Festival 2016
January 9th
The Idealist (Denmark)
A whistleblower attempts to reveal the secret behind a nuclear disaster that occurred during the height of the Cold War.
Maiko: Dancing Child (Norway)
Maiko’s destiny was decided before she was born. Her name Maiko means dancing child. Her mother sold their house to send 14 year old Maiko from Japan to the most prestigious dance schools in Europe. From childhood to starting a family of her own we experience this Norwegian National Ballet prima ballerina’s inspirational journey.
The Wave (Norway)
Based on the fact that mountain pass Åkneset, located in the Geiranger fjord in Norway, one day will fall out and create a violent tsunami of over 80 meters that will crush everything in its path before it hits land in Geiranger. A geologist gets caught in the middle of it and a race against time begins.
The Fencer (Finland)
Fleeing from the Russian secret police because of his controversial past, a young Estonian fencer is foced to return to his homeland, where he begins to train a group of young children in the art of fencing. The past however catches up with him and he has to choose between letting his students down or putting his life in danger. The movie is based on the real life story of Estonian fencer Endel Nelis (1925-1993).
January 10th
Horizon (Iceland)
The documentary portrait of Icelandic landscape artist Georg Gudni Hauksson (1961-2011) opens the door to limitless world of an artist whose innovative interpretations of forms and ideas paved the way for a renaissance in Icelandic landscape painting. Interviewee Viggo Mortensen has drawn attention to this film outside of Scandinavia.
Intermezzo (Sweden)
In honor of the 100th Anniversary of Ingrid Bergman’s birth The world famous violinist Holger Brandt comes back to his family after a tour. He and his wife have been married for many years, but their love has gone. Their young daughter gets a new piano teacher, Anita Hoffman. Mr. Brandt fall in love with her and together they go on a world tour. But he soon discovers that the feelings for his wife that he thought were dead return.
A War (Denmark)
Company commander Claus Pedersen and his men are stationed in an Afghan province. Meanwhile back in Denmark, Claus’ wife Maria is trying to hold everyday life together with a husband at war and three children missing their father. During a routine mission, the soldiers are caught in heavy crossfire and in order to save his men, Claus makes a decision that has grave consequences for him and his family back home.
Rams (Iceland)
In a remote Icelandic farming valley, two brothers who haven’t spoken in 40 years have to come together in order to save what’s dearest to them—their sheep.
Catwalk (Sweden)
Ella is nine, and her classmates are either playing in the schoolyard or reading fashion blogs in full adult dress-up. Ella wants to take a step into the world of fashion and style, but her parents refuse to buy her new clothes.
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (Sweden)
Sam and Jonathan, a pair of hapless novelty salesmen, embark on a tour of the human condition in reality and fantasy that unfolds in a series of absurdist episodes.
January 23rd
Moomins On The Riviera (Finland)
The Moomin trolls along with Little My and Snorkmaiden had a sea journey that after storms and desert island dangers leads the family to the Riviera, the place that takes their unity to the test.
The Butterfly Man (Estonia)
Boruslawsky’s Circus is a parallel universe where the boundaries of human capabilities are tested every night. A magician’s assistant Anselm, aspires to his own magic. One night an accident happens when the magician disappears n the middle of the show giving Anselm a chance to realize his dream.
The Summer of Sangaile (Lithuania)
Sangaile, a young girl who, were it not for her fear of heights, would like to become a aerial acrobatics pilot. She meets the charismatic and enthralling Auste—who is all that she would love to be, at a air show near her parents’ lakeside villa and allows her new friend to discover her most intimate secret and in the process finds young love with the only person who truly encourages her to fly.
1944 (Estonia)
The events of the war in 1944, from the Blue Hills to Sörve Peninsula shown through the eyes of Estonian soldiers who had to pick sides and fight against fellow brothers. Choices have to be made, not only by the soldiers, but also by their loved ones. The film was titled for Germany and France as “Brother Enemies.”
Rosita (Denmark)
Johannes lives with his father Ulrik, a middle-aged widower in a small fishing town in the northern part of Denmark. Ulrik is lonely and arranges for the young and beautiful Filipino girl Rosita to come to Denmark—, which many other men in the town have done before him. Johannes translates for his father but finds himself mutually attracted to the newcomer.
January 24th
The Other Girls (Finland)
In 2011 four 18-year-old girls from Helsinki kept provocative video diaries about their lives during the course of a year. Based on true events.
The Lesson (Latvia)
The movie tells the story of an attractive young Russian language teacher who takes a new job in the Latvian city of Riga mentoring an unruly group of seniors--and her relationships with her students, their parents, and her loved ones. With subtlety, empathy, and suspense, the story unfolds a surprising and satisfying character-driven story.
Second Chance (Denmark)
A chilling, yet affecting drama about real people forced into incredible circumstances; a film that confronts our core notions about right and wrong, and those of us who think they can tell the difference; a film that forces us to ask: who are we to think we are better than anyone else? Andreas, a promising young detective, has a lot on his plate. At home, he and his wife, Anne, struggle with their new-born son, who spends every waking hour crying. At work, meanwhile, Andreas struggles to rein in his newly divorced partner Simon, who spends most of his time in strip clubs, drunkenly looking for a fight. One day Andreas and Simon are called out to a domestic disturbance. There they find Tristan, a drug dealer who has a history of violence with which Andreas is only too familiar and who has now resorted to taking his own drugs and forcing his girlfriend, Sanne, to do the same. When Andreas and Simon intervene in the couples bickering, they witness a shocking instance of neglect that sends a livid Andreas into his little familys warm embrace. Then, one night, the unthinkable happens and the little family is struck by sudden tragedy. When Andreas sees his life unravelling, he makes a choice that will lead himself and everyone he knows down a rabbit hole of moral and ethical disarray. As Andreas begins to blur the lines between right and wrong, just and unjust, it falls upon the chaotic Simon to restore the order.
Girls Lost (Sweden)
A new perspective on high-school life results when three misfit girls are mysteriously transformed into boys. Based on an award-wining Swedish young-adult novel Lost Girls is a kind of transgender-Twilight (albeit much edgier) in its portrait of three adolescent outsiders who undergo a startling transformation.