Sex, a provocative and candid look at constricting gender roles by Norwegian director Dag Johan Haugerud, has won the Europa Cinemas Label as best European film in the Panorama section of the 2024 Berlin Film Festival.
Jan Gunnar Roise and Thorbjorn Harr star in Sex as two married and ostensibly heterosexual chimney sweeps whose experiences lead them to question their supposedly fixed sexual and gender identities. The film was a critical hit in Berlin, with The Hollywood Reporter comparing its “gentle subversiveness” of the male character study to Joachim Trier’s twist on the traditional rom-com in the Oscar-nominated The Worst Person in the World. [Coincidentally, Worst Person in the World breakout Renate Reinsve was one of the big stars of the Berlinale this year, with two films in competition.]
The Europa Cinemas jury praised Sex as “fresh, original, and, above all, great fun,” adding: “Yes, it is a talky film, but we feel strongly that the open...
Jan Gunnar Roise and Thorbjorn Harr star in Sex as two married and ostensibly heterosexual chimney sweeps whose experiences lead them to question their supposedly fixed sexual and gender identities. The film was a critical hit in Berlin, with The Hollywood Reporter comparing its “gentle subversiveness” of the male character study to Joachim Trier’s twist on the traditional rom-com in the Oscar-nominated The Worst Person in the World. [Coincidentally, Worst Person in the World breakout Renate Reinsve was one of the big stars of the Berlinale this year, with two films in competition.]
The Europa Cinemas jury praised Sex as “fresh, original, and, above all, great fun,” adding: “Yes, it is a talky film, but we feel strongly that the open...
- 2/23/2024
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Reykjavik International Film Festival (September 28-October 8) is planning a busy 20th edition, with honorary awards going to Isabelle Huppert, Luca Guadagnino, Vicky Krieps, Nicolas Philibert, Luc Jacquet and Catherine Breillat, who will all come to the Icelandic capital.
A delegation from Cannes will include Christian Jeune, head of the film department, Maud Amson, director of sales and operations at the Marché du Film, and Bruno Muñoz, head of short films.
The festival’s Industry Days (October 3-7) will explore topics like AI and animation for adults; social impact through films; festival and distribution strategies; French-Iceland co-productions; and an open talk...
A delegation from Cannes will include Christian Jeune, head of the film department, Maud Amson, director of sales and operations at the Marché du Film, and Bruno Muñoz, head of short films.
The festival’s Industry Days (October 3-7) will explore topics like AI and animation for adults; social impact through films; festival and distribution strategies; French-Iceland co-productions; and an open talk...
- 9/27/2023
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
The film was a standout title from Cannes’ Un Certain Regard line-up in 2022.
Hlynur Palmason’s Cannes Un Certain Regard 2022 standout Godland will be the Icelandic contender in the 2024 Oscar race for best international feature.
The film also played at Telluride and Toronto 2022. In the US, Janus Films handled the theatrical release in early 2023, followed by a Criterion Channel streaming premiere.
Godland is produced by Katrin Pors, Eva Jakobsen and Mikkel Jersin of Denmark’s Snowglobe and Anton Máni Svansson of Iceland’s Join Motion Pictures. The companies previously collaborated on A White, White Day (also Iceland’s Oscar submission...
Hlynur Palmason’s Cannes Un Certain Regard 2022 standout Godland will be the Icelandic contender in the 2024 Oscar race for best international feature.
The film also played at Telluride and Toronto 2022. In the US, Janus Films handled the theatrical release in early 2023, followed by a Criterion Channel streaming premiere.
Godland is produced by Katrin Pors, Eva Jakobsen and Mikkel Jersin of Denmark’s Snowglobe and Anton Máni Svansson of Iceland’s Join Motion Pictures. The companies previously collaborated on A White, White Day (also Iceland’s Oscar submission...
- 9/12/2023
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
Joe Cole has been announced as joining the cast of a new psychological horror from award-winning director Thordur Palsson, ‘The Damned.’
Joining Cole and previously announced Odessa Young on the cast are Siobhan Finneran, Rory McCann (Game of Thrones, Slow West), Turlough Convery (Killing Eve, Belfast), Lewis Gribben (Somewhere Boy, Deadwater Fell), Francis Magee (Kin, The Tourist), Mícheál Óg Lane (The Guard, Calvary) and Andrean Sigurgeirsson (A Song Called Hate).
The horror follows Eva, a 19th-century widow who is tasked with making an impossible choice when, in the middle of an especially cruel winter, a ship sinks off the coast of her isolated fishing post. Eva and her crew must choose to either rescue the shipwrecked or survive the winter with their last remaining food. Facing the consequences of their choice and tormented by their guilt, the inhabitants wrestle with a mounting sense of dread and begin to believe they...
Joining Cole and previously announced Odessa Young on the cast are Siobhan Finneran, Rory McCann (Game of Thrones, Slow West), Turlough Convery (Killing Eve, Belfast), Lewis Gribben (Somewhere Boy, Deadwater Fell), Francis Magee (Kin, The Tourist), Mícheál Óg Lane (The Guard, Calvary) and Andrean Sigurgeirsson (A Song Called Hate).
The horror follows Eva, a 19th-century widow who is tasked with making an impossible choice when, in the middle of an especially cruel winter, a ship sinks off the coast of her isolated fishing post. Eva and her crew must choose to either rescue the shipwrecked or survive the winter with their last remaining food. Facing the consequences of their choice and tormented by their guilt, the inhabitants wrestle with a mounting sense of dread and begin to believe they...
- 4/28/2023
- by Zehra Phelan
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
In anticipation of the upcoming 95th Academy Awards, I conversed with Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson, whose sophomore film Beautiful Beings is Iceland’s official submission in consideration for the Best International Feature Category. The director shares thoughts on origins, inspirations, casting and his rehearsal process working with first time child actors. Having premiered his latest work at the Venice Film Festival’s Orizzonti program, Guðmundsson muses on his interests in mining the sometimes tragic and often devastating reality of preadolescence in a world of preoccupied and detached adults. Here is our conversation:
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- 4/25/2023
- by Nicholas Bell
- IONCINEMA.com
İlker Çatak’s The Teachers‘ Lounge, a German drama set in a primary school, has won the Europa Cinemas Label as Best European film in the Panorama section of the 2023 Berlin International Film Festival.
Leonie Benesch (Babylon Berlin, Around the World in 80 Days) stars in The Teacher’s Lounge as an idealistic and ambitious young teacher who finds herself at odds with fellow teachers, parents and an inflexible and frustrating bureaucracy. Leonard Stettnisch, Eva Löbau, Michael Klammer, Anne-Kathrin Gummich, Kathrin Wehlisch, Uygar Tamer, and Özgür Karadeniz co-star.
“The film explores key subjects like the prevalence of bureaucracy in schools and issues of race and class, but above all it is a compelling rollercoaster of a drama,” the Europa Cinemas jury said in a statement.
The Europa Cinemas prize is backed the Europa Cinemas theatre network, an association of independent theater owners, representing more than 3,000 screens in over 700 cities across Europe,...
Leonie Benesch (Babylon Berlin, Around the World in 80 Days) stars in The Teacher’s Lounge as an idealistic and ambitious young teacher who finds herself at odds with fellow teachers, parents and an inflexible and frustrating bureaucracy. Leonard Stettnisch, Eva Löbau, Michael Klammer, Anne-Kathrin Gummich, Kathrin Wehlisch, Uygar Tamer, and Özgür Karadeniz co-star.
“The film explores key subjects like the prevalence of bureaucracy in schools and issues of race and class, but above all it is a compelling rollercoaster of a drama,” the Europa Cinemas jury said in a statement.
The Europa Cinemas prize is backed the Europa Cinemas theatre network, an association of independent theater owners, representing more than 3,000 screens in over 700 cities across Europe,...
- 2/25/2023
- by Scott Roxborough
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s dreamy “Beautiful Beings,” which is Iceland’s entry for the Oscars this year, is about what used to be called juvenile delinquents; it observes a group of boys with little or ineffectual parental supervision as they test each other and comfort each other and get into trouble. The pace is languorous, and the Icelandic settings are so lovely that the problems the boys have tend to seem less important or troubling than they should.
Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason) lives in what is described by the other boys as a “bum’s house,” but the red and blue exterior of his home is gorgeous, and though the inside isn’t too clean, the soft light coming from the windows and the swaying curtains in the breeze make it look inviting. Balli is being bullied at school, and a boy hits him in the face with a burned tree branch,...
Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason) lives in what is described by the other boys as a “bum’s house,” but the red and blue exterior of his home is gorgeous, and though the inside isn’t too clean, the soft light coming from the windows and the swaying curtains in the breeze make it look inviting. Balli is being bullied at school, and a boy hits him in the face with a burned tree branch,...
- 1/20/2023
- by Dan Callahan
- The Wrap
Four young boys come of age in Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s textured yet maudlin kitchen-sink drama Beautiful Beings. Guðmundsson’s sophomore feature (and Iceland’s Oscar submission) oddly mashes together the bleak nihilism of a Larry Clark feature with flashes of magical realism, never really synthesizing the two competing styles. While compelling in individual scenes, especially as the boys navigate their increased anger at the world, Beautiful Beings ultimately whiplashes between too many ideas and subplots to create a coherent thematic through line.
We begin following Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason), a young boy who is brutally bullied at school. After a particularly violent incident in which he is beaten with a tree branch, he makes the local news and is forced to wear a face mask to cover up his injuries. At this point the narrative switches to Addi (Birgir Dagur Bjarkason), the one who assaulted Balli. Addi takes an interest in the quiet boy,...
We begin following Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason), a young boy who is brutally bullied at school. After a particularly violent incident in which he is beaten with a tree branch, he makes the local news and is forced to wear a face mask to cover up his injuries. At this point the narrative switches to Addi (Birgir Dagur Bjarkason), the one who assaulted Balli. Addi takes an interest in the quiet boy,...
- 1/18/2023
- by Christian Gallichio
- The Film Stage
Legal docudrama Saint Omer was voted Best Picture at the 34th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival, which announced this year’s juried award winners today.
Saint Omer wins for its ability “to expertly interrogate issues of society, culture, race, and gender,” the festival release stated. “Alice Diop, as screenwriter and director, delivers a film that explores different dynamics of Black women in contemporary France, drawing empathetic lead performances from Kayije Kagame and Guslagie Malanga. By harnessing the skills of her technical team, Diop turns Saint Omer into a shrewd, cogent, ambitious, and overwhelming film which teases a metafictional awareness while remaining clear-eyed and unsentimental.”
The Palm Springs festival took place from January 5-16 and screened 134 films from 64 countries, including 27 premieres. The lineup includes 35 of the International Feature Film Oscar submissions.
The jury award categories included the Fipresci Prize for films...
Saint Omer wins for its ability “to expertly interrogate issues of society, culture, race, and gender,” the festival release stated. “Alice Diop, as screenwriter and director, delivers a film that explores different dynamics of Black women in contemporary France, drawing empathetic lead performances from Kayije Kagame and Guslagie Malanga. By harnessing the skills of her technical team, Diop turns Saint Omer into a shrewd, cogent, ambitious, and overwhelming film which teases a metafictional awareness while remaining clear-eyed and unsentimental.”
