Denmark, Norway, Finland and Belgium have submitted Film i Väst’s co-productions in the International Feature Film category for the upcoming Academy Awards. The contenders are Magnus von Horn’s The Girl with the Needle, Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel’s Armand, Tia Kouvo’s Family Time and Leonardo van Dijl’s Julie Keeps Quiet.

Magnus von Horn, The Girl with the Needle

Magnus von Horn’s film had it’s world premiere with his film in the Official selection at the Cannes Film Festival in May.

Karoline (Vic Carmen Sonne), a young factory worker, is struggling to survive in post WW1 Copenhagen. When she finds herself unemployed, abandoned and pregnant, she meets Dagmar (Trine Dyrholm), a charismatic woman running an underground adoption agency, helping mothers to find foster homes for their unwanted children. With nowhere else to turn, Karoline takes on the role of a wet-nurse. A strong connection is formed between the two women, but Karoline’s world shatters when she stumbles upon the shocking truth behind her work.

Inspired by a true story and directed by Magnus von Horn (The Here After, Sweat) The Girl with the Needle is an unsettling tale about a woman struggling to find love and a sense of morality.

Produced by Nordisk Film Creative Alliance in co-production with Film i Väst, Lava Films & Nordisk Film Sverige (Madeleine Ekman), EC1 Lodz Lower Silesia Film Centre with support from Danish Film Institute, Polish Film Institute co-financed production Swedish Film Institute, Nordisk Film /& TV Fond, Creative Europe & Eurimages and in association with Danmarks Radio and Sveriges Television.

 

Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel, Armand

Director and screenwriter Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel received the Caméra d’Or – the Golden Camera – for his work on the feature film Armand at the Cannes Film Festival.

During one fatal afternoon in an empty elementary school the two mothers of Armand and Jon get into a desperate fight to be believed when one son is accused of crossing boundaries against the other. All means are used, and soon a blend of madness, desire and obsession arises. Where the truth lies is impossible to know, and soon everything evolves less and less around the children, who we never meet, and more about the adults.

Starring Renate Reinsve, winner of the palme for Best Female Actress for her role in Joachim Trier’s The Worst Person in the World during the Cannes Film Festival 2021.

Director and script: Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel. Producer: Andrea Berentsen Ottmar, Eye Eye Pictures. Executive Producer: Dyveke Bjørkly Graver, in co-production with Film i Väst, Stina Eriksson and Alicia Hansen, Prolaps Produktion, Koji Nelissen and Derk-Jan Warrink, Keplerfilm, Fred Burle and Sol Bondy, One Two Films. Distribution: Norsk Filmdistribusjon

 

Tia Kouvo, Family Time

The film, by writer/director Tia Kouvo, is a sharp look at the familial ties that bind, following three dysfunctional generations as they come together at their grandparents’ house over the holidays. Ria Kataja, Elina Knihtilä, Leena Uotila, Tom Wentzel and Jarkko Pajunen star in the dark comedy which puts the cringe back in Christmas.

Jussi Rantamäki and Emilia Haukka produced the feature for Aamu Film Company together with Vilda Bomben Film and Film i Väst. The film is a feature adaptation of Kouvo’s 2018 short of the same name.

Family Time premiered in Berlinale’s Encounters section last year and bowed in Finland last November. It went on to sweep Finland’s Academy Awards, the Jussis, taking best film, best director and best screenplay. The Match Factory is handling international sales.

 

Leonardo van Dijl, Julie Keeps Quiet

Belgian director Leonardo van Dijl’s fim Julie Keeps Quiet was selected for the Semaine de la Critique in Cannes and Toronto IFF.

As the star player at an elite tennis academy, Julie’s life revolves around the game she loves. When her coach falls under investigation and is suddenly suspended, all of the club’s players are encouraged to speak up. But Julie decides to keep quiet…

Producer: De Wereldvrede, Gilles De Schryver, Gilles Coulier, Wouter Sap, Roxanne Sarkozi in co-production with Hobab, Nima Yousefi, and Film i Väst,