Netflix presents with many layers going from the childhood of the boy, whose father pushed him forward, totally engaged with Manchester United, where David started his amazing career in 1991 (born1975) picked by (now Sir) Alex Ferguson, a father figure, who meant everything for him until the relationship broke in 2003 and he went to Real Madrid for four years.

David Beckham became an icon, he was good looking and was in the media for good and worse. He knew (knows) how to dress and change haircut, he and Victoria loved to be on the front pages until their children were born and the paparazzis followed them 24/7.

The film is built on interviews with the couple and when it comes to football, with – for a football idiot like me – lovely meetings with legends I have seen again and again, here they are pensioners looking back: Gary Neville, the right back, who was his true companion in ManU and on the national team of England, the charismatic Eric Cantona, Paul Scholes the midfielder by many characterised as the most underrated player of the team ever, Rio Ferdinand the defender who played more than a decade for ManU – and when he came to Madrid: lovely magnificent Brazilian Ronaldo, Luis Figo the traitor says the writer of this text, who is a Barca fan, fantastic Brazilian Roberto Carlos with whom Beckham had to compete on who to take the free kicks, one of the specialities of Beckham, who was also fantastic with corners and long shifts from the right side of the pitch to the left.

Football-wise there are at least two highlights that are described through archive from the matches and interviews/ comments from Beckham, who remembers from a sofa in his house in the English countryside: The World Cup match in 1998 between England and Argentina, where he got the red card (by Danish referee Kim Milton) for kicking down Diego Simeone, who had got him down with a tough tackle. The consequence of that (England lost the match) was that Beckham was hated for years – death threats, a bullet in an envelope, a loop outside a pub… In the series he says that this event has haunted him since then. Was a red card too much, Simeone is asked in the series. Yes he says, I did a good filming, with a smile, no regrets from the tough player, now coach for Atletico Madrid. The year after, in 1999, ManU won the treble with the 2-1 against Bayern Munich as a match that will never be forgotten. I was in a German airport waiting for a connecting plane, when the Germans was in the lead but Sheringham equalled and in the extended time Ole Gunnar Solskjær made the goal to 2-1. Was it within 10 minutes. In the film a wonderful receptionist of ManU tells how she could not stand to watch, leaving the sitting room to make coffee. Me in the airport did not dare to express my joy to see Oliver Kahn and company be beaten!

There are many side-characters in the series and people, who are there due to archive like Glen Hoddle, the fantastic technical West Ham player who became the national coach and put Beckham on the bench… Beckham who had always admired Hoddle as I did, and of course you almost get tears in your eyes when the series presents a couple of clips of the ManU player of all times, Bobby Charlton. Hoddle did not want to be in the series. Long sequences with Mum and Dad, nice they are, they talk with love about their David and about their disagreements – Mum thinks that Dad pushed David to much.

Beckham goes after Madrid to play in the US, his wife is happy, finds a house and schools for the kids, but the footballer gets a message from the then England coach, Italian Fabio Capello, who gives him the advice to return to Europe to play for AC Milan, to be fit for the National team again. He obeys. And gets a couple of matches to end with 115 for England.

I know that this text is focused on football leaving the tabloid stuff to the side – but it has to be said that the series deals massively with the constant hysterical British media pressure on the couple and Victoria Beckham makes an honest contribution to that story, on how she reacted when her husband followed his instinct and ambition to play more, win more, and go for a photo shoot with Beyoncé and Penelope Lopez the same day, where she was about to give birth to one more child! Now the series shows the still beautiful man in his late forties going to his beehives, play ball with one of the three boys, clean the kitchen, cook, show his wardrobe. A very well organized man. And a very well organized series that avoids any conflictual themes, sympathy all over. Fair enough. A must, at least for football lovers.

FOCUS ON UKRAINE at CinÉast in Luxembourg

In Luxembourg, from October 5-22, the Central and Eastern European Film Festival puts a focus on Ukraine. This is a copy-paste of the text related to that:

One of the key elements of the 2023 programme is the Focus on Ukraine – a choice that seemed self-evident to us in order to show our solidarity with the Ukrainian people, bring visibility to Ukrainian filmmakers and artists and give the festival audience additional contextual elements.

The programme of the Focus includes 11 feature films by Ukrainian filmmakers or dedicated to Ukraine: In the Rearview by Maciek Hamela (Opening Film), Stepne by Maryna Vroda (in competition), Rock.Paper.Grenade by Iryna Tsilyk, Forever-Forever by Anna Buryachkova, Eastern Front by Vitaly Mansky and Yevhen Titarenko, Mavka. The Forest Song by Oleg Malamuzh and Oleksandra Ruban (animated films for children), Hamlet Syndrome by Elwira Niewiera and Piotr Rosołowski, Motherland by Alexander Mihalkovich and Hanna Badziaka, Photophobia by Ivan Ostrochovský and Pavol Pekarčík, Dad by Anna Maliszewska and Victim by Michal Blaško.