The Palm Springs festival took place from January 5-16 and screened 134 films from 64 countries, including 27 premieres. The lineup includes 35 of the International Feature Film Oscar submissions.
The jury award categories included the Fipresci Prize for films...
- 1/15/2023
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
Beautiful Beings (Berdreymi) is an Icelandic film written and directed by Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson starring Birgir Dagur Bjarkason, Áskell Einar Pálmason and Viktor Benóný Benediktsson.
Premise
A teenage boy, raised by a mother who considers herself psychic, takes a bullied kid into his group of violent misfits. As the group’s troubles escalate toward life-threatening situations, an inner voice awakens in the boy and, with the help of his mother and his new friend, he manages to find his own path.
Release Date
January 13, 2023 (United States)
Beautiful Beings (2022) Director
Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
The director graduated with a degree in fine art and then studied screenwriting. His short films have been presented at numerous festivals including Cannes and Venice. His debut feature Heartstone premiered in the Venice Days Competition in 2016 and went on to receive over 50 international awards.
Cast
Birgir Dagur Bjarkason / Addi
Áskell Einar Pálmason / Balli
Viktor Benóný Benediktsson / Konni...
Premise
A teenage boy, raised by a mother who considers herself psychic, takes a bullied kid into his group of violent misfits. As the group’s troubles escalate toward life-threatening situations, an inner voice awakens in the boy and, with the help of his mother and his new friend, he manages to find his own path.
Release Date
January 13, 2023 (United States)
Beautiful Beings (2022) Director
Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
The director graduated with a degree in fine art and then studied screenwriting. His short films have been presented at numerous festivals including Cannes and Venice. His debut feature Heartstone premiered in the Venice Days Competition in 2016 and went on to receive over 50 international awards.
Cast
Birgir Dagur Bjarkason / Addi
Áskell Einar Pálmason / Balli
Viktor Benóný Benediktsson / Konni...
- 1/2/2023
- by Movies Martin Cid Magazine
- Martin Cid Magazine - Movies
Iceland’s Oscar© 2023 Submission for Best International Feature: ‘Beautiful Beings’ by Guðmundur Arnar GuðmundssonA teenage boy adopts a bullied misfit into his gang of outsiders. Left to their own devices, the boys explore aggression and violence but also learn about loyalty and love. As their behavior escalates towards life-threatening situations, one, Addi, raised by a clairvoyant mother, begins to experience a series of dreamlike visions which tentatively pull him back from the edge as the film takes us on a path filled with danger.
Watching this film, I was inevitably drawn back in time to 1991 when my friend and contemporary, the Icelandic director Fridrick Thor Fridrickson was nominated for the Academy Award for Children of Nature, the only Icelandic film ever nominated for Best Foreign Language Film. It was the first of six of his films submitted to the Academy, more than any other Icelandic director.
(Ágúst Guðmundsson, Baltasar Kormákur and Hrafn Gunnlaugsson have each represented Iceland four times. In 1990, Guðný Halldórsdóttir became the first Icelandic woman to represent the country.)
Perhaps those were simpler days. Fridrickson’s growing up in the 60s and making making movies in the 90s gave him a different outlook. Fridriksson’s films have a strong rooting in Icelandic culture and often depict characters at the crossroads of tradition and modernity. Guðmundsson‘s characters are at crossroads as well, but more of dismal modernity and the chaos we feel today as possible future scenario for us all. As for Icelandic culture: if this is a sample of Icelandic culture then to compare the two films is like trying to bridge an abyss one never dreamed existed in Iceland. Guðmundsson says that he and his childhood friends come from normal working-class families. But the culture is less that of Iceland than of worldwide working class alienation from the bourgeois culture shown in Fridricksonn’s films.
Fridriksson’s films combine a wry sense of humor and genuine solidarity with the characters. Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson also has a genuine solidarity with the characters and there is a sarcastic humor, less subtle and less kind. Both Guðmundsson’s and Fridriksson’s films are deeply personal.
The four boys in Beautiful Beings form a tight unit of themselves against the world. There’s a real camaraderie and their ensemble acting is a winning combination. Friendship and confused emotions, raw notions of manhood and tender acts of kindness mix enough to keep you watching as you fear for these young men. Spoiler Alert: At the end, only two end up happier and wiser for all they have gone through, and the process of the four coming to grips with the grim lives they and their parents live is sometimes excruciating to watch.
The prevalent emotion is horror, not as in a horror movie, but as in seeing real life at such a low denominator. One must ask, does this show what has happened in Iceland over the past 50 years since Children of Nature?
That said, perhaps audiences have also become more inured than I to such raw scenarios as testified by the fact that the film has won top honors and has earned positive reviews.
In the Berlin Film Festival 2022 it won Europa Cinemas Label prize as best European film in the Panorama section. It also screened in Karlovy Vary International Film Festival — Horizons, Transilvania International Film Festival — Competition, Guadalajara International Film Festival — Premio Maguey Competition, Istanbul Film Festival and in
Biografilm Festival 2022 where it won the Italian Critics Sncci Award. In
Off Camera International Festival of Independent Cinema it won Fipresci Jury Award and in the Taipei Film Festival it won the International New Talent Competition Special Jury Prize.
Watch the official trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFIhZsQhy_4
The film is very well-done. The many shots of hands — wringing, trembling, bloody, acting as signs of the emotional states of its inarticulate characters is a smart device. The boys themselves at the transitional age between boyhood and manhood were well chosen. I would be happier with less visually dark scenes where I could barely make out the outlines of people or shapes.
Let’s hear what Gudmunson has to say about the place of this film in his own development and in cinematic traditions today and this second feature shows promise of a shining career. The film is in a direct line of descendency with those coming of age films of directors such as Rob Reiner, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Larry Clark, Alfonso Cuaron and Gus Van Sant.
As I was exploring stories to write for my second feature film, certain dreams haunted me and did not stop until I started writing this story. On top of that, in my family, the belief in meaningful dreams and supernatural senses.
Beings brings up the questions: What is true friendship? Can boys who seem like bad influences still be good friends? And finally, how do you find your own path? What is the importance of listening to one’s intuition?
As a filmmaker my hope is to give the audience an authentic sensation of being a teenager. We should experience the boys’ world like we are there with them. I love the visual and poetic aspects of film and I am a strong believer in the importance of the stories we tell. I went into filmmaking because I aspired to move people and enrich their senses, like many great films have done for me. I hope that Beautiful Beings also does that for some, with a story about friendship, the importance of role models, self-acceptance and intuition.
How did you find your actors?
We have no professional actors within this age range, in Iceland, therefore we start by inviting kids over the whole country to an open casting. Then slowly we narrow our selection down to the final group. This is done approximately a year before the principal shooting. After we have our group of kids we invite them for an acting workshop where we teach them the basics of acting before introducing them to their characters and the script. We set it up in small steps alongside their school as it is important that it become an enjoyable experience and they can grow as actors before having too much responsibility placed on them. When it comes to the principle shooting they are all very well prepared.
You have dealt with boys and the passage to adulthood in all four of your films, will you continue to explore this or are you looking at other themes?
Childhood and adolescence is a very interesting period as they can be almost in another world than adults. I remember thinking as a kid that grown ups around me had little idea what was really going on in my and — friends’ lives. I know I want to tell more stories related to young people but that doesn’t exclude stories with adults. Right now I want to explore the supernatural element further that I touch on in Beautiful Beings. I have a certain dream project, fairytale and hope to have the opportunity soon to bring it to an audience.
What happens to you in the process of writing and producing?
I work very intuitively when I write and direct. It is always a balance between structure and exploration. Filmmaking has so many layers of storytelling, emotion, visuals, sound and telling a good story with all the elements is very important to me. Then it is the whole collaborative part where you have amazing talents supporting the process. I enjoy the shooting process the most, the bubble that you enter and the creative collaborations.
What happens to you between films?
I have a production company called Join Motion Picture that I co-founded and own with my long time associate. So when I am not working on my own projects I’m developing or producing the projects of others.
What do you consider your strongest attribute as a director?
The ability to turn obstacles into opportunities. I truly believe problems are just another side of opportunities and if I keep going with that mentality I always find myself in a good place at the end.
Where do you feel least assured?
I find it a bit limiting not being able to communicate as clearly with my composer as I can with other creative partners. I never studied instruments as a kid so technically I am limited. Still on the other side it is also a bit exciting as that forces me to let go more and become more open to different outcomes that can be very pleasant.
Title — Beautiful Beings
Country — Iceland
Director — Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
Screenwriter — Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
Cinematography — Sturla Brandth Grøvlen
Editor — Andri Steinn Gudjónsson, Anders Skov
Original Music — Kristian Eidnes Andersen
Producer — Join Motion Pictures
Starring — Birgir Dagur Bjarkason, Áskell Einar Pálmason, Viktor Benóný Benediktsson, Snorri Rafn Frímannsson, Aníta Briem, Ísgerður Gunnarsdóttir, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson
International Sales — New Europe Film Sales
US Distributor — Altered Innocence
Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson graduated in Fine Art and studied screenwriting. His short films and feature debut have been showcased and awarded in numerous festivals. Among these accolades are Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival and a nomination for the European Film Awards. His debut feature “Heartstone” premiered in the Venice Days Competition in 2016 and ended up collecting over 50 awards worldwide.
Filmography
2022 Beautiful Beings (123min)
2016 Heartstone (129min)
2014 Artun (20min)
2013 Whale Valley (15 Min)
Produced
2019 A White,White Day (109 min, Executive Producer, Join Motion Pictures) 2019 Sealskin (13 min, Executive Producer, Join Motion Pictures)
2016 Heartstone (129 min, Sf studio & Join Motion Pictures)
Selected Review Excerpts
“An Icelandic Coming-of-Age Tale Radiant with Violence and Tenderness.”
“Boasts an outstanding juvenile ensemble cast.”
“Ravishing.”
“Subtle, underplayed edge of magic realism.”
“There is a freshness and an inhabited vibrancy that makes this painful coming of age story feel exactly its own.”
“A story told poetically, impressionistically, through sun-flare and cigarette smoke and the somehow heartbreaking details.”
“Tenderness that breaks through the veneer of toughness.”
“Captivating, even when… brutal.”
Jessica Kiang — Variety
“Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson’s sophomore Icelandic feature finds tenderness in a cruel adolescent world”
“The impressive second feature from Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson confronts the feral cruelty and violence of children on the cusp of adulthood, but finds also a tenderness amid the sharp edges and posturing”
“Gudmundsson clearly has strong instincts for casting and a knack for coaxing nuanced performances from young actors”
Wendy Ide — Screendaily
A story about growing up, friendship and survival, but also a portrait of overwhelming moral decay and neglect, Beautiful Beings confirms 40-year-old Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s talent as a sharp and sensitive director with a knack for conveying strong emotions through tiny brushstrokes, much like the great affection hiding behind these four bullish protagonists’ small gestures, without ever sliding into superfluous cruelty.
Vittoria Scarpa — Cineuropa
“A sensitively told tale of healing and growth.”
“Gently dissects various performances of masculinity.”
“Plenty of surprises in store for the audience.”
