The Prizes have been Awarded – The 68th Nordic Film Days comes to a festive conclusion
Lübeck, November 8, 2026. The prize winners of the 68th Nordic Film Days were awarded the coveted Lübeck brick Saturday evening at the Prize Gala at Theater Lübeck. The total prize money this year was 70,000 euros. The Gala is the high point and conclusion of the six-day festival.
Yesterday evening, the stage at Theater Lübeck played host to the prize-winners of the 68th Nordic Film Days. The audience celebrated the winning films and their directors alongside Nordic and Baltic industry professionals. The Prize Gala brings to a festive conclusion six days full of movie highlights, encounters, and dialogue. The festival once again brought together Lübeck audiences, film fans from near and far, and industry players from the Nordic and Baltic countries.
The juries awarded 11 prizes this year, endowed for a total of 70,000 euros. Loretta Stern reprised her role from opening night, November 4, as MC of the event. Among those speaking were actor Jürgen Vogel, who presented the award for best first narrative feature, and Estonian director Anna Hints for the NDR film prize.
Three Sámi Films Vied in the Competition
The NDR film prize, which carries the largest endowment at 12,500 euros, went to No Rest for the Wicked by Danish director Kasper Kalle. “True love is rare, fragile, and often under attack. In this tale of Romeo and Romeo, we felt just how fierce it can be.”, said the NDR jury about its choice. The jury also awarded an Honourable Mention to Ulya by Latvian director Viesturs Kairišs.
The film Brace Your Heart by director Amanda Kernell came away with two awards – the Audience Prize, endowed with 7,500 euros by the non-profit Gemeinnützigen organisation, and the Interfilm Church Prize worth 5,000 euros. Director Elle Sofe Sara was awarded the Baltic Film Prize for a Nordic narrative film for Árru. The prize is endowed with 5,000 euros by Baltic Films.
The prize for best narrative debut went to Danish director Mads Mengel for his film The Guest. The award is endowed with 7,500 euros provided by the Friends of the Nordic Film Days Lübeck.
The award for best Nordic or Baltic short film, endowed by Lübeck’s Stadtwerken public utilities with 5,000 euros, went to The End by director Niki Lindroth von Bahr. The jury gave honourable mention to Class Photo by Arnas Balčiūnas from Lithuania.
Endowed with 5,000 euros by trade union ver.di Lübeck / southeast Holstein district, the Documentary Film Prize was awarded to Let Our Mountains Live, directed by Norway’s Håvard Bustnes.
This year’s CineStar Prize honours The B-side of the Landscape by Philipp Hartmann. The prize is endowed with 5,000 euros by the CineStar Group.
Three prizes were handed out in the Young Audience section. The Children’s jury, in cooperation with the SUPERKUNSTFESTIVAL, awarded its prize, endowed with 5,000 euros, to The Mystery Package by Silje Evensmo Jacobsen from Norway. The Youth Jury, made up of local teens ranging in age from 14 to 17, awarded a prize, endowed by Theater Lübeck with 5,000 euros, to Morten directed by Estonian Ivan Pavljutškov. And the Young Audience Prize of the Gemeinnützigen Sparkassenstiftung (Savings Bank Foundation) and its endowment of 7,500 euros went to the film Skiff by Belgian director Cecilia Verheyden.
The festival’s unendowed Honorary Award was presented on November 4 to Anne Lajla Utsi, director of the International Sámi Film Institute. The recipients of the fourth Lübeck Script Development grant were also announced on opening night – Johanna Domke, Arne Körner und Rafael Stachowiak.
Notable Guests included Diplomats and Politicians
It is not only the prize-winners who celebrate their awards, but also many international filmmakers and industry professionals, as well as prominent people from the worlds of diplomacy and politics. Among the guests at Saturday’s gala were the honorary consul of Denmark, Dietmar Otto Reich, his Lithuanian counterpart, and Bernd Jorkisch, honorary consul of Finland. Invited guests included deputy city council president Peter Petereit, Jan Lindenau, mayor of Lübeck, Monika Frank, Lübeck’s senator for culture and education, David Nethen, senator designate for culture and education, Tim Klüssendorf, secretary general and member of parliament, Anette Röttger and Uta Röpke, members of the state assembly, Karl-Matthias Klause and the general consul for Germany in Gdańsk, Carsten Bliddal.