Moreover, a special Ukrainian short films evening with recent shorts that provide some context on the current situation in Ukraine will be followed by the debate “Ukraine now” (Neimënster 19/10). Several Ukrainian guests will attend the festival and exchange with festival-goers – directors Iryna Tsilyk, Maryna Vroda and Yevhen Titarenko and producers Natalia Libet and Darya Bassel.

Ukraine will also be well represented in the accompanying programme. The festival’s Opening event will invite music lovers to the concert of the Ukrainian folk band Yagody (Melusina 7/10) that masterfully blends traditional songs and modern sounds. In addition, Ukrainian photographer Mykhaylo Palinchak participates in the main photography exhibition “Adaptations” with his project “Reality has become darker” and Ukraine is also the subject of some of the featured works by photographer Pasha Kritschko. The exhibition “Posters for Ukraine” installed at Ancien Cinéma Vianden presents 30 posters by artists from Ukraine and other countries reflecting the current conflict.

The festival also continues to run the CinEast4Ukraine charity project started last year with the aim of collecting funds to help those in need in Ukraine (see details here).

And finally, festival-goers will have several opportunities to try out some typical authentic Ukrainian dishes and snacksprepared by members of Luxembourg’s Ukrainian community (Opening event, Closing event, Ukrainian evening & more)

As a welcome gesture, CinEast also offers free access to festival screenings and to many special events to Ukrainian refugees residing in Luxembourg.

The Focus on Ukraine is organised with the support of and in collaboration with    LUkraine  and   Ukrainian Embassy

 

ARTE "Generation Ukraine" at DOKLeipzig

In this year’s edition, DOK Leipzig is presenting a DOK Industry Talk on Generation Ukraine, a new initiative by the ARTE Group aimed at supporting the Ukrainian filmmaking industry by co-producing 12 documentaries that explore Ukrainian reality in the throes of the ongoing war. 

The Talk, held on 10 October at 16:30 – 18:00 CEST, will present the ARTE initiative and showcase six of the projects with the participation of the film teams. The Talk will be moderated by documentary film producer and consultant Heidi Fleisher… read more

The ARTE Group and its European partners launched the project Generation Ukraine in a concerted effort to bolster the realisation and distribution of the Ukrainian film projects that have been conceived since the beginning of the Russian invasion and are in dire straits documenting the lasting impacts of the war on their country, its collective memory, land, and its people. The kick-off workshop of the Generation Ukraine project took place in Strasbourg in January 2023. From Wednesday, October 11th, a three-day workshop on “Generation Ukraine” will commence at the MDR headquarters in Leipzig.

Following the example of Generation Africa, which gave a platform for young African filmmakers across the continent to tell their stories and reach diverse audiences, ARTE is supporting 12 Ukrainian documentary projects in various stages of development, selected from some 30 high-quality submissions. The selected Ukrainian film projects are financed by the ARTE group (ARTE France, ARTE GEIE and ARTE Germany), through co-productions or pre-sales, and in collaboration with the broadcaster’s European partners. Projects completed by autumn 2024 will be included in the ARTE Media Library. All films will be broadcast on ARTE at a later date.

The Generation Ukraine project is one of many ARTE’s recent initiatives championing daring and uncompromising voices from Ukraine. One of them is the web series “Ukraine: The War from Within” where Ukrainian journalists offer “an authentic view of the East from the East.”

The following projects are participating in ARTE’s Generation Ukraine:

  • “Displaced”, director Olha Zhurba, production Darya Bassel (Moon Man / UKR), Anne Köhncke (Final cut for real / DK), ARTE France
  • “Basement 341”, director Roman Blazhan, production Roman Blazhan (Minimal Movies / UKR), Christilla Huillard-Kahn (Elda / FR), ARTE France
  • “Intercepted”, director Oksana Karpovych, production Giacomo Nudi (Films Cosmos / Canada), Darya Bassel (Moon Man / UKR), Pauline Tran Van Lieu (Hutong Prod. / FR), ARTE France
  • “Cuba & Alaska”, director Yegor Troyanovsky, production Olha Beskhmelnytsina(2Brave / UKR), Christian Popp (Tag Films / FR), ARTE France
  • “Queens of Joy”, director Olga Gibelinda, production Ivanna Khitsinska (Quatros Group & Malanka Studios / UKR), Louis Beaudemont (Les Steppes Productions / FR), ARTE GEIE
  • “The Days I would Like to Forget”, directors Alina Gorlova, Yelizaveta Smith, Maksym Nakonechnyi, Simon Mozgovyi, production Eugene Rachkovsky, Maksym Nakonechnyi, Karina Kostyna (Tabor Films / UKR), Ralph Wieser (Mischief Films / GER), SWR / ARTE
  • “Another Man’s Diary”, directors Oleksandr Tkachenko, Dmytro Dokunov, production Illia Gladshtein (Phalanstery films / UKR), BR / ARTE
  • “The Blessed Ones”, director Andrii Lysetskyi, production Olha Beskhmelnytsina, Gennady Kofman, (MaGiKa-film / UKR), Uldis Cekulis (VFS Films / LAT), Erik Winker (Corso-Film / GER), MDR / ARTE