“Admirably sensitive and affirming.”
“A moving tale of friendship and recovery, despite all the sadness and trauma that run through it.”
“Guðmundsson portrays this co-existence of masculine aggression and soothing tenderness with vivid, richly textured images. The camera frequently gets very close to the characters, catches their most minute glances or gestures, and emphasizes the luminous nature that surrounds them.”
Eren Odabaşı — ICSFilm.org
“Beautiful Beings is the latest triumph from (…) Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson, whose distinctive lyrical style makes him one of the most impressive talents on the international indie film scene.”
“The director avoids simplistic solutions in a subtle narrative that uses its ample running time to explore every single chink of the boys’ developing personalities and how they react with each other.”
“Silver Bear awarded DoP Starla Brandth Grovlen (Victoria) works wonders with his camera”
Filmuforia
“A compelling mix of warmth and darkness that will shake you up before it will melt your heart”
“Beautiful Beings takes on the glamour and the anxieties that define teenagehood”
“As humanistic as it is unsettling.”
“Much of the film’s raw effectiveness is due to the young cast’s wisdom and effortless on-screen chemistry.”
“There is honesty to the central performances that endears the boys to the viewers”
“(Beautiful Beings) focuses on delivering a unique presentation — impressionistic imagery and gentle nods at magical realism complement a more grounded, down-to-earth aesthetic; neither style dominates, rather, they converse and flirt with one another.”
Eye For Film
“an affecting coming-of-age melodrama that gently dissects various performances of masculinity”
“Beautiful Beings gradually evolves into an unexpectedly sensual and dreamlike (and often nightmarish) experience with plenty of surprises in store for the audience”
“At its core, this is a moving tale of friendship and recovery”
“Guðmundsson portrays this co-existence of masculine aggression and soothing tenderness with vivid, richly textured images”
“this lovely Icelandic drama turns into a sensitively-told tale of healing and growth in Guðmundsson’s capable hands”
Ics Films, USA
“Its premise seems to lean heavily on familiar tropes, but the magic is in the execution.”
“Director Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson has delivered a film with a distinctive freshness, and a grimly compelling plausibility”
“There’s a real camaraderie amongst the young cast, with the strength of the writing combining with the actors’ characterisations to ensure that the roles all seem like fully realised people”
“intelligent and confident, and more than a bit unsettling in places”
The Upcoming...
Watching this film, I was inevitably drawn back in time to 1991 when my friend and contemporary, the Icelandic director Fridrick Thor Fridrickson was nominated for the Academy Award for Children of Nature, the only Icelandic film ever nominated for Best Foreign Language Film. It was the first of six of his films submitted to the Academy, more than any other Icelandic director.
(Ágúst Guðmundsson, Baltasar Kormákur and Hrafn Gunnlaugsson have each represented Iceland four times. In 1990, Guðný Halldórsdóttir became the first Icelandic woman to represent the country.)
Perhaps those were simpler days. Fridrickson’s growing up in the 60s and making making movies in the 90s gave him a different outlook. Fridriksson’s films have a strong rooting in Icelandic culture and often depict characters at the crossroads of tradition and modernity. Guðmundsson‘s characters are at crossroads as well, but more of dismal modernity and the chaos we feel today as possible future scenario for us all. As for Icelandic culture: if this is a sample of Icelandic culture then to compare the two films is like trying to bridge an abyss one never dreamed existed in Iceland. Guðmundsson says that he and his childhood friends come from normal working-class families. But the culture is less that of Iceland than of worldwide working class alienation from the bourgeois culture shown in Fridricksonn’s films.
Fridriksson’s films combine a wry sense of humor and genuine solidarity with the characters. Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson also has a genuine solidarity with the characters and there is a sarcastic humor, less subtle and less kind. Both Guðmundsson’s and Fridriksson’s films are deeply personal.
The four boys in Beautiful Beings form a tight unit of themselves against the world. There’s a real camaraderie and their ensemble acting is a winning combination. Friendship and confused emotions, raw notions of manhood and tender acts of kindness mix enough to keep you watching as you fear for these young men. Spoiler Alert: At the end, only two end up happier and wiser for all they have gone through, and the process of the four coming to grips with the grim lives they and their parents live is sometimes excruciating to watch.
The prevalent emotion is horror, not as in a horror movie, but as in seeing real life at such a low denominator. One must ask, does this show what has happened in Iceland over the past 50 years since Children of Nature?
That said, perhaps audiences have also become more inured than I to such raw scenarios as testified by the fact that the film has won top honors and has earned positive reviews.
In the Berlin Film Festival 2022 it won Europa Cinemas Label prize as best European film in the Panorama section. It also screened in Karlovy Vary International Film Festival — Horizons, Transilvania International Film Festival — Competition, Guadalajara International Film Festival — Premio Maguey Competition, Istanbul Film Festival and in
Biografilm Festival 2022 where it won the Italian Critics Sncci Award. In
Off Camera International Festival of Independent Cinema it won Fipresci Jury Award and in the Taipei Film Festival it won the International New Talent Competition Special Jury Prize.
Watch the official trailer:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFIhZsQhy_4
The film is very well-done. The many shots of hands — wringing, trembling, bloody, acting as signs of the emotional states of its inarticulate characters is a smart device. The boys themselves at the transitional age between boyhood and manhood were well chosen. I would be happier with less visually dark scenes where I could barely make out the outlines of people or shapes.
Let’s hear what Gudmunson has to say about the place of this film in his own development and in cinematic traditions today and this second feature shows promise of a shining career. The film is in a direct line of descendency with those coming of age films of directors such as Rob Reiner, Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, Larry Clark, Alfonso Cuaron and Gus Van Sant.
As I was exploring stories to write for my second feature film, certain dreams haunted me and did not stop until I started writing this story. On top of that, in my family, the belief in meaningful dreams and supernatural senses.
Beings brings up the questions: What is true friendship? Can boys who seem like bad influences still be good friends? And finally, how do you find your own path? What is the importance of listening to one’s intuition?
As a filmmaker my hope is to give the audience an authentic sensation of being a teenager. We should experience the boys’ world like we are there with them. I love the visual and poetic aspects of film and I am a strong believer in the importance of the stories we tell. I went into filmmaking because I aspired to move people and enrich their senses, like many great films have done for me. I hope that Beautiful Beings also does that for some, with a story about friendship, the importance of role models, self-acceptance and intuition.
How did you find your actors?
We have no professional actors within this age range, in Iceland, therefore we start by inviting kids over the whole country to an open casting. Then slowly we narrow our selection down to the final group. This is done approximately a year before the principal shooting. After we have our group of kids we invite them for an acting workshop where we teach them the basics of acting before introducing them to their characters and the script. We set it up in small steps alongside their school as it is important that it become an enjoyable experience and they can grow as actors before having too much responsibility placed on them. When it comes to the principle shooting they are all very well prepared.
You have dealt with boys and the passage to adulthood in all four of your films, will you continue to explore this or are you looking at other themes?
Childhood and adolescence is a very interesting period as they can be almost in another world than adults. I remember thinking as a kid that grown ups around me had little idea what was really going on in my and — friends’ lives. I know I want to tell more stories related to young people but that doesn’t exclude stories with adults. Right now I want to explore the supernatural element further that I touch on in Beautiful Beings. I have a certain dream project, fairytale and hope to have the opportunity soon to bring it to an audience.
What happens to you in the process of writing and producing?
I work very intuitively when I write and direct. It is always a balance between structure and exploration. Filmmaking has so many layers of storytelling, emotion, visuals, sound and telling a good story with all the elements is very important to me. Then it is the whole collaborative part where you have amazing talents supporting the process. I enjoy the shooting process the most, the bubble that you enter and the creative collaborations.
What happens to you between films?
I have a production company called Join Motion Picture that I co-founded and own with my long time associate. So when I am not working on my own projects I’m developing or producing the projects of others.
What do you consider your strongest attribute as a director?
The ability to turn obstacles into opportunities. I truly believe problems are just another side of opportunities and if I keep going with that mentality I always find myself in a good place at the end.
Where do you feel least assured?
I find it a bit limiting not being able to communicate as clearly with my composer as I can with other creative partners. I never studied instruments as a kid so technically I am limited. Still on the other side it is also a bit exciting as that forces me to let go more and become more open to different outcomes that can be very pleasant.
Title — Beautiful Beings
Country — Iceland
Director — Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
Screenwriter — Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson
Cinematography — Sturla Brandth Grøvlen
Editor — Andri Steinn Gudjónsson, Anders Skov
Original Music — Kristian Eidnes Andersen
Producer — Join Motion Pictures
Starring — Birgir Dagur Bjarkason, Áskell Einar Pálmason, Viktor Benóný Benediktsson, Snorri Rafn Frímannsson, Aníta Briem, Ísgerður Gunnarsdóttir, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson
International Sales — New Europe Film Sales
US Distributor — Altered Innocence
Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson graduated in Fine Art and studied screenwriting. His short films and feature debut have been showcased and awarded in numerous festivals. Among these accolades are Cannes Film Festival, Venice Film Festival and a nomination for the European Film Awards. His debut feature “Heartstone” premiered in the Venice Days Competition in 2016 and ended up collecting over 50 awards worldwide.
Filmography
2022 Beautiful Beings (123min)
2016 Heartstone (129min)
2014 Artun (20min)
2013 Whale Valley (15 Min)
Produced
2019 A White,White Day (109 min, Executive Producer, Join Motion Pictures) 2019 Sealskin (13 min, Executive Producer, Join Motion Pictures)
2016 Heartstone (129 min, Sf studio & Join Motion Pictures)
Selected Review Excerpts
“An Icelandic Coming-of-Age Tale Radiant with Violence and Tenderness.”
“Boasts an outstanding juvenile ensemble cast.”
“Ravishing.”
“Subtle, underplayed edge of magic realism.”
“There is a freshness and an inhabited vibrancy that makes this painful coming of age story feel exactly its own.”
“A story told poetically, impressionistically, through sun-flare and cigarette smoke and the somehow heartbreaking details.”
“Tenderness that breaks through the veneer of toughness.”
“Captivating, even when… brutal.”
Jessica Kiang — Variety
“Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson’s sophomore Icelandic feature finds tenderness in a cruel adolescent world”
“The impressive second feature from Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson confronts the feral cruelty and violence of children on the cusp of adulthood, but finds also a tenderness amid the sharp edges and posturing”
“Gudmundsson clearly has strong instincts for casting and a knack for coaxing nuanced performances from young actors”
Wendy Ide — Screendaily
A story about growing up, friendship and survival, but also a portrait of overwhelming moral decay and neglect, Beautiful Beings confirms 40-year-old Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s talent as a sharp and sensitive director with a knack for conveying strong emotions through tiny brushstrokes, much like the great affection hiding behind these four bullish protagonists’ small gestures, without ever sliding into superfluous cruelty.
Vittoria Scarpa — Cineuropa
“A sensitively told tale of healing and growth.”
“Gently dissects various performances of masculinity.”
“Plenty of surprises in store for the audience.”
“Admirably sensitive and affirming.”
“A moving tale of friendship and recovery, despite all the sadness and trauma that run through it.”