Many of the Nordic Film Day’s partners and sponsors were also in attendance. Their unwavering commitment is an important cornerstone, without which the 68th festival would not have been possible.
The evening closed with Susanne Kasimir once again taking the stage. Lübeck’s mayor Jan Lindenau thanked the managing director not only for this, her last festival, but for her tireless commitment to the NFL in the last seven years.
The Nordic Film Days Lübeck closes on November 8, 2026. This festival had 186 films and 243 public events on offer. Tickets for the last day of the festival were available to buy. In addition, the NFL streaming programme runs until midnight on November 15 at online.nordische-filmtage.de, showing more than half of the festival programme, including all the TV series.
All Prizes and Sponsors at the 68th Nordic Film Days Lübeck
NDR FILM PRIZE
Endowed by broadcaster Norddeutscher Rundfunk
12,500 euros
No Rest for the Wicked / Eine Matrosengeschichte (Denmark / Faroe Islands / Iceland) by Kasper Kalle
Honourable Mention
Ulya / Uļa (Latvia / Estonia / Lithuania / Poland) by Viesturs Kairišs
FRIENDS OF THE NFL PRIZE FOR BEST FIRST NARRATIVE FEATURE
Endowed by Friends of the Nordic Film Days Lübeck
7,500 euros
The Guest / Gæsten (Denmark) by Mads Mengel
AUDIENCE PRIZE
Endowed by GEMEINNÜTZIGEN
7,500 euros
Brace Your Heart / Garrat du váimmu – Gör hjärtat hårt (Sweden / Norway / Iceland / Bulgaria) by Amanda Kernell
INTERFILM CHURCH PRIZE
Endowed by the Lübeck-Lauenburg Protestant-Lutheran church district
5,000 euros
Brace Your Heart / Garrat du váimmu – Gör hjärtat hårt (Sweden / Norway / Iceland / Bulgaria) by Amanda Kernell
BALTIC FILM PRIZE FOR A NORDIC NARRATIVE FEATURE
Endowed by Baltic Films
5,000 euros
Árru (Norway / Sweden / Finland) by Elle Sofe Sara
DOCUMENTARY FILM PRIZE
Endowed by trade union ver.di Lübeck/South-East Holstein
5,000 euros
Let Our Mountains Live / La fjella leve (Norway / Finland) by Håvard Bustnes
CINESTAR PRIZE
Endowed by the CineStar Group
5,000 euros
Auf der Rückseite der Landschaft / The B-side of the Landscape (Germany) by Philipp Hartmann
Honourable Mention
Hinterlegte Nummern / Approved Numbers (Germany) by Farina Mietchen
YOUNG AUDIENCE FILM PRIZE
Endowed by the Gemeinnützigen Sparkassenstiftung Lübeck
7,500 euros
Skiff (Belgium / Sweden / Netherlands) by Cecilia Verheyden
CHILDREN’S JURY PRIZE
Sponsored by the Superkunstfestival
5,000 euros
Mysteriepakken / The Mystery Package (Norway) by Silje Evensmo Jacobsen
YOUTH JURY PRIZE
Sponsored by Theater Lübeck
5,000 euros
Morten (Estonia / Lithuania) by Ivan Pavljutškov
PRIZE FOR BEST NORDIC OR BALTIC SHORT FILM
Endowed by the Stadtwerken Lübeck (Lübeck public utilities)
5,000 euros
The End (Sweden / France / Denmark) by Niki Lindroth von Bahr
Honourable Mention
Class Photo / Klasės nuotrauka (Lithuania) by Arnas Balčiūnas
HONORARY PRIZE
Sponsored by the Nordic Film Days Lübeck
Unendowed
Anne Lajla Utsi
Press materials:
The jury’s statements will be available here from 11.00 pm:
https://nordische-filmtage.de/de/ueberuns-profil/preise-und-juries/jurybegruendungen-2026
Film stills and festival photos:
https://nordischefilmtage.de/de/presse/fotos
Press releases
https://nordischefilmtage.de/de/presse/meldungen
Complete information about the 68th Nordic Film Days Lübeck can be found at our website www.nordische-filmtage.de and on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