 

  • “Nukemailing”, directors Pavel Cherepin, Anton Bazelinsky, production Heroes Creative Studio, Kyiv, DOCDAYS Productions GmbH, Berlin, RBB / ARTE

 

  • “A Bit of a Stranger”, director Svetlana Lischynska (Albatros / UKR), production Anna Kapustina; Alex Tondowski (Tondowski Film / GER), ZDF / ARTE

 

  • “Women Occupied”, directors Tetiana Hanza, Zoia Volk, production Zoia Volk,  Valentina Boye (Zova films / GER), Regina Maryanovska-Devidzon (Real Pictures, UKR), SWR / ARTE
  • “Silent Food”, director Dmytro Sukholytkyy-Sobchuk, production Karina Kostyna, Eugene Rachkovsky (Tabor / UKR), Tanja Georgieva-Waldhauer (Elemag Pictures / GER), MDR / ARTE

 

Marc Isaacs: This Blessed Plot

In 2007 Marc Isaacs made ”All White in Barking”, in 2020 “The Filmmaker’s House” and now “This Blessed Plot”. You should know, when reading this article that I am a big admirer of Isaacs having seen, loved and written about these three films. In many workshops and seminars we lucky mentors, who follow documentaries and documentarians always stress the importance of finding your own “handwriting”, your way of filmmaking, the “how” being much more important than the “what”. Form before content.

Marc Isaacs is a unique example of a filmmaker, who has found and developed his way of filmmaking outside the established British (television) formatted way of documentary storytelling. Together with Adam Ganz, who wrote the story, he has made “This Blessed Plot”, which has many layers and a beautiful way of dealing with Life and Death. With humour and compassion.

Here you will have my focus on the story that I enjoyed from start till end:

Lori is the smiling and curious young filmmaker, who comes to Thaxted, a town in Essex where the reverend Conrad Noel, a Christian socialist, was living – and was filmed in the ten minute long “Ripe Earth” from 1938 (https://eafa.org.uk/work/?id=2292)

The Red Priest, as he was called, talks to the Chinese young woman – and us the audience, who is introduced to the church and Christian Socialism in a sweet and loving tone that stays with the film the whole way through. Lori moves in with Maggie, who misses her deceased husband who is seen in archive material as an active dancer and accordion player during the feasts of the town. She talks to her teddy bears remembering Jim.

The most wonderful and charming meetings, however, are the ones between Keith Martin and Lori. A dedicated (an understatement) supporter of the football club Arsenal Keith has made a museum for his club in the house he lives in after leaving London. Keith was also in the two other films by Isaacs and he is a wonderful man, I would like to meet sharing his grief after the club missed the league championship they were about to win this year. “Beautiful football never dies”, Keith says in the film, I agree – as a fan of FC Barcelona (without a museum) and their coach Pep Guardiola. I am old enough to remember when the Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger was bringing glory to the club and know how patient and caring the coach was with Danish player Nicklas Bendtner, when he grew up in Arsenal. But that´s another story that comes to my mind meeting Keith again.

BUT the film is also about betrayal as Lori finds out – when Keith went to football, his good friend “Uncle” went to visit Sue, Keith’s late wife. She – appearing as a ghost – confesses that she has not been loyal – that word used – and “Uncle” is kicked out by Keith, when he has read Sue’s diaries. “Uncle”, who has been to jail, is now out with a bag full of money kept by Keith, who does not want to accept “Uncle”s suggestion to help cover his unpaid rent bills.

Lori observes with her camera and is being observed by Isaacs as the foreigner, representing us the viewers, getting into trouble, when she gets too close to Keith, you are a Jinx, he says to her… I don´t want to reveal the drama that unfolds in the small town of Thaxted, a divine place as we see in the film and in the 1938-film with the socialist priest Conrad Noel. A place, as mentioned, where also PPP shot some of his “Canterbury Tales”

Non-professional actors, a lovely story, told in a lovely unconventional way, emotional, sentimental in the good sense of the word, a dramatic comedy for a big audience I hope. And the music… by Gustav Holst who lived in Thaxted… contributing to the divine atmosphere!

UK, 2023, 75 mins.

CinéDoc Tbilisi Winners

In Batumi the CinéDoc Tbilisi performed their International Documentary Film Festival with a competition for Georgian long documentary films as well as short. Below you will find the jury motivations:

BEST FILM FEATURE LENGTH COMPETITION: THE NORTHEASTERN WINDS – DIRECTED BY NIKOLOZ BEZHANISHVILI
The filmmaker has, with his patient observation, managed to truly capture the end of an era. With great sensitivity and care, this film conveys the deeply human desire to feel connected, and the difficulty of letting go. Documentary film at its best has the ability to put us into the shoes of someone who thinks completely differently from us, and to understand and emphasize with them. And this is exactly what this film does. The prize of the best Georgian feature documentary goes to…. The Northeastern Winds.
SPECIAL JURY MENTION FEATURE LENGTH COMPETITION: SMILING GEORGIA – DIRECTED BY LUKA BERADZE 
This film throws us in the middle of some very absurd and funny situations, without ever portraying the protagonists in an undignified light. The filmmaker has found a local story to paint a universally recognizable picture of empty promises of those desiring power and fame, at the expense of those who are more disadvantaged. The special mention goes to…. Smiling Georgia
 
