When the Light Breaks, a quiet and haunting drama about grief from Icelandic filmmaker Rúnar Rúnarsson, won the Dragon Award for Best Nordic Film at the 48th Göteborg Film Festival. The award, which comes with a SEK 400,000 ($36,000) cash prize, was announced during the closing gala Sunday night.
Shot on 16mm, When The Light Breaks stars Elín Hall (Cold, Let Me Fall) as a young art student confronted with a sudden loss who has to navigate love, friendship, and grief over an endless long summer day in Iceland. The premiered in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard lineup.
The Göteborg jury, which included filmmakers Ella Lemhagen, Philippe Lesage, Athina Rachel Tsangari, cinematographer JP Passi, and actor Frida Gustavsson, praised the film for its “masterfully calibrated mise en scène, its sensitivity and delicate lightness, and its unexpectedly uplifting treatment of grief.”
The Audience Dragon Award for Best Nordic Film went to Eirik Svensson’s Safe House, a suspense drama based on the true events that unfolded at a Doctors Without Borders hospital in Bangui on Christmas Eve, 2013. The film opened the Göteborg festival.
The gender-neutral acting award was presented to Norway’s Andrea Bræin Hovig for her performance in Dag Johan Haugerud’s dramedy Love. She was recognized for her “subtle, complex, yet powerful” portrayal of a woman exploring her sexuality and casual intimacy. The film, which premiered at the 2024 Venice Film Festival, is part of Haugerud’s Sex, Dreams, Love trilogy, the final entry of which will bow at the Berlin festival later this month.
The Girl with the Needle, Magnus von Horn’s Danish Oscar contender, took the Fipreseci international film critics prize. The period horror/psychological drama starring Trine Dyrholm and Vic Carmen Sonne, first bowed in the Cannes competition. The Göteborg jury cited its “mastery of form, striking camerawork, evocative music, and compelling production design,” as well as its exploration of feminist themes through stark black-and-white cinematography.
In the international competition, Australian stop-motion animator Adam Elliot took home the SEK 50,000 ($4,500) prize for his tragicomedy Memoir of a Snail. The jury praised its “nuanced and tender portrayal of everyday life, illuminated through powerful performances.” An animated feature Oscar nominee, the claymation feature premiered at the Annecy festival last year.
In the documentary competition, the SEK 250,000 ($22,500) prize went to Trans Memoria by Victoria Verseau. The Swedish-French co-production delves into the director’s personal journey of transition in Thailand. The jury highlighted the film’s “unexpected and elegant storytelling” and its “poetic meditation on love, loss, and acceptance.”
Denise Fernandes won the Ingmar Bergman international debut award for Hanami, which was described by the jury as a “bold and beautiful film that defies conventional storytelling, embracing a singular cinematic language.” The film premiered at the Locarno Film Festival, where Fernandes won the best emerging director honor.
Göteborg also presented Honorary Dragon Awards to French star Julie Delpy and Danish director Thomas Vinterberg (Another Round). The Startsladden Best Short Film Award went to Viktor Johansson for True Artist, while the Startsladden Audience Award was given to Cows by Jakob Márky and Kasper Häggström. Fanny Ovesen received the Swedish Church Award for her debut feature Live A Little.
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