Guests of the 48th Nordic Film Days Lübeck

Ane Dahl Torp

The guest list of this year’s Nordic Film Days Lübeck is particularly varied and promises exciting encounters with well-known producers, successful directors and popular actors. Actress Ane Dahl Torp, for example, who was introduced at the Berlinale as Norway’s Shooting Star, can be seen in three of the competition feature films: the opener “No Tears” from Sweden and the two Norwegian entries “URO” and “Comrade Pedersen”. Norwegian actor Trond Fausa Aurvåg, who plays “The Bothersome Man” in Jens Lien’s film of that title, was awarded an Amanda as Best Norwegian Actor this year. Samuli Vauramo, who stars as DJ Sune “Beauty and the Bastard”, has become the heart-throb of Finnish girls who saw the popular movie. And another promising young star is Mohammed-Ali Bakier, the lead in Annette K. Olesen’s “1:1 (One to One)”, his very first film role.

The opening competition film “No Tears” will be represented by director Håkan Bjerking as well as by producer Sigve Endresen, who is also producer of the Norwegian feature “Comrade Pedersen”. The director of that film, Hans Petter Moland, who won the NDR Film Prize in 2000 for “Aberdeen”, will be here to introduce it. His Norwegian colleague Christopher Nielsen, director of the anarchistic animation film “Free Jimmy”, is presenting the German premiere as an NFL-Special. Swedish director Lena Einhorn will introduce her portrait of her mother, “Nina’s Journey”, also screening as a Special.

Director Ole Christian Madsen is coming straight to Lübeck after the Copenhagen premiere of his film “Prague”, a further highlight of the competition programme. Also from Denmark is Preben Lorentzen with his film “Green Hearts”.

Peeter Simm is presenting his Estonian-German co-production “Fed Up!” during the Film Days. Timo Koivusalo from Finland is bringing “The Leaning Tower” to the festival. After presenting “The Lease” in Lübeck in 2002, filmmaker Kristijonas Vildziunas, together with his wife and producer Uljana Kim, is back with “You Am I”. And finally, the German director Uwe Janson brings his brand-new “Peer Gynt” for the tribute to the dramatist Henrik Ibsen.

Numerous documentary filmmakers will also accompany their films to Lübeck. From Denmark we welcome Anne Regitze Wivil with “The Land of Human Beings – My Film about Greenland” and Anders Østergaard with his portrait of the rock band “Gasolin”. Jouko Aaltonen also examines music history in his Finnish documentary “Revolution”, while Tarja Mattila portrays the working world of Finnish women in “Tobacco Girls”. Four Norwegian documentarists will present their films: Jørgen Tjemsland (“Hope Island”), David Kinsella (“Love Letters from a Children’s Prison”), Charlotte Røhder Tvedt (“The Interview”) und Alexander Wisting (“The Lion – Henrik Ibsen”). We are hoping to welcome Swedish filmmaker Stefan Jarl back to Lübeck, who was here for a tribute to his work in 2004 and now has the new documentary “The Girl from Auschwitz”. Also coming from Sweden are Anders Wahlgren with “Sigrid and Isaac” and Agnieszka Lukasiak with “Forgotten”. Further guests are Peter Ramseier from Switzerland with “Näkkälä”, Hardi Volmer from Estonia with “Pärnography” and Latvian filmmaker Ivars Zviedris with “Get Lost”.

Many of the directors from the Children’s and Youth Film Programme will also introduce their films personally in Lübeck. From Sweden we have Anders Gustafsson with his film “Percy, Buffalo Bill & I”. Two directors are coming from Norway: Bjørn Fast Nagell (“Playing Wide”) und Khalid Hussain (“Import Export”). Saara Cantell is bringing “Unna and Nuuk” from Finland, while Katrin Laur sails in from Estonia with her Viking adventure “Ruudi”. Danish director Niels Arden Oplev will introduce his film “We Shall Overcome”, the biggest box office family film hit in Denmark 2006.

Star guest of the Filmforum Schleswig-Holstein is without a doubt singer Gitte Haenning. Together with her sister and director Mark Boettcher, she will personally present her cinematic biography “The Gitte Haenning Story” in CineStar Kino 3. Such legendary musicians as Kurt Kiesewetter and Ladi Geisler also appear in the portrait and plan to come to the premiere. Besides many of the Filmforum directors, we are expecting former kickbox world champion Bruce Özbek, the protagonist of the film portrait “Journeyman – The Bruce Özbek Story”. Heinz Maurus, head of the state chancellery of the Land Schleswig-Holstein, will officially open the Filmforum Schleswig-Holstein.

25 october 2006