 
BEST FILM SHORT FILM COMPETITION: DREAM LAND – DIRECTED BY MARADIA TSAAVA
We were impressed by the quality of the short films’ selection, the diversity of themes, cinematic approach and the number of talented female directors that are emerging.
We’d like to recognize the quality of the Chai Khana production that is able to combine social issues and cinematic language with films that have a strong impact potential on the society.

Our award goes to a film that sets a personal and very intimate perspective that leads us to get to know a global issue. The youth generation is portrayed through the eyes of a young woman struggling to find her place in society.
The award goes to DREAM LAND by Maradia Tssava

SPECIAL JURY MENTION: TICK TOCK – DIRECTED BY NINIKO LEKISHVILI 
The special jury mention for original forms of storytelling and self-expression will go to Niniko Lekishvili for the film “Tick Tock”.

Nordisk Panorama Winners 2023

Winners – Nordisk Panorama Film Festival 2023
MALMÖ, Sweden — Today, Nordisk Panorama Film Festival proudly presents the winners of our 34th edition. The Awards Gala took place 26 September in Malmö City Hall.

Out of the 64 films selected to compete in our competition categories, 6 films were chosen for this year’s top prizes. Included in this announcement is the winner of the first Nordic Documentary Producer Award.

Keep reading for the full list of winners.
 
Best Nordic Documentary
Apolonia, Apolonia
Apolonia, Apolonia by Lea Glob
Apolonia, Apolonia, (Apolonia, Apolonia), Lea Glob,  116′ min, Denmark, 2022.
Motivation:
“For the best Nordic doc, we wanted to celebrate an exceptional movie that leans on one of the most precious documentary filmmaking resources: the use of time. It is an adorable movie, about life long friendship, about the sacrifices you have to make to express yourself in arts, and about dreams and plans that you stick to, wherever life takes you. The competition was full of surprises and really good filmmaking and movies, we ultimately singled out the one that will stay with us the longest, and this is the one that features a huge butt plug: Apolonia, Apolonia by Lea Glob.”

Synopsis:
When Apolonia Sokol was born her parents were in an underground theatre group in Paris and she grew up in an artists’ community—the ultimate bohemian existence. In her 20s, she studied at the Beaux-Arts de Paris, one of the most prestigious art academies in Europe. When Danish filmmaker Lea Glob first portrayed Apolonia in 2009, hers appeared to be a storybook life. Lea kept returning to film the charismatic Apolonia and a bond developed between the two young women.

About the director:

Lea Glob (born 1982, Denmark) entered The National Film School of Denmark in 2007, and graduated with her short film Meeting My Father Kasper Tophat (2011). In her films you often find strong women, and she uses both body and camera as a means of understanding our world. Apolonia, Apolonia is her debut as solo-director, and the film won the main award at IDFA 2022.
About the award:
The Best Nordic Documentary Award is presented to one of the 15 films selected for the competition. The award goes to the director(s) of the winning film.

Prize: The cash award of 11.000 € is sponsored by Nordic public broadcasters DR, NRK, RUV, SVT and YLE.

About the jury.
 
Honourable Mention
Hypermoon
Hypermoon by Mia Engberg
Hypermoon, (Hypermoon), Mia Engberg, 78′ min, Sweden, 2023.
Motivation:
“We want to start by giving a special mention to a very special film that had a huge personal impact. It was a film that for some of us, when it started, felt too close to the bone, but it left us feeling warm and energised. It was a powerful visualisation of feelings many of us not just dread, but struggle to face up to. A lesson in tackling some of life’s most difficult challenges. We are pleased and proud to award a special mention to Mia Engberg and her wonderful film, Hypermoon.”

Synopsis:
At the hospital, Mia, the film director, gets life-altering news. It prompts her to reflect back on her life. A former lover, Vincent the French ex-convict, finds her old film reels in his basement. Meanwhile, in a dream, a child astronaut philosophises alone in space on the fragility of existence.

About the director:
Mia Engberg (born 1970, Sweden) is a director and producer known for her cutting edge films that move between documentary and poetry. Her production Dirty Diaries – 12 shorts of feminist porn – gained international attention and Belleville Baby (2013) was awarded Best Documentary at the Swedish Film Awards. Mia is also author of the book The Visual Silenceand a base player in the band Vagina Grande.

About the jury.
 
