During this year's edition of the Cannes Marché held online 22-26 June, Scandinavian Films offered a series of webinars for the international film community.
The umbrella organisation for the Nordic Film Institutes hosted five panel discussions on key topics – pandemic production, sustainability, new audience approaches, Nordic genre talents and how to move on to your first feature.
If you missed the live transmissions in June or want to revisit the discussions, you can find all five webinars, moderated by Screen International editor Wendy Mitchell, below:
Pandemic Production: Lessons Learned in the Nordics
In the midst of the Coronavirus global pandemic, film and TV productions restarted (safely) earlier in the Nordics than the rest of the world. Learn from directors and producers how their shoots have resumed safely, as they discuss case studies of how exactly they have met the challenge of new health, safety and social distancing measures, as well as new insurance and financing challenges.
Panel: Aage Aaberge, producer, Nordisk Film, 'Narvik' (Norway), Nina Laurio, producer and partner, Dionysos Films (Finland), Lars Bredo Rahbek, Head of Production, SF Studios Denmark, 'Margrete – Queen of the North' (Denmark), Kristinn Thordarson, Head of Production, Truenorth (Iceland), Sara Young, writer/director, 'Most Unwanted' (Sweden).
The film industry shares the globe’s growing concern about sustainability. There are many positive steps that film productions and the film ecosystem can take to make themselves more 'green'. Hear from Nordic Scandinavian experts about practical suggestions and new ways of thinking to make your business and your films more sustainable.
Panel: Ronny Fritsche, Film i Väst (Sweden), Ásthildur Kjartansdóttir, director, 'The Deposit' (Iceland), Anne Ahn Lund, Jordnaer Creative (Denmark), Mads Astrup Rønning, Founder and Creative Director at Babusjka & Founder of Green Producers Club (Norway), Saara Saarela, director, 'Memory of Water' (Finland), Mikael Svensson, Film Commissioner, Southern Sweden Film Commission (Sweden).
Reaching Audiences in 2020 and Beyond
Learn how Nordic distributors and exhibitors are adapting to the unprecedented times of 2020 both with cinema and VOD releases. What innovative approaches are helping films reach audiences, and how will distribution and exhibition adapt even when the world gets "back to normal". Experts from across the Nordics will present case studies from their own countries, offering lessons learned and ideas about the future.
Panel: Ditte Daubjerg Christensen, Managing Director, Øst for Paradis (Denmark), Peter Fornstam, CEO, Svenska Bio (Sweden), Truls Foss, Head of Programme Cinema, VEGA Scene (Norway), Jonas Holmberg, Artistic Director, Göteborg Film Festival (Sweden), Mika Siltala, CEO, Cinema Mondo (Finland), Hrönn Sveinsdóttir, Managing Director, Bio Paradis, (Iceland).
Fresh Flesh: The Rising Nordic Genre Talents
Meet the new voices in Nordic genre filmmaking. We talk to rising genre talents about their upcoming projects, and also about trends in genre filmmaking. How are they exploring new ideas with genre and what's so special about genre storytelling in the Nordics?
Panel: Hanna Bergholm, writer/director, 'The Hatching' (Finland), Emma Broström, writer, 'Knocking' (Sweden), Kjersti Helen Rasmussen, writer/director, 'The Nightmare' (Norway), Marc Fussing Rosbach, director, 'Tarratta Nunaanni' (Greenland), Sissel Dalgaard Thomsen, writer, 'Breeder' (Denmark), Marteinn Thorsson, writer/director, 'Recurrence' (Iceland).
Getting Your First Feature off the Ground
You’ve made great shorts, TV episodes, webseries or commercials, but want to take your career to the next level. Does it feel impossible to make that big leap to your first feature film? Filmmakers from across the Nordics discuss how they have moved onto their debut feature, and what they learned on their journey.
Panel: Khadar Ahmed, writer/director, 'Gravedigger' (Finland), Nathalie Álvarez Mesén, writer/director, 'Clara Sola' (Sweden), Erika Calmeyer, writer/director, 'Storm' (Norway), Tinna Hrafnsdóttir, writer/director, 'Quake' (Iceland), Lisa Jespersen, writer/director, 'Persona non Grata' (Denmark), Ninja Thyberg, writer/director, 'Pleasure' (Sweden).