Goteborg to spotlight Norwegian features

By Jorn Rossing Jensen2013-01-25T14:50:00+00:00

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Sweden’s 36^th Göteborg International Film Festival, which opens tonight (Jan 25) with Norwegian directors Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning’s action-adventure Kon-Tiki, have improved services for the 1,500 film professionals expected for the showcase, which runs through Feb 4.

A new press and industry centre at Göteborg’s Stora Teatern is ready to receive the festival guests, including around 360 local and international partipants in the Nordic Film Market between Jan 31-Feb 3. “Every year we register an increasing interest both for market and festival,” said market director Cia Edström.

New director Carlo Chatrian, of the Locarno International Film Festival, is on his first visit to Göteborg, and the French presence is stronger than ever, with 21 buyers, sellers and festival programmers. Among newcomers are representatives of Haut et Court, Pretty Pictures, Les Films de Losange, Gaumont and MK2.

17 Nordic films fresh from the lab will unspool in Scandinavia’s largest festival, including Danish directors Annette K Olesen’s Skytten (The Shooter), Michael Noer’s Nordvest (Northwest), Finnish director Simo Halinen’s Kerron sinulle kaiken (Open Up to Me) and Norwegian director Hisham Zaman’s Før snøen faller (Before Snowfall).

Norway dominates the market selection of works-in-progress, with five entries/three feature debuts: Iram Haq’s I Am Yours (Jeg er din), Mona Fastvold’s Søvngjengeren (Sleepwalker) and Eskil Vogt’s Blind.

Swedish director Lisa Langseth is back with Hotell (Hotel), and Danish director Søren Kragh-Jacobsen with I lossens time (The Hour of the Lynx).

“Personally I am curious about the Nordic Film Lab Discovery, where former participants in our talent development programme from all over Scandinavia will introduce themselves and their upcoming projects at seminar with UK former editor, now sales executive Mike Goodridge,” Edström concluded.

The 8^th International TV Drama seminar (on Jan 31) looks Beyond Nordic Crime and at the latest trends in Scandinavian television, with the UK’s ex-drama and new BBC talent controller John Yorke, French Haut et Court producer Jimmy Desmarais and Finnish broadcaster Johanna Koljonen.