Best Nordic Short Film
Norwegian Offspring
Norwegian Offspring by Marlene Emilie Lyngstad
Norwegian Offspring, (Norwegian Offspring), Marlene Emilie Lyngstad, 45′ min, Denmark, 2023.
Motivation:
“For a film that really unsettled us and stayed in our minds, creating much discussion between us about masculinity, outsider ideologies, lack of connection and warped intimacy, involving a very problematic, fascinating and well-acted protagonist. Well-shot and paced, this film didn’t make us notice its long running time. We unanimously award Norwegian Offspring by Marlene Emilie Lyngstad.”

Synopsis:
A mother passes away, and her estranged son, obsessed with theories about the repression of male sexuality in modern society, starts longing for offspring of his own.

About the director:
Marlene Emilie Lyngstad (born 1997, Norway) is a Norwegian/Danish director and scriptwriter. In her work she tries to evoke a conflicting mixture of empathy, disgust, humor and melancholy. She has acknowledged she’s an insignificant part of a larger incomprehensible plot, and is trying to deal with it by laughing and crying with seamless transitions.

About the award:
The Best Nordic Short Film Award is presented to one of the 23 films selected for the competition. The award goes to the director(s) of the winning film. The prize-winning film will qualify for consideration in the Short Film Category of the Academy Awards.

Prize:
The cash award of 5.000 € is sponsored by the association of Danish Film Directors and the Swedish Film Directors.

About the jury.
 
New Nordic Voice
The jury has decided to split the cash award of 5.000 €, sponsored by AVEK and Film i Skåne, between a documentary and a short film.
Under Construction
Under Construction by Markus Toivo
Under Construction, (Wanha Markku), Markus Toivo, 61′ min, Finland, 2023.
Motivation:
“Magnificently cinematic and poetic, this film opens the gate, both physical and metaphorical, on the silence and loneliness that endures between fathers and sons. At times so painful, and at others laugh out loud joyous. Markus Toivo gently leads us trough themes around masculinity, inter-generational trauma and the limitations of patriarchy in his brilliant film Wanha Markku.”

Synopsis:
Markku built a house for his family with his bare hands. Like a real man is meant to do, working hard from dawn to dusk so that his seven children would have a roof over their heads. But it was too much and Markku burned out. He felt he had to leave his family and disappear abroad.

About the director:
Markus Toivo (born 1992, Finland) has graduated from ECAM, the film school of Madrid, Spain, where he majored in film directing. Markus works both in fictional and documentary films. Under Construction (Wanha Markku) is his first feature length film.

About the award:
The New Nordic Voice Award introduces promising Nordic filmmakers. Their work has not previously been screened in the Nordisk Panorama Film Festival competition programme, and the selected films are among the first releases by the filmmaker.

About the jury.
 
New Nordic Voice
Prelude
Prelude by Arman Zafari
Prelude, (Murtuma), Arman Zafari, 19′ min, Finland, 2023.
Motivation:
“In a mere 19 minutes this fiction short made us jurors look deep within ourselves and what it means to strive for perfection. Perhaps it takes a young filmmaker to probe taboos around middle class motherhood. Fine lead performances in this beautifully structured film makes Arman Zafari’s Prelude an exciting new Nordic voice.”

Synopsis:
Helena is having an evening with her family when a stranger knocks at the door. A man confronts her with accusations about her perfect family. Helena drives the man away, but a seed of doubt has been planted.

About the director:
Arman Zafari (born 2001, Afghanistan) came to Finland in 2016 as a refugee and studies film directing at the Aalto University. Before moving to Finland, he lived in Iran as an undocumented migrant. Having spent most of his time at home with fear of deportation, he found a safe space with films. Prelude is his graduation film.

About the award:
The New Nordic Voice Award introduces promising Nordic filmmakers. Their work has not previously been screened in the Nordisk Panorama Film Festival competition programme, and the selected films are among the first releases by the filmmaker.

About the jury.
 
Nordic Documentary Producer Award
Stina Gardell
Stina Gardell, Sweden.

Motivation:
“With unique determination, tenacity and assurance, Stina Gardell has developed world class Swedish documentaries for years. With consistent artistic vision and penchant for tuning into what the audiences are interested in, she has created a strong signature brand. Stina has contributed immensely to the Swedish documentary field with films like I am Ingrid, The World’s Most Beautiful Boy and The Nun.”
About the director:
Stina Gardell is one of Sweden’s most meritorious documentary filmmakers, educated at the Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts, and with her own Stockholm-based company Mantaray Film as a base for a solid production of award-winning documentary films. Stina has produced 28 feature documentaries and co-produced 9, and has received a number of prestigious film awards e.g. Guldbaggen, Kristallen, Ikaros and Silverfjärilen.

About the award:
The Nordic Documentary Producer Award is our newest award category created to acknowledge the invaluable role of the producer within documentary filmmaking. One producer from each of the five Nordic countries has been nominated based on work completed within the previous five years.

Prize:
The cash award of 10.000 € is sponsored by Danish Producers’ Association, Virke Norwegian Producers Association, Audiovisual Producers Finland (APFI), the Finnish Documentary Guild, Filmproducenternas Rättighetsförening (FRF), and the Icelandic Filmmakers Association.
 