“Guðmundsson portrays this co-existence of masculine aggression and soothing tenderness with vivid, richly textured images. The camera frequently gets very close to the characters, catches their most minute glances or gestures, and emphasizes the luminous nature that surrounds them.”
Eren Odabaşı — ICSFilm.org
“Beautiful Beings is the latest triumph from (…) Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson, whose distinctive lyrical style makes him one of the most impressive talents on the international indie film scene.”
“The director avoids simplistic solutions in a subtle narrative that uses its ample running time to explore every single chink of the boys’ developing personalities and how they react with each other.”
“Silver Bear awarded DoP Starla Brandth Grovlen (Victoria) works wonders with his camera”
Filmuforia
“A compelling mix of warmth and darkness that will shake you up before it will melt your heart”
“Beautiful Beings takes on the glamour and the anxieties that define teenagehood”
“As humanistic as it is unsettling.”
“Much of the film’s raw effectiveness is due to the young cast’s wisdom and effortless on-screen chemistry.”
“There is honesty to the central performances that endears the boys to the viewers”
“(Beautiful Beings) focuses on delivering a unique presentation — impressionistic imagery and gentle nods at magical realism complement a more grounded, down-to-earth aesthetic; neither style dominates, rather, they converse and flirt with one another.”
Eye For Film
“an affecting coming-of-age melodrama that gently dissects various performances of masculinity”
“Beautiful Beings gradually evolves into an unexpectedly sensual and dreamlike (and often nightmarish) experience with plenty of surprises in store for the audience”
“At its core, this is a moving tale of friendship and recovery”
“Guðmundsson portrays this co-existence of masculine aggression and soothing tenderness with vivid, richly textured images”
“this lovely Icelandic drama turns into a sensitively-told tale of healing and growth in Guðmundsson’s capable hands”
Ics Films, USA
“Its premise seems to lean heavily on familiar tropes, but the magic is in the execution.”
“Director Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson has delivered a film with a distinctive freshness, and a grimly compelling plausibility”
“There’s a real camaraderie amongst the young cast, with the strength of the writing combining with the actors’ characterisations to ensure that the roles all seem like fully realised people”
“intelligent and confident, and more than a bit unsettling in places”
The Upcoming...
- 12/18/2022
- by Sydney
- Sydney's Buzz
Often, when embarking on the recent Variety tradition that is this feature — designed to highlight some of the year’s best yet least-Oscar-likely performances — one particular turn will emerge as the poster child. A performance that, for many reasons, really ought to have a shot at Oscar but, being in a language other than English, has little chance. This year, that slot goes to Vicky Krieps who, in Marie Kreutzer’s “Corsage,” does not so much play Empress Elisabeth of Austria (a role previously defined by Romy Schneider in the saccharine “Sissi” trilogy) as entirely reimagine and reclaim her.
Rather like with Mads Mikkelsen in Thomas Vinterberg’s “Another Round,” Krieps has the kind of stateside profile that will help “Corsage” stay in the conversation for the best international feature film Oscar shortlist. But the odds of her getting an individual best actress nod remain far slimmer — a shame, given...
Rather like with Mads Mikkelsen in Thomas Vinterberg’s “Another Round,” Krieps has the kind of stateside profile that will help “Corsage” stay in the conversation for the best international feature film Oscar shortlist. But the odds of her getting an individual best actress nod remain far slimmer — a shame, given...
- 12/16/2022
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
"Some things aren't ours to affect." Altered Innocence has released an official US trailer for an indie drama from Iceland titled Beautiful Beings, which is getting a small US release in art house theaters starting in January. This premiered at Berlinale at the start of the year, and it also screened at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, and tons of other fests including Brussels, Helsinki, Calgary. A teenage boy raised by a clairvoyant mother takes a bullied kid into his gang of violent outsiders. Described in reviews as "an Icelandic coming-of-age tale radiant with violence and tenderness." The film stars Birgir Dagur Bjarkason, Áskell Einar Pálmason, Viktor Benóný Benediktsson, Snorri Rafn Frímannsson, Aníta Briem, Ísgerður Gunnarsdóttir, and Ólafur Darri Ólafsson. It's the latest feature film from Icelandic writer / director Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson following his 2016 debut Heartstone. It looks damn good! Worth a watch. ›››
View the Post: Official US Trailer for...
View the Post: Official US Trailer for...
- 12/13/2022
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
Altered Innocence has dropped the U.S. trailer for Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s (“Heartstone”) “Beautiful Beings” which is representing Iceland in the Oscar race.
The coming-of-age drama world premiered at the Berlin Film Festival last year and won the Label Europa Cinemas Award. it went on to pick up accolades at Biografilm Festival, Off Camera, Stockholm, Taipei and Thessaloniki film festivals, among others.
Altered Innocence will host the U.S. premiere for the film at the Quad in New York City on Jan. 13 and will be expanding from there.
“Beautiful Beings” follows Addi, a boy raised by a clairvoyant mother who decides to adopt a bullied misfit into his gang of outsiders. Left to their own devices, the boys explore aggression and violence but also learn about loyalty and love. As the group’s behavior escalates towards life-threatening situations, Addi begins to experience a series of dreamlike visions.
Arnar Guðmundsson...
The coming-of-age drama world premiered at the Berlin Film Festival last year and won the Label Europa Cinemas Award. it went on to pick up accolades at Biografilm Festival, Off Camera, Stockholm, Taipei and Thessaloniki film festivals, among others.
Altered Innocence will host the U.S. premiere for the film at the Quad in New York City on Jan. 13 and will be expanding from there.
“Beautiful Beings” follows Addi, a boy raised by a clairvoyant mother who decides to adopt a bullied misfit into his gang of outsiders. Left to their own devices, the boys explore aggression and violence but also learn about loyalty and love. As the group’s behavior escalates towards life-threatening situations, Addi begins to experience a series of dreamlike visions.
Arnar Guðmundsson...
- 12/13/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
A sensitive gang leader befriends a bullied teenager in Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s well-made but ultimately unrewarding film
Icelandic film-maker Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s new movie is the followup to his much-admired 2016 debut Heartstone, about the relationship between two teenage boys. The theme of bullying from that film, and its keynotes of sensuality and vulnerability, are detectable also in this well-made but in some ways unrewarding film which declines to take narrative responsibility for its inevitable, climactic act of violence, whose legal aftermath appears finally to vanish in favour of some vaguely defined coming-of-age friendship-blossoming between the two leads Addi (Birgir Dagur Bjarkason) and Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason).
Addi is a delinquent teen who leads a gang of bullies: scary tough guy Konni (Viktor Benóný Benediktsson), who is already well known to the police, and Siggi (Snorri Rafn Frímannsson), a nerdy gang member, lowest down the food chain. But Addi...
Icelandic film-maker Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s new movie is the followup to his much-admired 2016 debut Heartstone, about the relationship between two teenage boys. The theme of bullying from that film, and its keynotes of sensuality and vulnerability, are detectable also in this well-made but in some ways unrewarding film which declines to take narrative responsibility for its inevitable, climactic act of violence, whose legal aftermath appears finally to vanish in favour of some vaguely defined coming-of-age friendship-blossoming between the two leads Addi (Birgir Dagur Bjarkason) and Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason).
Addi is a delinquent teen who leads a gang of bullies: scary tough guy Konni (Viktor Benóný Benediktsson), who is already well known to the police, and Siggi (Snorri Rafn Frímannsson), a nerdy gang member, lowest down the food chain. But Addi...
- 12/13/2022
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Rita Moreno, Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin and Sally Field star in ’80 For Brady’ from Paramount Pictures.
The world premiere of 80 for Brady starring Jane Fonda, Sally Field, Rita Moreno, and Lily Tomlin will open the 34th Annual Palm Springs International Festival on Friday, January 6, 2023, and The Lost King from director Stephen Frears will close the festival on Sunday, January 15th. In between, Psiff will screen 132 films including the world premiere of the documentary Shot in the Arm.
“We are beyond excited to welcome back our beloved audience and filmmakers in Palm Springs. We’re especially thrilled to be joined by all four leads of 80 For Brady. The film is brimming with joy and heart, and it’s a perfect film to kick off our 34th edition,” said Artistic Director Lili Rodriguez. “Our programmers have dedicated almost a year to scouting the world for the films that make up this edition.
The world premiere of 80 for Brady starring Jane Fonda, Sally Field, Rita Moreno, and Lily Tomlin will open the 34th Annual Palm Springs International Festival on Friday, January 6, 2023, and The Lost King from director Stephen Frears will close the festival on Sunday, January 15th. In between, Psiff will screen 132 films including the world premiere of the documentary Shot in the Arm.
“We are beyond excited to welcome back our beloved audience and filmmakers in Palm Springs. We’re especially thrilled to be joined by all four leads of 80 For Brady. The film is brimming with joy and heart, and it’s a perfect film to kick off our 34th edition,” said Artistic Director Lili Rodriguez. “Our programmers have dedicated almost a year to scouting the world for the films that make up this edition.
- 12/6/2022
- by Rebecca Murray
- Showbiz Junkies
The Palm Springs Film Festival has unveiled the lineup for its 34th annual edition, announcing that Paramount Pictures’ 80 for Brady will world premiere as its opening night film on January 6, with IFC Films’ The Lost King closing it out on January 15.
Directed by Kyle Marvin, 80 for Brady is inspired by the true story of four best friends living life to the fullest when they take a wild trip to the 2017 Super Bowl Li to see their hero Tom Brady play. Cast members including Academy Award nominee Lily Tomlin, Academy Award winner Jane Fonda, Academy Award winner Rita Moreno and Academy Award winner Sally Field are expected to be among those in attendance at the fest to rep the film slated for release in theaters on February 3, 2023.
Related Story Palm Springs Film Festival Awards: Austin Butler Latest Honoree For January Gala Related Story '80 For Brady' Trailer: Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda,...
Directed by Kyle Marvin, 80 for Brady is inspired by the true story of four best friends living life to the fullest when they take a wild trip to the 2017 Super Bowl Li to see their hero Tom Brady play. Cast members including Academy Award nominee Lily Tomlin, Academy Award winner Jane Fonda, Academy Award winner Rita Moreno and Academy Award winner Sally Field are expected to be among those in attendance at the fest to rep the film slated for release in theaters on February 3, 2023.
Related Story Palm Springs Film Festival Awards: Austin Butler Latest Honoree For January Gala Related Story '80 For Brady' Trailer: Lily Tomlin, Jane Fonda,...
- 12/6/2022
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s coming-of-age drama Beautiful Beings debuted in the Panorama section at the Berlin Film Festival, where it won the Europa Cinemas Label award. The film has also been selected as Iceland’s entry for the 2023 Oscars.
The film follows Addi, a teenage boy raised by a clairvoyant mother, who adopts a bullied kid into his group of violent misfits and begins to experience a series of dreamlike visions.
Related: The Contenders International – Deadline’s Full Coverage
“It’s inspired by my youth growing up in the suburbs of Reykjavik,” Guðmundsson said of the film’s origins during Deadline’s Contenders Film: International panel. “I was part of this group of boys who used their violent behavior to deal with things. It’s still a fictional story, but the origins come from my neighborhood back in those days.”
Beautiful Beings, from Altered Innocence, is Guðmundsson’s second feature...
