Heartstone
Winning the festival's top NDR Film Prize, Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson's coming-of-age drama was commended by the jury with these words:
"With idiosyncrasy, a steady hand and great intensity, the filmmaker hi-jacks us to a place at the end of the world, where teenagers are in the process of finding themselves. Left to their own devices, they learn what's really important – friendship and integrity. 'Heartstone' is an unsentimental yet moving film debut."
Fresh from winning the audience award at CPH PIX, "Heartstone" has been warmly received at the big festivals since debuting in September in Venice Days, where it was awarded the Queer Lion trophy. The Chicago Film Festival also honoured the film for its LGBT perspective, giving it the Q Hugo Award. In all, ten awards have been accorded to Gudmundsson's debut feature.
The film is produced by Lise Orheim Stender and Jesper Morthorst for SF Studios Production in co-production with Join Motion Pictures of Iceland. Berlin-based Films Boutique are handling sales.
Read interview Boyhood Memories
AUDIENCE AWARD. "The Day Will Come" centres on two boys in an orphanage fighting against a tyrannical headmaster. Photo: Christian Geisnæs
The Day Will Come
Jesper W. Nielsen's drama, winner of Lübeck's Audience Prize, had its domestic premiere in April and sold 244,000 tickets at the cinema, making the film one the year's four most popular Danish films in theatres. In August, "The Day Will Come" received the film critics' FIPRESCI Prize at Haugesund Film Festival.
The film features Sofie Gråbøl and Lars Mikkelsen and is produced by Peter Aalbaek Jensen, Sisse Graum Jørgensen and Louise Vesth for Zentropa.
"Heartstone" and "The Day Will Come" have both received funding from the Danish Film Institute.
58th Nordic Film Days Lübeck 2-6 November 2016