Young Nordic Award
Brouillarta
Brouillarta by Ingvild Søderlind
Brouillarta, (Brouillarta), Ingvild Søderlind, 15′ min, Norway, 2023.
Synopsis:
Elliot, a ten-year-old Norwegian, is spending summer with his grandparents in the Basque country in France. He struggles to fit in and feels different from his sharp-witted French cousins. In a mystical village amid brutal landscape, his anxiety grows. And who is Brouillarta?

About the director:
Ingvild Søderlind (born 1975, Norway) is a prizewinning director and scriptwriter. Her breakthrough short Jenny premiered in the 2011 Berlinale. Søderlind has directed films with young and strong female leads, often challenging the depiction of female sexuality and defying stereotypical conceptions. Søderlind has also made short films with her own children as actors, depicting, with a dark undertone, the complex love between siblings. Søderlind directs with an awareness of social status and living conditions, but portrays them with beauty and tenderness, often dreamy and subjective in its point of view.

About the award:
The 11 films in the Young Nordic programme compete for the love of our most critical audience. The festival’s youngest viewers are asked which of the films in this category they like the best, and the competition title with the most votes is then awarded.

Prize:
The cash award of 1.500 € is sponsored by Nordisk Panorama Film Festival and will be awarded in honour of BUFF, the International Children and Young People’s Film Festival in Malmö, as a celebration of their 40-year anniversary.
 
City of Malmö’s Audience Award
The Home Game
The Home Game by Smari Gunnarsson & Logi Sigursveinsson
The Home Game, (Heimaleikurinn), Smari Gunnarsson & Logi Sigursveinsson, 79′ min, Iceland, 2023.
Synopsis:
An impulsive Icelander wants to fulfil his father’s failed dream: to get their beloved fishing village a home game on the unused football pitch he built. A team of underdogs registers for a prestigious men’s tournament. The team includes a fisherman and his son, a church warden – and a mother of three. But when her inclusion threatens to disqualify them, a sequence of events produces an unlikely female hero.

About the directors:
Smari Gunnarsson (born 1985, Iceland) is an Icelandic writer and director, a self-proclaimed football specialist – who loves the game as well as finding the sense of humour in every good story. After receiving a BA training in European Theatre Arts, Smari began creating his own work and further honed his writing skills in the UK through initiatives at The NFTS and BFI Network. The Home Game, screening in competition at Nordisk Panorama, is Smari’s first feature length film.

Logi Sigursveinsson (born 1995, Iceland) studied screenwriting and directing at the Icelandic Film School. In 2018 his graduation film Bjarnarblus won best film at Northern Wave Film Festival in Iceland. Logi works freelance as a cinematographer, editor and vfx artist. The Home Game, screening in competition at Nordisk Panorama, is Logi’s first feature length film.

About the award:
To receive the City of Malmö’s Audience Award at Nordisk Panorama Film Festival is among the finest appreciations a filmmaker can get. The audience can vote for any of the Nordic short films and documentaries competing in the main competition programmes. The award goes to the director(s) of the winning film.

Prize:
The cash award of 2.500 € is sponsored by the City of Malmö.
 
 
 
 
 

Nordisk Panorama has announced its winners for the 30th edition of the festival. Here is a copy-paste of a well written and presented press release:

Winners – Nordisk Panorama Film Festival 2023
MALMÖ, Sweden — Today, Nordisk Panorama Film Festival proudly presents the winners of our 34th edition. The Awards Gala took place 26 September in Malmö City Hall.

Out of the 64 films selected to compete in our competition categories, 6 films were chosen for this year’s top prizes. Included in this announcement is the winner of the first Nordic Documentary Producer Award.

Keep reading for the full list of winners.
 
Best Nordic Documentary
Apolonia, Apolonia
Apolonia, Apolonia by Lea Glob
Apolonia, Apolonia, (Apolonia, Apolonia), Lea Glob,  116′ min, Denmark, 2022.
Motivation:
“For the best Nordic doc, we wanted to celebrate an exceptional movie that leans on one of the most precious documentary filmmaking resources: the use of time. It is an adorable movie, about life long friendship, about the sacrifices you have to make to express yourself in arts, and about dreams and plans that you stick to, wherever life takes you. The competition was full of surprises and really good filmmaking and movies, we ultimately singled out the one that will stay with us the longest, and this is the one that features a huge butt plug: Apolonia, Apolonia by Lea Glob.”

Synopsis:
When Apolonia Sokol was born her parents were in an underground theatre group in Paris and she grew up in an artists’ community—the ultimate bohemian existence. In her 20s, she studied at the Beaux-Arts de Paris, one of the most prestigious art academies in Europe. When Danish filmmaker Lea Glob first portrayed Apolonia in 2009, hers appeared to be a storybook life. Lea kept returning to film the charismatic Apolonia and a bond developed between the two young women.