The film follows Addi, a teenage boy raised by a clairvoyant mother, who adopts a bullied kid into his group of violent misfits and begins to experience a series of dreamlike visions.
Related: The Contenders International – Deadline’s Full Coverage
“It’s inspired by my youth growing up in the suburbs of Reykjavik,” Guðmundsson said of the film’s origins during Deadline’s Contenders Film: International panel. “I was part of this group of boys who used their violent behavior to deal with things. It’s still a fictional story, but the origins come from my neighborhood back in those days.”
Beautiful Beings, from Altered Innocence, is Guðmundsson’s second feature...
- 12/4/2022
- by Zac Ntim
- Deadline Film + TV
The first calendar year to see the physical return of almost every major film festival since the pandemic, 2022 has been a huge morale booster for filmmakers from all around the globe. And now, with the third edition of Deadline’s Contenders Film: International kicking off Saturday at 8 a.m. Pt, that outreach expands even further: leaving a carbon-free footprint, our online event will showcase the myriad films that soared at Sundance, beguiled Berlin, captivated Cannes, thrilled Telluride, vitalized Venice and touched Toronto, all the while shining a spotlight on the must-see movies that might have flown under your radar.
Click her to register for and watch today’s Contenders livestream.
Since submissions accepted for the Best International Feature Film Oscar category continue to grow — up by something like 30 from just 10 years ago, buoyed no doubt by the boundary-breaking success of 2019’s Parasite — it is harder than ever before to see...
Click her to register for and watch today’s Contenders livestream.
Since submissions accepted for the Best International Feature Film Oscar category continue to grow — up by something like 30 from just 10 years ago, buoyed no doubt by the boundary-breaking success of 2019’s Parasite — it is harder than ever before to see...
- 12/3/2022
- by Damon Wise
- Deadline Film + TV
Talent involved includes Joshua Oppenheimer, Tilda Swinton and Odessa Young.
Fourteen film and TV projects have received a combined £2.2m in funding through the latest round of international co-production funding from the UK Global Screen Fund (Gsf).
The biggest award of £250,000 has been given to Iceland-Ireland-uk-Belgium feature The Damned, which will shoot early next year. Protagonist Pictures is selling and executive producing the film.
Individual awards range between £250,000 to £95,000,
Scroll down for the full list.
Set on a remote fishing outpost in the 19th century, the psychological horror is written by Jamie Hannigan, will be directed by Icelandic-uk director Thordur Palsson,...
Fourteen film and TV projects have received a combined £2.2m in funding through the latest round of international co-production funding from the UK Global Screen Fund (Gsf).
The biggest award of £250,000 has been given to Iceland-Ireland-uk-Belgium feature The Damned, which will shoot early next year. Protagonist Pictures is selling and executive producing the film.
Individual awards range between £250,000 to £95,000,
Scroll down for the full list.
Set on a remote fishing outpost in the 19th century, the psychological horror is written by Jamie Hannigan, will be directed by Icelandic-uk director Thordur Palsson,...
- 11/21/2022
- by Ben Dalton
- ScreenDaily
Other winners include Emily, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed; Swedish Film Institute unveils new talent Wild Card prizes.
Ali Abbasi’s Iran-set serial killer drama Holy Spider won the Bronze Horse for best film at the 2022 Stockholm International Film Festival.
The film’s lead actor Mehdi Bajestani won best actor for playing Saeed Hanaei, the real serial killer who killed sex workers in Mashhad in 2000 and 2001.
The jury said Holy Spider is “a punch in the gut for systematic belief systems that oppress rather than support. An eye opener and a most emotional cinematic experience that awakens internal revolutions in us.
Ali Abbasi’s Iran-set serial killer drama Holy Spider won the Bronze Horse for best film at the 2022 Stockholm International Film Festival.
The film’s lead actor Mehdi Bajestani won best actor for playing Saeed Hanaei, the real serial killer who killed sex workers in Mashhad in 2000 and 2001.
The jury said Holy Spider is “a punch in the gut for systematic belief systems that oppress rather than support. An eye opener and a most emotional cinematic experience that awakens internal revolutions in us.
- 11/21/2022
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
The big winner at the Stockholm International Film Festival 2022 was Holy Spider, directed by Swedish-Danish-Iranian Ali Abbasi.
Complete list of winners below
The film won the Bronze Horse for Best Film, while lead actor Mehdi Bajestani was named Best Male Actor for his role as serial killer Saeed Hanaei. The film was based on the true story of the so-called ‘Spider-Killer’ who targeted sex workers and killed 16 women from 2000 to 2001 in Mashhad, Iran. The film depicts a fictional female journalist investigating the crimes.
In presenting Abbasi with his award, the jury said of Holy Spider:
“A groundbreaking film that is done not only with enormous courage but with mastery that leaves us breathless; our insides both speechless and wanting to cream. A punch in the gut for systematic belief systems that oppress rather than support. An eye opener and a most emotional cinematic experience that awakens internal revolutions in us.
Complete list of winners below
The film won the Bronze Horse for Best Film, while lead actor Mehdi Bajestani was named Best Male Actor for his role as serial killer Saeed Hanaei. The film was based on the true story of the so-called ‘Spider-Killer’ who targeted sex workers and killed 16 women from 2000 to 2001 in Mashhad, Iran. The film depicts a fictional female journalist investigating the crimes.
In presenting Abbasi with his award, the jury said of Holy Spider:
“A groundbreaking film that is done not only with enormous courage but with mastery that leaves us breathless; our insides both speechless and wanting to cream. A punch in the gut for systematic belief systems that oppress rather than support. An eye opener and a most emotional cinematic experience that awakens internal revolutions in us.
- 11/19/2022
- by Caroline Frost
- Deadline Film + TV
The Les Arcs Film Festival will launch a new sidebar showcasing this year’s European entries to the Best International Feature Film Oscar category at its 14th edition, running December 10 to 17 in its namesake French Alps skiing resort home of Les Arcs.
The dates of the European cinema-focused festival overlap with voting for the Oscar Shortlists, running December 12 to 15 ahead of the Shortlists announcement on December 21.
Eight submissions will screen in the new section entitled “Oscar Au Ski”: Cristèle Alves Meira’s Alma Viva (Portugal), Viesturs Kairišs’s January (Latvia), Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s BeautifuInt’l Critics Line: Iceland’s Oscar Entry Beautiful Beings (Iceland), Maryna Er Gorbach’s Klondike (Ukraine), Marie Kreutzer’s Corsage (Austria), Colm Bairéad’s The Quiet Girl (Ireland), Alli Haapasalo’s Girl Picture (Finland) and Carla Simón’s Alcarràs (Spain).
“The festival takes place in a period when the Oscar race is in full swing.
The dates of the European cinema-focused festival overlap with voting for the Oscar Shortlists, running December 12 to 15 ahead of the Shortlists announcement on December 21.
Eight submissions will screen in the new section entitled “Oscar Au Ski”: Cristèle Alves Meira’s Alma Viva (Portugal), Viesturs Kairišs’s January (Latvia), Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s BeautifuInt’l Critics Line: Iceland’s Oscar Entry Beautiful Beings (Iceland), Maryna Er Gorbach’s Klondike (Ukraine), Marie Kreutzer’s Corsage (Austria), Colm Bairéad’s The Quiet Girl (Ireland), Alli Haapasalo’s Girl Picture (Finland) and Carla Simón’s Alcarràs (Spain).
“The festival takes place in a period when the Oscar race is in full swing.
- 11/9/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
Iceland’s entry for the Best International Feature Oscar is a tense, tender portrait of teenage boyhood. The second feature from writer-director Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson (Heartstone), Beautiful Beings world premiered in Berlin Panorama, where it won the Europa Cinemas Label.
Awards continue for this hard-hitting yet sensitive film featuring a compelling turn from newcomer Birgir Dagur as Addi, a boy who befriends the bullied Balli (Áskell Einar). Alongside nuanced performances from its young cast, it also features a strong adult supporting cast including Icelandic star Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (Trapped) as an abusive stepfather.
After inviting Balli into his little gang, Addi begins to experience predictive dreams, alerting him of his neighbors’ secrets and warning of danger. But Addi still struggles to prevent his hot-headed friend Konni (Viktor Benóný) from getting into trouble.
It’s an involving story that builds in time for quiet contemplation alongside its nerve-wracking moments. Addi frequently...
Awards continue for this hard-hitting yet sensitive film featuring a compelling turn from newcomer Birgir Dagur as Addi, a boy who befriends the bullied Balli (Áskell Einar). Alongside nuanced performances from its young cast, it also features a strong adult supporting cast including Icelandic star Ólafur Darri Ólafsson (Trapped) as an abusive stepfather.
After inviting Balli into his little gang, Addi begins to experience predictive dreams, alerting him of his neighbors’ secrets and warning of danger. But Addi still struggles to prevent his hot-headed friend Konni (Viktor Benóný) from getting into trouble.
It’s an involving story that builds in time for quiet contemplation alongside its nerve-wracking moments. Addi frequently...
- 11/7/2022
- by Anna Smith
- Deadline Film + TV
The awards aim to promote European films to Arab audiences.
Jerzy Skolimowski’s Eo and Mikko Myllylahti’s The Woodcutter Story are among the nominees for the 4th Arab Critics’ Awards for European Film.
The 23-strong list, which will be shortlisted to three and an eventual winner, includes 11 entries for best international feature at the Oscars.
Alongside Eo, which follows a donkey travelling from the Polish circus to an Italian slaughterhouse, other Oscar hopefuls on the list include Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson’s Beautiful Beings from Iceland and Juraj Lerotic’s Locarno winner Safe Place from Croatia.
A joint venture between...
Jerzy Skolimowski’s Eo and Mikko Myllylahti’s The Woodcutter Story are among the nominees for the 4th Arab Critics’ Awards for European Film.
The 23-strong list, which will be shortlisted to three and an eventual winner, includes 11 entries for best international feature at the Oscars.
Alongside Eo, which follows a donkey travelling from the Polish circus to an Italian slaughterhouse, other Oscar hopefuls on the list include Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson’s Beautiful Beings from Iceland and Juraj Lerotic’s Locarno winner Safe Place from Croatia.
A joint venture between...
- 11/2/2022
- by Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
Festival runs November 9-20.
The Stockholm International Film Festival will present 130 films from 50 countries, opening on November 9 with Sweden’s international Oscar submission, Boy From Heaven by Tarik Saleh.
Political thriller Boy From Heaven premiered in competition at Cannes where it was awarded best screenplay.
Actor Fares Fares will receive the Stockholm Achievement Award on opening night. His credits include Easy Money, Safe House, Westworld and Chernobyl.
The Stockholm Visionary Award will go to Sam Mendes who will present the Nordic premiere of Empire Of Light.
Other notable selections include Luca Guadagnino’s Bones And All; Gina Prince-Bythewood’s The Woman King...
The Stockholm International Film Festival will present 130 films from 50 countries, opening on November 9 with Sweden’s international Oscar submission, Boy From Heaven by Tarik Saleh.
Political thriller Boy From Heaven premiered in competition at Cannes where it was awarded best screenplay.
