30 New Nordic Films On Offer At EFM

Nearly 1,340 international buyers are expected at the Berlin's European Film Market that opened for business yesterday, anxious to find the right products among the 670 new films on offer and to discuss upcoming projects. Among the new films screening at the various market and festival venues are over 30 titles from the Nordic region. Norway has the heaviest load of new films (9), followed by Sweden (7), Denmark and Finland (6 each) and Iceland (3).

Most Nordic films are handled by the three major Scandinavian-based sales companies. TrustNordisk has two films in the main competition programme: Pernille Fischer Christensen's A Family, Hans Petter Moland's A Somewhat Gentle Man and the children's film Superbrother by Birger Larsen (Best Children and Youth Film at the Robert awards) screening at Generation K+. Market premieres (by invitation only) include Josef Fares' comedy Balls (opening in Sweden today) and Daniel Espinosa's Easy Money, one of the hot tickets at the recent Nordic Film Market in Göteborg. TrustNordisk will also show a promo reel of Susanne Bier's The Revenge, scheduled to open this summer in Denmark. "The EFM is the perfect showroom for our films; maximum exposure, great network and most importantly - the market where we close most deals every year", said CEO Rikke Ennis.

SF International has several Norwegian titles on its line up: Christian Lo's feature debut Rafiki, selected for the Berlinale Generation K+ section, Sara Johnsen's critical and audience success Upperdog, Matias Armand Jordal's Together, the thriller Detour, the WW2 drama Betrayal as well as the Swedish youth film Starring Maja.

Nonstop Sales is premiering three Nordic box office hits: the children's fantasy film Magic Silver (350,000 admissions in Norway), The Wedding Photographer (340,000 admissions in Sweden) and the biggest Danish hit of 2009 What Goes Around. The company headed by Michael Werner will also show a promo of the Finnish 3D animation film Moomins & the Comet Chase, ready for Cannes 2010.

Tine Klint's new Nordic sales outfit LevelK will premiere the Norwegian youth film Vegas and the Estonian/Swedish/Finnish film The Temptation of St Tony.

The high profile German sales company The Match Factory has no less than three Nordic titles in Berlin: Thomas Vinterberg's Submarino, screening in official competition, Charlotte Sieling's Above the Street Below the Water, screening (by invitation only) at the market, and Aleksi Salmenperä's Bad Family, screening at the Panorama. The two first titles were picked up through The Match Factory's good relations with Denmark's Nimbus Film and the third one through its long term collaboration with Aki Kaurismäki's Sputnik Oy.

Other German sales companies handling Nordic titles include Bavaria Film International, finishing up sales on Ole Bornedal's Deliver us fro Evil, and Sola Media who just picked up the Norwegian children's hit Twigson. Guido Rud's Argentine based Film Sharks International is premiering at the market the multi-awarded Finnish film Letters to Father Jacob, as well as the Swedish film Guidance.

The Toronto-based Cinevault is continuing selling the Icelandic thriller Reykjavik Whale Watch Massacre, and the French sales company Wide Management the Finnish hit The House of Branching Love. Nordic titles screening in Berlin, with no sales agent attached (at press time) include the Generation selections Sebbe by Sweden's Babak Najafi (winner of the Church of Sweden award in Göteborg) and Pudana Last of the Line by Finland's Anastasia Lapsui and Markku Lehmuskallio.

The Finnish Film Foundation is screening at the market Twisted Roots by Saara Saarela and The Interrogation by Jörn Donner, while the Icelandic Film Centre is representing the local hit Mr. Bjarnfredarson by Ragnar Bragason (Children) and the comedy The Big Rescue.