About the director:

Lea Glob (born 1982, Denmark) entered The National Film School of Denmark in 2007, and graduated with her short film Meeting My Father Kasper Tophat (2011). In her films you often find strong women, and she uses both body and camera as a means of understanding our world. Apolonia, Apolonia is her debut as solo-director, and the film won the main award at IDFA 2022.
About the award:
The Best Nordic Documentary Award is presented to one of the 15 films selected for the competition. The award goes to the director(s) of the winning film.

Prize: The cash award of 11.000 € is sponsored by Nordic public broadcasters DR, NRK, RUV, SVT and YLE.

About the jury.
 
Honourable Mention
Hypermoon
Hypermoon by Mia Engberg
Hypermoon, (Hypermoon), Mia Engberg, 78′ min, Sweden, 2023.
Motivation:
“We want to start by giving a special mention to a very special film that had a huge personal impact. It was a film that for some of us, when it started, felt too close to the bone, but it left us feeling warm and energised. It was a powerful visualisation of feelings many of us not just dread, but struggle to face up to. A lesson in tackling some of life’s most difficult challenges. We are pleased and proud to award a special mention to Mia Engberg and her wonderful film, Hypermoon.”

Synopsis:
At the hospital, Mia, the film director, gets life-altering news. It prompts her to reflect back on her life. A former lover, Vincent the French ex-convict, finds her old film reels in his basement. Meanwhile, in a dream, a child astronaut philosophises alone in space on the fragility of existence.

About the director:
Mia Engberg (born 1970, Sweden) is a director and producer known for her cutting edge films that move between documentary and poetry. Her production Dirty Diaries – 12 shorts of feminist porn – gained international attention and Belleville Baby (2013) was awarded Best Documentary at the Swedish Film Awards. Mia is also author of the book The Visual Silenceand a base player in the band Vagina Grande.

About the jury.
 
Best Nordic Short Film
Norwegian Offspring
Norwegian Offspring by Marlene Emilie Lyngstad
Norwegian Offspring, (Norwegian Offspring), Marlene Emilie Lyngstad, 45′ min, Denmark, 2023.
Motivation:
“For a film that really unsettled us and stayed in our minds, creating much discussion between us about masculinity, outsider ideologies, lack of connection and warped intimacy, involving a very problematic, fascinating and well-acted protagonist. Well-shot and paced, this film didn’t make us notice its long running time. We unanimously award Norwegian Offspring by Marlene Emilie Lyngstad.”

Synopsis:
A mother passes away, and her estranged son, obsessed with theories about the repression of male sexuality in modern society, starts longing for offspring of his own.

About the director:
Marlene Emilie Lyngstad (born 1997, Norway) is a Norwegian/Danish director and scriptwriter. In her work she tries to evoke a conflicting mixture of empathy, disgust, humor and melancholy. She has acknowledged she’s an insignificant part of a larger incomprehensible plot, and is trying to deal with it by laughing and crying with seamless transitions.

About the award:
The Best Nordic Short Film Award is presented to one of the 23 films selected for the competition. The award goes to the director(s) of the winning film. The prize-winning film will qualify for consideration in the Short Film Category of the Academy Awards.

Prize:
The cash award of 5.000 € is sponsored by the association of Danish Film Directors and the Swedish Film Directors.

About the jury.
 
New Nordic Voice
The jury has decided to split the cash award of 5.000 €, sponsored by AVEK and Film i Skåne, between a documentary and a short film.
Under Construction
Under Construction by Markus Toivo
Under Construction, (Wanha Markku), Markus Toivo, 61′ min, Finland, 2023.
Motivation:
“Magnificently cinematic and poetic, this film opens the gate, both physical and metaphorical, on the silence and loneliness that endures between fathers and sons. At times so painful, and at others laugh out loud joyous. Markus Toivo gently leads us trough themes around masculinity, inter-generational trauma and the limitations of patriarchy in his brilliant film Wanha Markku.”

Synopsis:
Markku built a house for his family with his bare hands. Like a real man is meant to do, working hard from dawn to dusk so that his seven children would have a roof over their heads. But it was too much and Markku burned out. He felt he had to leave his family and disappear abroad.

About the director:
Markus Toivo (born 1992, Finland) has graduated from ECAM, the film school of Madrid, Spain, where he majored in film directing. Markus works both in fictional and documentary films. Under Construction (Wanha Markku) is his first feature length film.

About the award:
The New Nordic Voice Award introduces promising Nordic filmmakers. Their work has not previously been screened in the Nordisk Panorama Film Festival competition programme, and the selected films are among the first releases by the filmmaker.

About the jury.
 
New Nordic Voice
Prelude
Prelude by Arman Zafari
Prelude, (Murtuma), Arman Zafari, 19′ min, Finland, 2023.
Motivation:
“In a mere 19 minutes this fiction short made us jurors look deep within ourselves and what it means to strive for perfection. Perhaps it takes a young filmmaker to probe taboos around middle class motherhood. Fine lead performances in this beautifully structured film makes Arman Zafari’s Prelude an exciting new Nordic voice.”

Synopsis:
Helena is having an evening with her family when a stranger knocks at the door. A man confronts her with accusations about her perfect family. Helena drives the man away, but a seed of doubt has been planted.