Actor Fares Fares will receive the Stockholm Achievement Award on opening night. His credits include Easy Money, Safe House, Westworld and Chernobyl.
The Stockholm Visionary Award will go to Sam Mendes who will present the Nordic premiere of Empire Of Light.
Other notable selections include Luca Guadagnino’s Bones And All; Gina Prince-Bythewood’s The Woman King...
- 10/13/2022
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
Keep track of all the submissions for best international feature at the 2023 Academy Awards.
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
Entries for the 2023 Oscar for best international feature are underway, and Screen is profiling each one on this page.
Scroll down for profiles of each Oscar entry
An international feature film is defined as a feature-length motion picture produced outside the US with a predominantly (more than 50) non-English dialogue track and can include animated and documentary features.
Submitted films must have been released theatrically in their respective countries between January 1, 2022 and November 30, 2022. The deadline for submissions to the Academy is October 3, 2022.
A shortlist of 15 finalists is...
- 9/21/2022
- by Screen staff
- ScreenDaily
Exclusive: The Icelandic Film and Television Academy has selected Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s Beautiful Beings as Iceland’s official entry in the Best International Feature Film category for the 2023 Academy Awards.
The coming-of-age drama world premiered in Berlin Panorama this year, where it won the Europa Cinemas Label and then went on to play over 30 festivals, winning eight awards to date. It is currently selected for the European Film Awards’ longlist.
The feature is Guðmundsson’s second film after his award-winning debut feature Heartstone.
Set in the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik, the drama follows Addi, a teenage boy raised by a clairvoyant mother, who adopts a bullied kid into his group of violent misfits.
When the boys’ own aggressive behavior escalates toward life-threatening situations, Addi starts to experience a series of dreamlike visions. Will his newfound intuition guide him and his friends toward a safer path, or will they dive further into violence?...
The coming-of-age drama world premiered in Berlin Panorama this year, where it won the Europa Cinemas Label and then went on to play over 30 festivals, winning eight awards to date. It is currently selected for the European Film Awards’ longlist.
The feature is Guðmundsson’s second film after his award-winning debut feature Heartstone.
Set in the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik, the drama follows Addi, a teenage boy raised by a clairvoyant mother, who adopts a bullied kid into his group of violent misfits.
When the boys’ own aggressive behavior escalates toward life-threatening situations, Addi starts to experience a series of dreamlike visions. Will his newfound intuition guide him and his friends toward a safer path, or will they dive further into violence?...
- 9/20/2022
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- Deadline Film + TV
New Europe Film Sales has added U.K. distributor Signature Entertainment to the slew of global buyers won over by Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s “Beautiful Beings,” which has racked up awards from Poland, Bulgaria, Italy and Taiwan, since its first bow at the last Berlinale Panorama.
Earlier deals were closed with the U.S. (Altered Innocence), Hungary (Vertigo), Benelux (Arti Film), Germany/Austria (Salzgeber), Spain (Filmin), and Cee (HBO).
Billed by Variety reviewer Jessica Kiang as an “Icelandic coming-of age, radiant with violence and tenderness,” Guðmundsson’s drama revolves around a young boy raised by a clairvoyant mother who decides to adopt a bullied misfit into his gang of outsiders.
“It’s about the importance of parental support and guidance and how that can influence youngsters and their decision-making,” said the director.
Guðmundsson is among a handful of standout Icelandic voices on New Europe Film Sales’ roster, together with Hlynur Pálmason and Valdimar Jóhansson,...
Earlier deals were closed with the U.S. (Altered Innocence), Hungary (Vertigo), Benelux (Arti Film), Germany/Austria (Salzgeber), Spain (Filmin), and Cee (HBO).
Billed by Variety reviewer Jessica Kiang as an “Icelandic coming-of age, radiant with violence and tenderness,” Guðmundsson’s drama revolves around a young boy raised by a clairvoyant mother who decides to adopt a bullied misfit into his gang of outsiders.
“It’s about the importance of parental support and guidance and how that can influence youngsters and their decision-making,” said the director.
Guðmundsson is among a handful of standout Icelandic voices on New Europe Film Sales’ roster, together with Hlynur Pálmason and Valdimar Jóhansson,...
- 8/25/2022
- by Annika Pham
- Variety Film + TV
The first 30 titles in the running for the EFAs have been announced.
The first 30 titles in the running for the 2022 European Film Awards have been revealed with a second wave of titles due to be announced in September.
Scroll down for first selection of films
The titles include Ruben Östlund’s Palme d’Or winner Triangle Of Sadness, Carla Simón’s Berlinale Golden Bear winner Alcarras and Kenneth Branagh’s Oscar-winner Belfast. Also selected is Colm Bairéad’s The Quiet Girl, which is Ireland’s submission for the best international feature Oscar.
Further Cannes award winners to make the first...
The first 30 titles in the running for the 2022 European Film Awards have been revealed with a second wave of titles due to be announced in September.
Scroll down for first selection of films
The titles include Ruben Östlund’s Palme d’Or winner Triangle Of Sadness, Carla Simón’s Berlinale Golden Bear winner Alcarras and Kenneth Branagh’s Oscar-winner Belfast. Also selected is Colm Bairéad’s The Quiet Girl, which is Ireland’s submission for the best international feature Oscar.
Further Cannes award winners to make the first...
- 8/18/2022
- by Michael Rosser
- ScreenDaily
Project Funding
The Asian Cinema Fund, a bursary scheme for film and documentary projects operated alongside the Busan International Film Festival, has announced six Korean recipients and seven hailing from elsewhere in Asia. The fund was put on hiatus during the two years of Covid, which also reduced the festival in size and turned the Asian Contents & Film Market into a virtual event. Three winners – “In the Land of Brothers,” by Raha Amirfazali, “Life I Stole,” by Putri Purnama Sugua and “Smart City,” by Rohin Raveendran – each receive KRW10 million for script development and are invited to participate in the Acfm’s Asian Project Market. Three films currently in post-production — “Birth,” by Yoo Jiyoung, “Juhee from 5 to 7,” by Jang Kunjae and “Mariam,” by Arvind Pratap — will receive in-kind support for digital intermediates, Dcp production, sound mixing and sub-titling, and are expected to premiere as finished works at the Busan festival.
The Asian Cinema Fund, a bursary scheme for film and documentary projects operated alongside the Busan International Film Festival, has announced six Korean recipients and seven hailing from elsewhere in Asia. The fund was put on hiatus during the two years of Covid, which also reduced the festival in size and turned the Asian Contents & Film Market into a virtual event. Three winners – “In the Land of Brothers,” by Raha Amirfazali, “Life I Stole,” by Putri Purnama Sugua and “Smart City,” by Rohin Raveendran – each receive KRW10 million for script development and are invited to participate in the Acfm’s Asian Project Market. Three films currently in post-production — “Birth,” by Yoo Jiyoung, “Juhee from 5 to 7,” by Jang Kunjae and “Mariam,” by Arvind Pratap — will receive in-kind support for digital intermediates, Dcp production, sound mixing and sub-titling, and are expected to premiere as finished works at the Busan festival.
- 7/15/2022
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
‘Utama’ won the World Cinema grand jury prize at Sundance earlier this year.
Bolivian director Alejandro Loayza Grisi’s Utama won both the best film prize and the audience award at the 21st edition of the Transilvania International Film Festival which closed yesterday, Sunday June 26.
Distributed internationally by Alpha Violet, the Bolivian-Uruguayan-French co-production about an elderly Indigenous man trying to survive in the Bolivian highlands, premiered earlier this year in Sundance where it received the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinema: Dramatic Competition. It is Grisi’s debut feature.
Iceland’s Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson won the best director prize...
Bolivian director Alejandro Loayza Grisi’s Utama won both the best film prize and the audience award at the 21st edition of the Transilvania International Film Festival which closed yesterday, Sunday June 26.
Distributed internationally by Alpha Violet, the Bolivian-Uruguayan-French co-production about an elderly Indigenous man trying to survive in the Bolivian highlands, premiered earlier this year in Sundance where it received the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinema: Dramatic Competition. It is Grisi’s debut feature.
Iceland’s Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson won the best director prize...
- 6/27/2022
- by Martin Blaney
- ScreenDaily
‘Utama’ won the World Cinema grand jury prize at Sundance earlier this year.
Bolivian director Alejandro Loayza Grisi’s Utama won both the best film prize and the audience award at the 21st edition of the Transilvania International Film Festival which closed yesterday, Sunday June 26.
Distributed internationally by Alpha Violet, the Bolivian-Uruguayan-French co-production about an elderly Indigenous man trying to survive in the Bolivian highlands, premiered earlier this year in Sundance where it received the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinema: Dramatic Competition. It is Grisi’s debut feature.
Iceland’s Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson won the best director prize...
Bolivian director Alejandro Loayza Grisi’s Utama won both the best film prize and the audience award at the 21st edition of the Transilvania International Film Festival which closed yesterday, Sunday June 26.
Distributed internationally by Alpha Violet, the Bolivian-Uruguayan-French co-production about an elderly Indigenous man trying to survive in the Bolivian highlands, premiered earlier this year in Sundance where it received the Grand Jury Prize in the World Cinema: Dramatic Competition. It is Grisi’s debut feature.
Iceland’s Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson won the best director prize...
- 6/27/2022
- by Martin Blaney
- ScreenDaily
Alejandro Loayza Grisi’s “Utama,” which won the grand jury prize in the World Cinema Dramatic competition at Sundance this year, took home top honors at the closing ceremony of the Transilvania Film Festival on Saturday night.
Grisi’s feature debut tells the story of an elderly couple in the Bolivian highlands who refuse to relocate to the city despite the constant threat of drought. In a glowing review, Variety’s Peter Debruge described the film as a “sublime, quietly elegiac” character study that “looks quite unlike anything else.”
“By relying on the simplicity, purity and poetry of his cinematic approach, the director takes the audience on a universal journey, talking about the essence of life, death and everything in between,” said the Transilvania jury, praising a film that “gives the audience a deep, multilayered feeling of how fragile our future is.” “Utama” was also feted with the festival’s Audience Award.
Grisi’s feature debut tells the story of an elderly couple in the Bolivian highlands who refuse to relocate to the city despite the constant threat of drought. In a glowing review, Variety’s Peter Debruge described the film as a “sublime, quietly elegiac” character study that “looks quite unlike anything else.”
“By relying on the simplicity, purity and poetry of his cinematic approach, the director takes the audience on a universal journey, talking about the essence of life, death and everything in between,” said the Transilvania jury, praising a film that “gives the audience a deep, multilayered feeling of how fragile our future is.” “Utama” was also feted with the festival’s Audience Award.
- 6/26/2022
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Claudia Sainte-Luce’s “El reino de Dios” (“The Realm of God”) and “Carajita” by Silvina Schnicer and Ulises Porra took home the bulk of the prizes in their respective categories, the Mayahuel for best Mexican film and best Ibero-American film at the 37th Guadalajara Int’l Film Fest (Ficg), which wrapped June 18.
Festival highlights included a conversation, albeit by remote, between festival director Estrella Araiza and Guadalajara native Guillermo del Toro who talked about the making of his upcoming stop-motion animation feature, “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio.” The film, set to bow on Netflix in December, was filmed with 20 animators in more than 60 sets in Canada and Guadalajara, Del Toro revealed.
