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EXHIBITORS Iceland

Industry backs first film house in Reykjavik

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Yesterday marked the launch of Bio Paradís (literally, Cinema Paradise), the first “film house” in the Icelandic capital that will be used for repertoire and arthouse screenings and to host film events such as the Reykjavik International Film Festival (RIFF).

Bio Paradis succeeds Regnboginn (The Rainbow), a four-screen cinema that opened in 1977 and ceased operating last June. The new cinema is run by a non-profit organisation supported by the Association of Icelandic Film Producers, the Filmmakers’ Association, the Film Directors’ Guild of Iceland, RIFF and the Cinephile Society.

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Lovisa Óladóttir, managing director of Bio Paradis, told Cineuropa that “the launching cost a lot of effort for many people, for many years. It is a dream come true for Icelandic filmmakers. The City of Reykjavik (whose mayor is top comedian Jon Gnarr) is the reason why this was made possible, thanks to a grant of ISK12m (around €79,000).” Other major financial contributors include the Icelandic Film Centre.

Within its mandate to educate audiences in film history and film culture, Bio Paradis will programme a wide variety of archive material, Icelandic and foreign feature films, as well as shorts and documentaries. “We would like to offer more European films than what is currently shown in Icelandic cinemas,” stressed Óladóttir. “Furthermore, we intend to open up a channel between the cinema and the Icelandic educational system, to introduce children and youngsters to cinema at its best.”

Bio Paradis was inaugurated with the screening of Árni Sveinsson’s documentary Backyard, a lively portrayal of the current Reykjavik music scene, which won an Audience Award at the fourth Skjaldborg Documentary Festival last May.

From September 16-22, the mini-festival Reykjavik, ó Reykjavik will celebrate the Icelandic capital captured by local filmmakers such as Fridrik Thor Fridriksson in his 1982 documentary Rock in Reykjavik and Baltasar Kormákur in 101 Reykjavik.

This will be followed by the fifth edition of RIFF, to be held at Bio Paradis from September 23-October 3.

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