About the director:
Arman Zafari (born 2001, Afghanistan) came to Finland in 2016 as a refugee and studies film directing at the Aalto University. Before moving to Finland, he lived in Iran as an undocumented migrant. Having spent most of his time at home with fear of deportation, he found a safe space with films. Prelude is his graduation film.

About the award:
The New Nordic Voice Award introduces promising Nordic filmmakers. Their work has not previously been screened in the Nordisk Panorama Film Festival competition programme, and the selected films are among the first releases by the filmmaker.

About the jury.
 
Nordic Documentary Producer Award
Stina Gardell
Stina Gardell, Sweden.

Motivation:
“With unique determination, tenacity and assurance, Stina Gardell has developed world class Swedish documentaries for years. With consistent artistic vision and penchant for tuning into what the audiences are interested in, she has created a strong signature brand. Stina has contributed immensely to the Swedish documentary field with films like I am Ingrid, The World’s Most Beautiful Boy and The Nun.”
About the director:
Stina Gardell is one of Sweden’s most meritorious documentary filmmakers, educated at the Stockholm Academy of Dramatic Arts, and with her own Stockholm-based company Mantaray Film as a base for a solid production of award-winning documentary films. Stina has produced 28 feature documentaries and co-produced 9, and has received a number of prestigious film awards e.g. Guldbaggen, Kristallen, Ikaros and Silverfjärilen.

About the award:
The Nordic Documentary Producer Award is our newest award category created to acknowledge the invaluable role of the producer within documentary filmmaking. One producer from each of the five Nordic countries has been nominated based on work completed within the previous five years.

Prize:
The cash award of 10.000 € is sponsored by Danish Producers’ Association, Virke Norwegian Producers Association, Audiovisual Producers Finland (APFI), the Finnish Documentary Guild, Filmproducenternas Rättighetsförening (FRF), and the Icelandic Filmmakers Association.
 
Young Nordic Award
Brouillarta
Brouillarta by Ingvild Søderlind
Brouillarta, (Brouillarta), Ingvild Søderlind, 15′ min, Norway, 2023.
Synopsis:
Elliot, a ten-year-old Norwegian, is spending summer with his grandparents in the Basque country in France. He struggles to fit in and feels different from his sharp-witted French cousins. In a mystical village amid brutal landscape, his anxiety grows. And who is Brouillarta?

About the director:
Ingvild Søderlind (born 1975, Norway) is a prizewinning director and scriptwriter. Her breakthrough short Jenny premiered in the 2011 Berlinale. Søderlind has directed films with young and strong female leads, often challenging the depiction of female sexuality and defying stereotypical conceptions. Søderlind has also made short films with her own children as actors, depicting, with a dark undertone, the complex love between siblings. Søderlind directs with an awareness of social status and living conditions, but portrays them with beauty and tenderness, often dreamy and subjective in its point of view.

About the award:
The 11 films in the Young Nordic programme compete for the love of our most critical audience. The festival’s youngest viewers are asked which of the films in this category they like the best, and the competition title with the most votes is then awarded.

Prize:
The cash award of 1.500 € is sponsored by Nordisk Panorama Film Festival and will be awarded in honour of BUFF, the International Children and Young People’s Film Festival in Malmö, as a celebration of their 40-year anniversary.
 
City of Malmö’s Audience Award
The Home Game
The Home Game by Smari Gunnarsson & Logi Sigursveinsson
The Home Game, (Heimaleikurinn), Smari Gunnarsson & Logi Sigursveinsson, 79′ min, Iceland, 2023.
Synopsis:
An impulsive Icelander wants to fulfil his father’s failed dream: to get their beloved fishing village a home game on the unused football pitch he built. A team of underdogs registers for a prestigious men’s tournament. The team includes a fisherman and his son, a church warden – and a mother of three. But when her inclusion threatens to disqualify them, a sequence of events produces an unlikely female hero.

About the directors:
Smari Gunnarsson (born 1985, Iceland) is an Icelandic writer and director, a self-proclaimed football specialist – who loves the game as well as finding the sense of humour in every good story. After receiving a BA training in European Theatre Arts, Smari began creating his own work and further honed his writing skills in the UK through initiatives at The NFTS and BFI Network. The Home Game, screening in competition at Nordisk Panorama, is Smari’s first feature length film.

Logi Sigursveinsson (born 1995, Iceland) studied screenwriting and directing at the Icelandic Film School. In 2018 his graduation film Bjarnarblus won best film at Northern Wave Film Festival in Iceland. Logi works freelance as a cinematographer, editor and vfx artist. The Home Game, screening in competition at Nordisk Panorama, is Logi’s first feature length film.

About the award:
To receive the City of Malmö’s Audience Award at Nordisk Panorama Film Festival is among the finest appreciations a filmmaker can get. The audience can vote for any of the Nordic short films and documentaries competing in the main competition programmes. The award goes to the director(s) of the winning film.

Prize:
The cash award of 2.500 € is sponsored by the City of Malmö.