Sainte-Luce’s coming-of-age drama about a young boy’s struggle with his faith as he’s about to take his first communion, which world premiered at the Berlinale’s Generation Kplus sidebar, also won Ficg’s Mezcal awards for best cinematography,...
Festival highlights included a conversation, albeit by remote, between festival director Estrella Araiza and Guadalajara native Guillermo del Toro who talked about the making of his upcoming stop-motion animation feature, “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio.” The film, set to bow on Netflix in December, was filmed with 20 animators in more than 60 sets in Canada and Guadalajara, Del Toro revealed.
Sainte-Luce’s coming-of-age drama about a young boy’s struggle with his faith as he’s about to take his first communion, which world premiered at the Berlinale’s Generation Kplus sidebar, also won Ficg’s Mezcal awards for best cinematography,...
- 6/20/2022
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
After pulling off the near miraculous feat of mounting two in-person editions in the middle of a global pandemic, the organizing team of the Transilvania Film Festival had hoped for a return to normalcy this year – hopes that were quickly dashed when Russian troops invaded neighboring Ukraine on Feb. 24.
The tone and tenor of this year’s event swiftly shifted gears, says TIFF founder Tudor Giurgiu, as festival leadership looked to strike a precarious balance. “The lives of many people have been turned upside-down. We need to be empathetic and pay attention to what’s happening over there and try to mirror through the festival program this tragedy which is happening in Ukraine,” Giurgiu tells Variety.
As TIFF kicks off its 21st edition, which runs June 17 – 26, the war in Ukraine will be reaching the conclusion of its fourth month, a period that has already dramatically upended life in its Eastern European neighbor.
The tone and tenor of this year’s event swiftly shifted gears, says TIFF founder Tudor Giurgiu, as festival leadership looked to strike a precarious balance. “The lives of many people have been turned upside-down. We need to be empathetic and pay attention to what’s happening over there and try to mirror through the festival program this tragedy which is happening in Ukraine,” Giurgiu tells Variety.
As TIFF kicks off its 21st edition, which runs June 17 – 26, the war in Ukraine will be reaching the conclusion of its fourth month, a period that has already dramatically upended life in its Eastern European neighbor.
- 6/16/2022
- by Christopher Vourlias
- Variety Film + TV
Hlynyur Palmason’s Icelandic drama has sold to the UK/Ire, Spain and Greece.
Jan Naszewski’s New Europe has closed a number of high-profile deals for Hlynyur Palmason’s Godland, which premiered in Cannes Un Certain Regard.
Curzon has taken rights for UK/Ireland, with A Contracorriente buying Spain, Scanorama for Baltics, Vertigo Media for Hungary and One from the Heart for Greece.
Previously confirmed sales were to France (Jour2Fete), Benelux (Imagine), Poland (New Horizons Association) and Australia/New Zealand (Palace).
“Godland is a breathtaking piece of cinema filled with intelligent and subtle reflections on politics, art, history,...
Jan Naszewski’s New Europe has closed a number of high-profile deals for Hlynyur Palmason’s Godland, which premiered in Cannes Un Certain Regard.
Curzon has taken rights for UK/Ireland, with A Contracorriente buying Spain, Scanorama for Baltics, Vertigo Media for Hungary and One from the Heart for Greece.
Previously confirmed sales were to France (Jour2Fete), Benelux (Imagine), Poland (New Horizons Association) and Australia/New Zealand (Palace).
“Godland is a breathtaking piece of cinema filled with intelligent and subtle reflections on politics, art, history,...
- 5/27/2022
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
Titles include Sundance Jury prize winner ‘Utama’
Transilvania International Film Festival has unveiled the 12 films that will screen in its official competition.
Each title competing for the Transilvania Trophy will receive its Romanian premiere at the 21st edition of the festival, which is set to take place in the city of Cluj-Napoca.
The line-up features Alejandro Loayza Grisi’s Utama, a Bolivian drama about an indigenous couple trying to survive a drought, which took home the Jury prize at Sundance Film Festival early this year.
Other titles include the directorial debut by French filmmaker Vincent Maël Cardona - Magentic Beats.
Transilvania International Film Festival has unveiled the 12 films that will screen in its official competition.
Each title competing for the Transilvania Trophy will receive its Romanian premiere at the 21st edition of the festival, which is set to take place in the city of Cluj-Napoca.
The line-up features Alejandro Loayza Grisi’s Utama, a Bolivian drama about an indigenous couple trying to survive a drought, which took home the Jury prize at Sundance Film Festival early this year.
Other titles include the directorial debut by French filmmaker Vincent Maël Cardona - Magentic Beats.
- 5/19/2022
- by Ellie Calnan
- ScreenDaily
New Europe Film Sales has announced the first sales for Cannes Un Certain Regard-selected “Godland,” directed by Iceland’s Hlynur Pálmason.
The film was picked up in France by Jour2Fete, and the movie was also acquired by three distributors that worked on Pálmason’s Cannes Critics’ Week title “A White, White Day” – Benelux rights were sold to Imagine, Poland was picked up by New Horizons Association and Australia/New Zealand was picked up by Palace.
The film is set in the late 19th century, when a young Danish priest travels to a remote part of Iceland to build a church and photograph its people. But the deeper he goes into the unforgiving landscape, the more he strays from his purpose, the mission and morality.
The film is produced by Denmark’s Snowglobe in collaboration with Iceland’s Join Motion Pictures, in co-production with France’s Maneki Films, Film I Väst & Garagefilm in Sweden,...
The film was picked up in France by Jour2Fete, and the movie was also acquired by three distributors that worked on Pálmason’s Cannes Critics’ Week title “A White, White Day” – Benelux rights were sold to Imagine, Poland was picked up by New Horizons Association and Australia/New Zealand was picked up by Palace.
The film is set in the late 19th century, when a young Danish priest travels to a remote part of Iceland to build a church and photograph its people. But the deeper he goes into the unforgiving landscape, the more he strays from his purpose, the mission and morality.
The film is produced by Denmark’s Snowglobe in collaboration with Iceland’s Join Motion Pictures, in co-production with France’s Maneki Films, Film I Väst & Garagefilm in Sweden,...
- 4/29/2022
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
Altered Innocence has picked up all U.S. rights to Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s second feature film “Beautiful Beings,” which was an official selection in the Panorama section of Berlinale this year. A theatrical release is planned for early next year.
The follow-up to the critically acclaimed “Heartstone” is an exploration of the deep bonds of adolescent friendship disrupted by penchants for violence with one foot placed in the realm of the supernatural.
The film centers on Addi, a boy raised by a clairvoyant mother, who decides to adopt a bullied misfit into his gang of outsiders. Left to their own devices, the boys explore aggression and violence but also learn about loyalty and love. As the group’s behavior escalates toward life-threatening situations, Addi begins to experience a series of dreamlike visions.
In Jessica Kiang’s review for Variety, she writes: “Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s beautiful and cruel second...
The follow-up to the critically acclaimed “Heartstone” is an exploration of the deep bonds of adolescent friendship disrupted by penchants for violence with one foot placed in the realm of the supernatural.
The film centers on Addi, a boy raised by a clairvoyant mother, who decides to adopt a bullied misfit into his gang of outsiders. Left to their own devices, the boys explore aggression and violence but also learn about loyalty and love. As the group’s behavior escalates toward life-threatening situations, Addi begins to experience a series of dreamlike visions.
In Jessica Kiang’s review for Variety, she writes: “Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s beautiful and cruel second...
- 4/14/2022
- by Leo Barraclough
- Variety Film + TV
The film is Icelandiic director Hlynur Palmason’s third film following ‘Winter Brothers’ and ‘A White, White Day’.
New Europe Film Sales has boarded Icelandic writer/director Hlynur Palmason’s Godland, a feature that was shot in Iceland under the radar in 2021 and has today been confirmed for Cannes’ Un Certain Regard.
New Europe also sold the director’s first two features, Winter Brothers and A White, White Day, as well as his latest short Nest, which premiered at Berlinale 2022.
Godland is set in the late 19th century, when a young Danish priest (Elliott Crosset Hove) travels to a remote...
New Europe Film Sales has boarded Icelandic writer/director Hlynur Palmason’s Godland, a feature that was shot in Iceland under the radar in 2021 and has today been confirmed for Cannes’ Un Certain Regard.
New Europe also sold the director’s first two features, Winter Brothers and A White, White Day, as well as his latest short Nest, which premiered at Berlinale 2022.
Godland is set in the late 19th century, when a young Danish priest (Elliott Crosset Hove) travels to a remote...
- 4/14/2022
- by Wendy Mitchell
- ScreenDaily
Drama
“Floodlights,” a feature-length single drama for BBC Two and BBC iPlayer tells the story of Andy Woodward, the former professional soccer player whose revelations about the sexual abuse he suffered as a youth player sent shockwaves throughout the industry. In 2016, Woodward went public about sexual abuse by his youth coach, Barry Bennell. After doing so, hundreds more men, many also victims of Bennell, found the courage to speak up about their experiences of abuse, lifting the lid on a national scandal in the U.K.’s most popular sport.
Gerard Kearns (“The Last Kingdom”) portrays Woodward and the cast also includes Jonas Armstrong (“Hollington Drive”), Morven Christie (“Lockwood & Co”) and Steve Edge (“Benidorm”).
“Floodlights,” made with the full cooperation of Woodward, is written by BAFTA-winning screenwriter, Matt Greenhalgh and directed by BAFTA-nominated Nick Rowland (“Calm With Horses”). It is produced by Expectation, part of BBC Studios’ portfolio of indies...
“Floodlights,” a feature-length single drama for BBC Two and BBC iPlayer tells the story of Andy Woodward, the former professional soccer player whose revelations about the sexual abuse he suffered as a youth player sent shockwaves throughout the industry. In 2016, Woodward went public about sexual abuse by his youth coach, Barry Bennell. After doing so, hundreds more men, many also victims of Bennell, found the courage to speak up about their experiences of abuse, lifting the lid on a national scandal in the U.K.’s most popular sport.
Gerard Kearns (“The Last Kingdom”) portrays Woodward and the cast also includes Jonas Armstrong (“Hollington Drive”), Morven Christie (“Lockwood & Co”) and Steve Edge (“Benidorm”).
“Floodlights,” made with the full cooperation of Woodward, is written by BAFTA-winning screenwriter, Matt Greenhalgh and directed by BAFTA-nominated Nick Rowland (“Calm With Horses”). It is produced by Expectation, part of BBC Studios’ portfolio of indies...
- 3/29/2022
- by Naman Ramachandran
- Variety Film + TV
Travel within Europe is returning to normal as the coronavirus pandemic winds down. The same is not yet true in Asia, where some countries are behind the pandemic curve – Hong Kong is currently closed to all travel from nine countries – making FilMart’s online market a viable way of connecting film industry buyers and sellers without the quarantine and testing hassle.
Eight European sales companies make their FilMart debuts this week on the Europe! Umbrella! stand at this year’s third virtual edition of the Hong Kong rights market. In total, 25 European sales outfits, hailing from eight countries have signed up to use the European Film Promotion-operated platform within a platform.
