Iceland’s writer/director Guðmundur Arnar Guðmundsson (pictured) who had his break through with the award-winning short film Whale Valley (2013), is due to start filming on August 10 his first feature film.

The coming of age drama Heartstone (Hjartasteinn) jointly produced by Join Motion Pictures (Iceland) and SF Film Production (Denmark) was just awarded €320,000 from Eurimages. The film focuses on two close friends Christian and Thor, living in a small Icelandic fishing village. Their bond is tested when Christian discovers he has feelings for Thor who’s in love with a girl. Danish producer Jesper Morthorst who boarded the project two years ago, says Heartstone is ‘a coming of age story reminiscent of Lukas Moodysson’s early films, appealing both to youth audiences and adults. “

The €2m project backed by the Danish Film Institute and the Icelandic Film Centre will be released in Iceland by Sena.

Four other Nordic projects received support from the Council of Europe’s Eurimages.
- The Swedish film The Nile Hilton Incident by Tarik Saleh (Metropia) was awarded €470,000. Atmo Film’s producer Kristina Åberg says the drama inspired by true events is based on Saleh’s original script. Set against the backdrop of the Egyptian Revolution, the thriller features police officer Ahmed Noredin who investigates the murder of a woman. But what initially seems to be a killing of a prostitute turns into a more complex case involving the very elite of Egypt. Shooting is set to start in October 2015 for the Swedish/Danish/German co-production. 

- Wolf and Sheep, the debut feature of Afghan filmmaker Shahrbanoo Sadat was awarded €140,000. The film tells about a small village in rural Afghanistan and its inhabitants’ believes and traditions. Coproducers are Adomeit Film/Wolf Pictures (Denmark), Zentropa International (Sweden) and La Fabrica Nocturna (France).

- The Norwegian animated documentary film The Tower by Mats Grorud was awarded €350,000. The film based on interviews with Palestinian refugees in Lebanon explores the surrealism of life as refugees. Tenk.tv in Norway is producing with France’s Les Contes modernes and Sweden’s Cinenic Film.

- Sami Blood (Sameblod) by Amanda Kernel was awarded €330,000. Co-producers are Sweden’s Nordisk Film Production/Bauta Film and Norway’s Digipilot.