82 international awards were attributed to Danish films in 2008. The Film Institute's annual record shows that Danish films travelled far and won a handful of A-list awards. The year began with three prominent honours to first-time feature director Omar Shargawi. In February, his "Go With Peace Jamil" won the FIPRESCI Award and the Church Prize in Göteborg, as well as the prestigious VPRO Tiger Award in Rotterdam. Henrik Ruben Genz was recipient of another A-list award. "Terribly Happy", Genz' third feature film, won the Crystal Globe at Karlovy Vary. An achievement that launched the film onto the global market with festival participations in South Korea, Abu Dhabi and the US.Strong line-up in Berlin
Even though Danish films didn't take home awards from the Berlin Festival in 2008, a strong Danish line-up marked its presence in the German film capital.Berlin veteran Søren Kragh-Jacobsen's "What No One Knows" was selected for the esteemed Panorama programme, and the three films in the Generation programmes reflected Danish cinema's strong hand in films for children and youth: Natasha Arthy's "Fighter", Niels Arden Oplev's "Worlds Apart", and Jannik Hastrup and Flemming Quist Møller's "A Tale of Two Mozzies".Proud trend in Amsterdam
As to documentaries, 2008 also bore fruit. Anders Høgsbro Østergaard's "BURMA VJ – Reporting from a Closed Country" was honoured with IDFA's Joris Ivens Award and also received the Movies That Matter Award.Consequently, "BURMA VJ" continued a proud trend at IDFA. For the third time in seven years, the Joris Ivens Award went to a Danish film. First time was in 2001 with Sami Saif and Phie Ambo's "Family", second time was Pernille Rose Grønkjær's "The Monastery" in 2006. As in previous years, IDFA showcased a diverse cross section of Danish documentaries. Besides "BURMA VJ", the line-up consisted of Janus Metz' twin films "Love on Delivery" and "Ticket to Paradise", Anders Gustafsson og Patrik Book's "Little Miss Grown-Up" plus the two Film School films "12 Notes Down" and "A Day in the Smoke" by Andreas Koefoed. Honours to Asger Leth in Los Angeles and New York
Asger Leth, who recently announced that he will be directing a Hollywood production featuring Sean Penn, won the attention of an American audience with his documentary "Ghosts of Cité Soleil".Leth received the DGA Award for best documentary director in Los Angeles and also made it to the podium at the Cinema Eye Honours in New York with an award for production. Also awarded in New York was Pernille Rose Grønkjær's "The Monastery" for Outstanding Achievement in an international feature. A global outlook in Toronto
An important manifestation for Danish films outside Europe is the Toronto Film Festival – a gateway to the North American and Asian markets.Again in 2008, the Danish Film Institute was actively present at the festival to help promote the participating four films, which included Kristian Levring's "Fear Me Not", Thomas Borch Nielsen's "Sunshine Barry & the Disco Worms", Ole Christian Madsen's "Flame & Citron" and Jan Troell's "Everlasting Moments". 203 films showcased at 392 festivals
The festival unit at the Danish Film Institute works closely with producers, sales agents and festival directors coordinating the exhibition of Danish films around the world. In 2008, these efforts added up to 203 films being showcased at 392 festivals. "It's important that Danish films make a strong mark internationally," says Steffen Andersen-Møller, Head of Audience & Promotion at the Danish Film Institute. "In general, Danish films enjoy high standing abroad and have sold well on the European market over the last years. Our festival activities are vital to this, and not least, they help promote international financing through co-production, which is crucial to a small industry like Denmark," says Steffen Andersen-Møller.
For further information:
Awards 2008
The overview (Excel spreadsheet) shows all awards, both national and international, attributed to Danish films in 2008 – many of which have received awards in 2007 and are still active on the international festival circuit.
Awards in recent years
Overviews sorted by year and by major festivals.
Awards 2008 / some figures
82 international awards were given to Danish films
51 of the awards were given to feature films
31 of the awards were given to shorts and documentaries
50 of the awards were given to films supported by the consultant scheme
18 of the awards were given to films supported by New Danish Screen
7 of the awards were given to films supported by the 60/40 scheme
4 of the awards were given to films without production support from DFI
3 of the awards were given to films supported by DFI's Film Workshop
Festival participation 2008 / some figures
203 films in all were shown at festivals
392 festivals had Danish participation
109 feature films were shown at 266 festivals
94 shorts and documentaries were shown at 178 festivals
888 bookings for Danish films were placed DFI factsheets / feature films
Go With Peace Jamil/ Gå med fred Jamil – Ma salama Jamil
Terribly Happy/ Frygtelig lykkelig
What No One Knows/ Det som ingen ved
Fighter/ Fighter
Worlds Apart/ To verdener
A Tale of Two Mozzies/ Cykelmyggen og Dansemyggen
Fear Me Not/ Den du frygter
Sunshine Barry & the Disco Worms/ Disco Ormene
Flame & Citron/ Flammen & Citronen
Everlasting Moments/ Maria Larssons evige øjeblikDFI factsheets / shorts and documentaries
BURMA VJ – Reporting from a Closed Country/ BURMA VJ – Reporter i et lukket land
Ghosts of Cité Soleil/ Ghosts of Cité Soleil
The Monastery/ The Monastery
Love on Delivery/ Fra Thailand til Thy
Ticket to Paradise/ Fra Thy til Thailand
Little Miss Grown-Up/ Lille voksen
12 Notes Down/ 12 toner ned
A Day in the Smoke/ A Day in the SmokeDanish Film Institute
Steffen Andersen-Møller, Head of Audience & Promotion, +45 3374 3550, sam@dfi.dk
Henrik Bo Nielsen, CEO, +45 3374 3501, hbn@dfi.dk