The 2023 Scandinavian Film Festival returns to Perth 20 July – 9 August with a line-up that will warm the winter chill.
Showcasing the best new cinema from the Nordic region, a selection of first highlights have been announced which provide a first look to what’s to come for lovers of Scandi cinema. With fresh new films from Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark and Iceland, they promise an invigorating mix of drama, comedy and the very popular Nordic noir.
The full program is not released until later this month but a few of the films being featured have been highlighted.
Four Little Adults is described as a modern love story from Finland. A drama with touching and funny moments alike, a middle-aged couple on the verge of a breakup decide to open their relationship and enter the complex world of polyamory.
Director Selva Velhuden was nominated for an Oscar in 2014 for her short film Do I Have to Take Care of Everything? Now she returns with this though provoking feature. Opening up a relationship can be a process filled with excitement and anxiety, adding to the complexity of this couple’s lives in their roles in society, one is a political high-flyer, while the other is a priest.
Award winning writer/director Hlynur Pálmason’s follow-up to his breakout hit A White, White Day is stunning historical drama Godland (Volaða land) which is the 2023 Festival Centrepiece.
Featuring stunning landscapes, it tells the story of a Danish priest who goes on a pilgrimage across a largely unexplored Iceland in the late 1800s. It stars Danish-American actor Elliot Crosset Hove in the central role, he was most recently seen in Wildland which screened at last year’s festival.
Based on real events is Let the River Flow (Ellos eatnu – La elva leve), a moving portrayal of the indigenous Sámi peoples’ struggle for survival. Set in 1970s Norway it follows a young woman’s personal journey to reclaim her Sámi identity. When she suddenly finds herself in the middle of demonstrations against a big dam development in Alta, a personal journey out of the shame she has carried begins.
The film has been praised for its nuanced depiction of racism and it’s host portrayal of a confronting period of Norwegian history.
From Denmark comes Fathers and Mothers (Fædre & mødre), a humorous portrait of the challenges of being parents to school-aged children. Featuring an all-star ensemble cast, the comedy follows a couple who must navigate hierarchy, rivalry and hidden agendas at their daughter’s new school.
For lovers of Nordic noir is Shadow Island (Wyspa cien) from Sweden. A pulse-pounding thriller, featuring a cast of up-and-coming talent, in which an aspiring meteorologist sets off to a deserted island in the Barents Sea in search of the truth about his father’s passing.
shadow island – Trailer | fantasy filmfest nights 2023 from fantasy filmfest on Vimeo.
The 2023 Scandinavian Film Festival will take place from 20 July to 9 August. The full program will be announced on 22 June when tickets go on sale.
OIP Staff
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