Prague, January 4, 2024 - A showcase of contemporary Nordic films will dominate cinemas throughout the Czech Republic from January 17th to 24th, 2024. This special tenth anniversary edition of SCANDI will open with the highly anticipated historical drama and Danish Oscar contender, The Promised Land starring Mads Mikkelsen. Among the featured films will also be Danish romantic drama The Kiss by director and winner of two Golden Palms from Cannes, Bille August, who will come to Prague to present the film in person. The showcase will take place in collaboration with the Embassy of the Kingdom of Denmark in Prague.
Led by Ivan Hronec, director of film distribution company Film Europe, the Scandi Film Festival is celebrating its first decade and as usual, will bring notable titles from contemporary cinema from Nordic countries, including Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Iceland. The show will take place between January 17th and 24th, 2024, and will symbolically present 10 premieres and 3 special screenings in more than 30 Czech cinemas.
In partnership with the Embassy of the Kingdom of Denmark in Prague, Scandi will present the much anticipated film from Nikolaj Arcel (director of The Royal Affair), The Promised Land, an epic historical drama starring Mads Mikkelsen. The Promised Land is about the conquest of the Danish moors in the 18th century and the unbridled ambitions of one man, which won three awards at the European Film Academy for Best Acting, Cinematography and Costumes. The film had its world premiere in the main competition at this year's Venice IFF and is currently a hot candidate for an Oscar nomination for Denmark. In the drama, Mikkelsen takes on the role of Ludvig Kahlen, a taciturn but principled and courageous man who fights against evil, death and damnation. The Promised Land will open Scandi on 1/17/2024 in Kino Lucerna at 18:00.
Also from Denmark, Scandi will present new romantic drama The Kiss from director Bille August, one of only nine winners of two Golden Palm awards from Cannes and the director of films such as Pelle the Conqueror (1987), Les Miserables (1998) and Night Train to Lisbon (2013). The Kiss follows Anton, a young man in pre-war Europe who longs to clear his family's name, but instead becomes entangled in a web of promises, lies and moral obligations. Bille August will come to Prague to introduce his film in person and will participate in discussions with the audience both in Prague's Kino Lucerna and Edison Filmhub. The complete program can be found at the bottom of the press release.
This year’s programme also has two noteworthy thrillers in the Danish selection. The first being Birthday Girl starring Trine Dyrholm, a film about a mother who persistently seeks justice for her daughter whose rape on an ocean cruise is not taken seriously. After the screening on January 22 at 19:00, the director will join for an online discussion in Edison Filmhub, which will be led by film journalist Tereza Domínová.
The second thriller is Darkland: The Return, the sequel to the successful Danish action thriller, whose main character Zaid is released from prison after seven years in exchange for an undercover job for the police and the opportunity to see his seven-year-old estranged son. Zaid desperately tries to combine his life as an undercover police associate in a violent gang while also trying to become a decent father.
Swedish cinema will be represented with three premiere films at Scandi this year. Among them, the satirical, playful and absurd Gallery of God, where art goes through existential crisis, as well as One Day All This Will Be Yours, a feel-good dramedy about a dysfunctional family and coming to terms with the past. But there will also be some typical Scandinavian humor, which the audience will be able to experience in Lukas Moodysson's film entitled Together 99, which offers a glimpse into a Stockholm commune reduced to just two members. Audiences will also be able to ask questions about the film directly to Moodysson, who will participate in a post-film discussion online, 20/01 at 19:00 in Edison Filmhub. The Q&A will be conducted by Jana Čížkovská, programmer at Česká televize.
From Finland, the audience will see a fragile and sensitive portrait of four people living in a polyamorous relationship, which develops from the seemingly perfect union between a member of parliament and a priest. The Finnish actress Alma Pöysti (Tove, Karaoke Blues) stars in Four Little Adults.
Norwegian mountains, glaciers and fjords are always an essential part of the Scandi landscape, and the audience will be transported by documentary and lyrical poem Songs of Earth from director Margreth Olin. In this Norwegian Oscar nominee, the director embarks on an existential journey with her own aging parents against the backdrop of the hypnotising landscape. Margreth Olin will also be present for an online discussion with in Edison Filmhub on 21/01 after the screening at 19:00. The Q&A will be led by screenwriter and FAMU teacher Lucia Kajánková.
And then comes Iceland, the land of fire and ice - Driving Mum is a pleasantly dark and gloomy comedy and road movie from this world and the next. An odyssey about Jon's last journey as a middle-aged man with his late mother, with no shortage of laughs.
In the Legends section, we are presented with three Swedish films, one based on Fredrik Backman's famous bestselling novel, A Man Called Ove, and two films directed by the famous Bo Winderberg, including a seminal work from the Scandinavian noir genre, The Man on the Roof, and the 19th-century romantic tragedy Elvíra Madigan, a true story about the tension between individual freedom and social responsibility.
Viewers can also catch films from past Scandi programmes at Edisonline.cz. Note these films only have Czech subtitles.
Director Bille August’s agenda
21/01/2024
Arrival to Prague
22/01/2024
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Morning slot for interviews with the Czech media
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18:00, screening of The Kiss and subsequent Q&A with presenter Robert Novotný at Kino Lucerna. English interpretation will be provided
23/01/2024
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Morning slot for interviews with the Czech media
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19:00, screening of The Kiss and subsequent Q&A with presenter Robert Novotný at the Edison Filmhub. English interpretation will be provided
Complete list of films with English subtitles:
Premieres
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The Promised Land - Nikolaj Arcel - Denmark
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Birthday Girl - Michael Noer - Denmark
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Songs of Earth - Margreth Olin - Norway
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The Kiss - Bille August - Denmark
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Driving Mum - Hilmar Oddsson - Iceland, Estonia
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Together 99 - Lukas Moodysson - Sweden, Denmark
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One Day All This Will Be Yours - Andreas Öhman - Sweden
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Four Little Adults - Selma Vilhunen - Finland
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Darkland: The Return - Fenar Ahmad - Denmark
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Gallery of God - Filip Aladdin, Ossian Melin - Sweden
Bo Winderberg Double Feature
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The Man on the Roof - Bo Widerberg - Sweden
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Elvíra Madigan - Bo Widerberg - Sweden
About Film Europe
Film Europe is a distribution company founded by Ivan Hronec in 2010, which selects, buys and presents quality, award-winning European and festival films across Czech Republic and Slovakia. Film Europe organizes film showcases such as SCANDI, a festival of Nordic films, and Be2Can, a festival of the most outstanding films from Venice, Berlinale and Cannes, and operates the Edison Filmhub boutique cinema in Prague, and the Film Europe cinema in Bratislava. The goal of bringing context to films brings Film Europe across multiple platforms, including the TV channels Film Europe and Film Europe+ and the online video library Edisonline.
English Media Contact
Ryan Keating
Events and Communications Manager
ryan.keating@edisonfilmhub.cz
+420 776 238 308
Jeruzalémská 1321/2, 110 00, Prague