For Asian distributors which did not make it to Berlin and the European Film Market the umbrella allows them to dip into several Berlinale titles where rights in Asia are still available.
These include Coproduction Office’s Berlin competition...
Eight European sales companies make their FilMart debuts this week on the Europe! Umbrella! stand at this year’s third virtual edition of the Hong Kong rights market. In total, 25 European sales outfits, hailing from eight countries have signed up to use the European Film Promotion-operated platform within a platform.
For Asian distributors which did not make it to Berlin and the European Film Market the umbrella allows them to dip into several Berlinale titles where rights in Asia are still available.
These include Coproduction Office’s Berlin competition...
- 3/13/2022
- by Patrick Frater
- Variety Film + TV
Who knows why a sight as pitiful as 14-year-old Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason), the unwashed, neglected child of an abusive stepfather and a largely absent mother, inspires a protective instinct in some kids, and a vicious one in others? Who knows why, at times, a protector can himself become a bully? Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s beautiful and cruel second feature boasts an outstanding juvenile ensemble cast. But almost more than it stars any of them, it stars the ebbs and swells of an inescapable legacy of heteronormative male violence, that fills childhoods with dark, shameful corners that no pale, bright splashes of Icelandic sun can ever warm. In the end, boys will beat boys.
Balli is fleeing another day of peer humiliation and adult inattention at school when three of his schoolmates catch up with him and administer a thrashing so bad it makes the local news and forces him...
Balli is fleeing another day of peer humiliation and adult inattention at school when three of his schoolmates catch up with him and administer a thrashing so bad it makes the local news and forces him...
- 2/24/2022
- by Jessica Kiang
- Variety Film + TV
Spanish director Carla Simón has won the Golden Bear, the top prize at the Berlin Film Festival, for her second feature “Alcarràs,” a moving drama about a Catalan farming family facing eviction from their land. She received the prize from jury president M. Night Shyamalan, capping a strong night for female filmmakers. Full report to follow.
Official Competition
Golden Bear for Best Film: “Alcarràs,” Carla Simón
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize: “The Novelist’s Film,” Hong Sangsoo
Silver Bear Jury Prize: “Robe of Gem,” Natalia Lopez Gallardo
Silver Bear for Best Director: “Fire,” Claire Denis
Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance: “Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush,” Meltem Kaptan
Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance: “Before, Now and Then (Nana),” Laura Basuki
Silver Bear for Best Screenplay: “Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush,” Laila Stieler
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution: “Everything Will Be Ok,” Rithy Panh
Special Mention: “A Piece of Sky,...
Official Competition
Golden Bear for Best Film: “Alcarràs,” Carla Simón
Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize: “The Novelist’s Film,” Hong Sangsoo
Silver Bear Jury Prize: “Robe of Gem,” Natalia Lopez Gallardo
Silver Bear for Best Director: “Fire,” Claire Denis
Silver Bear for Best Leading Performance: “Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush,” Meltem Kaptan
Silver Bear for Best Supporting Performance: “Before, Now and Then (Nana),” Laura Basuki
Silver Bear for Best Screenplay: “Rabiye Kurnaz vs. George W. Bush,” Laila Stieler
Silver Bear for Outstanding Artistic Contribution: “Everything Will Be Ok,” Rithy Panh
Special Mention: “A Piece of Sky,...
- 2/16/2022
- by Guy Lodge
- Variety Film + TV
Aligning itself with the bleaker coming-of-age films, Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson’s Beautiful Beings takes on the glamour and the anxieties that define teenagehood. Through the 39-year-old’s lens, the brutality and camaraderie of these formative years blend seamlessly while conjuring a contemplation of friendship, violence, and abuse that is as humanistic as it is unsettling.
The place is Iceland, and the time, probably not today considering social media’s absence and some rather old-school technology. We meet the film’s protagonist in Addi (Birgir Dagur Bjarkason) as he mockingly calls a victim of bullying, and incidentally his schoolmate Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason) “some total nerd” when the latter makes the news after having been brutally assaulted by his peers. Addi may not be a bad guy after all, though - he and his friends, Konni (Viktor Benóný Benediktsson) and Siggi (Snorri Rafn Frímannsson), later take Balli under their wing. Addi also possesses a peculiar vision-involving.
The place is Iceland, and the time, probably not today considering social media’s absence and some rather old-school technology. We meet the film’s protagonist in Addi (Birgir Dagur Bjarkason) as he mockingly calls a victim of bullying, and incidentally his schoolmate Balli (Áskell Einar Pálmason) “some total nerd” when the latter makes the news after having been brutally assaulted by his peers. Addi may not be a bad guy after all, though - he and his friends, Konni (Viktor Benóný Benediktsson) and Siggi (Snorri Rafn Frímannsson), later take Balli under their wing. Addi also possesses a peculiar vision-involving.
- 2/12/2022
- by Antoni Konieczny
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
Spanish outfit scooped up rights to Aga Woszczyńska’s Toronto title Silent Land and Ukrainian director Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Reflection.
Spain’s Reverso Films has scooped up rights to Aga Woszczyńska’s Toronto title Silent Land and Ukrainian director Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Reflection, both being sold by Jan Naszewski’s Warsaw-based New Europe Film Sales at the EFM.
New Europe is also reporting a Romanian pre-sale to Follow Art Distribution for Dorota Kobiela’s hand-painted animated feature. The Peasants. The ambitiousu film will be Kobiela’s follow-up to the Oscar-nominated Loving Vincent.
Meanwhile Japan’s Skouil and the former Yugoslav...
Spain’s Reverso Films has scooped up rights to Aga Woszczyńska’s Toronto title Silent Land and Ukrainian director Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Reflection, both being sold by Jan Naszewski’s Warsaw-based New Europe Film Sales at the EFM.
New Europe is also reporting a Romanian pre-sale to Follow Art Distribution for Dorota Kobiela’s hand-painted animated feature. The Peasants. The ambitiousu film will be Kobiela’s follow-up to the Oscar-nominated Loving Vincent.
Meanwhile Japan’s Skouil and the former Yugoslav...
- 2/12/2022
- by Geoffrey Macnab
- ScreenDaily
Spanish outfit scooped up rights to Aga Woszczyńska’s Toronto title Silent Land and Ukrainian director Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Reflection.
Spain’s Reverso Films has scooped up rights to Aga Woszczyńska’s Toronto title Silent Land and Ukrainian director Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Reflection, both being sold by Jan Naszewski’s Warsaw-based New Europe Film Sales at the EFM.
New Europe is also reporting a Romanian pre-sale to Follow Art Distribution for Dorota Kobiela’s hand-painted animated feature. The Peasants. The ambitiousu film will be Kobiela’s follow-up to the Oscar-nominated Loving Vincent.
Meanwhile Japan’s Skouil and the former Yugoslav...
Spain’s Reverso Films has scooped up rights to Aga Woszczyńska’s Toronto title Silent Land and Ukrainian director Valentyn Vasyanovych’s Reflection, both being sold by Jan Naszewski’s Warsaw-based New Europe Film Sales at the EFM.
New Europe is also reporting a Romanian pre-sale to Follow Art Distribution for Dorota Kobiela’s hand-painted animated feature. The Peasants. The ambitiousu film will be Kobiela’s follow-up to the Oscar-nominated Loving Vincent.
Meanwhile Japan’s Skouil and the former Yugoslav...
- 2/12/2022
- by Geoffrey Macnab
- ScreenDaily
Stockholm-based production house Hobab whose buzzy Cannes Directors’ Fortnight “Clara Sola” was snapped by New-York-based Oscilloscope Laboratories, is ramping up its ambitions, with female-led projects.
“Our vision is to combine arthouse sensitivity with mainstream appeal, and to help talents – both Nordic and international – grow with care,” said Nima Yousefi, producer and joint owner with Peter Krupenin.
Pedigree European shingles Finland’s Tuffi Films, Denmark’s Toolbox and Italy’s Intramovies have boarded as co-producers Hobab’s next Swedish feature drama “Sisters,” from first-time fiction helmer Mika Gustafson.
Ruben Öslund’s former alumna at Göteborg’s Valand Academy, Gustafson had her international break with the short film “Mephobia,” followed by the doc-biopic “Silvana,” about rapper and feminist icon Silvana Imam.
Due to start lensing in June, “Sisters” is penned by Gustafson with actor-screenwriter Alexander Öhrstrand, seen in “The Bridge” and “The Hunt for a Killer.”
The coming of age story follows...
“Our vision is to combine arthouse sensitivity with mainstream appeal, and to help talents – both Nordic and international – grow with care,” said Nima Yousefi, producer and joint owner with Peter Krupenin.
Pedigree European shingles Finland’s Tuffi Films, Denmark’s Toolbox and Italy’s Intramovies have boarded as co-producers Hobab’s next Swedish feature drama “Sisters,” from first-time fiction helmer Mika Gustafson.
Ruben Öslund’s former alumna at Göteborg’s Valand Academy, Gustafson had her international break with the short film “Mephobia,” followed by the doc-biopic “Silvana,” about rapper and feminist icon Silvana Imam.
Due to start lensing in June, “Sisters” is penned by Gustafson with actor-screenwriter Alexander Öhrstrand, seen in “The Bridge” and “The Hunt for a Killer.”
The coming of age story follows...
- 2/2/2022
- by Annika Pham
- Variety Film + TV
The program announcements continue for the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival this week, with the full Panorama line-up now confirmed.
Adding to the initial titles unveiled back in April are films including Alain Guiraudie’s Nobody’s Hero, which opens the strand this year.
Also confirmed today were the titles that will participate in the Berlinale Series Market and Co-Pro Series event this year.
Taking part in Berlinale Series Market Selects will be The Fear Index, the upcoming show from Left Bank Pictures that is set to star Josh Hartnett, as well as projects from Keshet, Viaplay and Globo. See the full lists below.
Tomorrow, Berlin chiefs Carlo Chatrian and Mariette Rissenbeek will unveil the 2022 Competition line-up at an event that kicks off at 11Am Cet.
Panorama Additions:
Aşk, Mark ve Ölüm
Germany
by Cem Kaya
World premiere / Panorama Dokumente
Baqyt (Happiness)
Kazakhstan
by Askar Uzabayev
with Laura Myrzakhmetova,...
Adding to the initial titles unveiled back in April are films including Alain Guiraudie’s Nobody’s Hero, which opens the strand this year.
Also confirmed today were the titles that will participate in the Berlinale Series Market and Co-Pro Series event this year.
Taking part in Berlinale Series Market Selects will be The Fear Index, the upcoming show from Left Bank Pictures that is set to star Josh Hartnett, as well as projects from Keshet, Viaplay and Globo. See the full lists below.
Tomorrow, Berlin chiefs Carlo Chatrian and Mariette Rissenbeek will unveil the 2022 Competition line-up at an event that kicks off at 11Am Cet.
Panorama Additions:
Aşk, Mark ve Ölüm
Germany
by Cem Kaya
World premiere / Panorama Dokumente
Baqyt (Happiness)
Kazakhstan
by Askar Uzabayev
with Laura Myrzakhmetova,...
- 1/18/2022
- by Tom Grater
- Deadline Film + TV
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