At the award ceremony for this year’s online edition of the Lübeck Nordic Film Days (Nordische Filmtage Lübeck), ten prizes were handed out, and for the first time ever, the NDR Film Prize, worth 12,500 euros went to a film from Latvia, director Dace Pūce’s feature debut “The Pit” (“Bedre”).
The prize for Best Feature Debut went to the Finnish film “Games People Play” (“Seurapeli”) by Jenni Toivoniemi. The director had two reasons to celebrate, with her film also winning the Baltic Film Prize for a Nordic film.
The Audience Prize went to a film from Finland, “Forest Giant” (“Metsäjätti”), directed by Ville Jankeri; and the INTERFILM Church Prize went to “A Perfectly Normal Family” (“En helt almindelig Familie”), directed by Denmark’s Malou Reymann.
The Documentary Film Prize was awarded to “The Fight for Greenland” (“Kampen om Grønland”) by Kenneth Sorento, a film that “showed young, politically active people taking the first steps to preserve tradition and foster Greenland’s independence”, as the jury said in its statement.
“I’m very pleased about this round of prizes, which reflect the broad range of the films in competition. I’m also happy about the fact that so many of the prize winners came from female directors. Seven of the 16 Competition films were directed by women and I think the future belongs to them!”, said Linde Fröhlich, Artistic Director of the Nordische Filmtage Lübeck.
To close the award ceremony, Lübeck’s mayor Jan Lindenau, paid homage to Linde Fröhlich, who has been the artistic director of the Nordische Filmtage Lübeck since 2001. Ms Fröhlich is retiring at the end of this year, and Thomas Hailer will be taking over the post in 2021.
Winners of 62nd Nordische Filmtage Lübeck
NDR Film Prize
THE PIT (Bedre), dir: Dace Pūce, Latvia / Finland
Honorable Mention:
HOPE (Håp), dir: Maria Sødahl, Norway / Sweden
DIANA’S WEDDING (Dianas bryllup), dir: Charlotte Blom, Norway / Sweden
Friends of the NFL Prize for Best First Feature:
GAMES PEOPLE PLAY (Seurapeli), dir: Jenni Toivoniemi, Finland
Lübecker Nachrichten Audience Prize
FOREST GIANT (Metsäjätti), dir: Ville Jankeri, Finland
Interfilm Church Film Prize
A PERFECTLY NORMAL FAMILY (En helt almindelig Familie), dir: Malou Reymann, Denmark
Honorable Mention:
TIGERS (Tigrar), Director: Ronnie Sandahl, Sweden / Denmark / Italy
Baltic Film Prize for a Nordic Film
GAMES PEOPLE PLAY (Seurapeli), dir: Jenni Toivoniemi, Finland
Documentary Film Prize of the North DGB District
THE FIGHT FOR GREENLAND (Kampen om Grønland), dir: Kenneth Sorento, Denmark / Greenland / Norway
Honorable Mention:
BEAUTIFUL SOMETHING LEFT BEHIND (Bag skyerne), dir: Kathrine Philp, Denmark
CineStar Prize
AFTER TWO HOURS, TEN MINUTES HAD PASSED (NACH ZWEI STUNDEN WAREN ZEHN MINUTEN VERGANGEN), dir: Steffen Goldkamp, Germany
Honorable Mention:
FIRST IN FIRST OUT, dir: Zacharias Zitouni, Germany
Children’s and Youth Film Prize
SISTERS (Tottori – Sommeren vi var alene), dir: Silje Salomonsen, Arild Østin Ommundsen, Norway
Honorable Mention:
EDEN (Eden), dir: Ulla Heikkilä, Finland
Youth Jury Prize
TIGER (Tigrar), dir: Ronnie Sandahl, Sweden / Denmark / Italy
Children’s Jury Prize
THE CROSSING (Flukten over grensen), dir: Johanne Helgeland, Norway
Honorable Mention:
SISTERS (Tottori – Sommeren vi var alene), dir: Silje Salomonsen, Arild Østin Ommundsen, Norway