Before Snowfall: an original and honest vision that goes beyond clichés
- Hisham Zaman's feature debut, Before Snowfall, collected the SEK 1 million (€115,000) Dragon Award Best Nordic Film at the Göteborg Film Festival
“A film with an original and honest vision that goes beyond clichés,” said the international jury presided over by Iranian director Samira Makhmalbaf, when Saturday (February 2) it named Kurdish-Norwegian director Hisham Zaman’s feature debut, Before Snowfall [+see also:
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film profile] (photo), as Best Nordic Film and presented it with the Dragon Award, which comes with a SEK 1 million (€115,000) cheque.
“The director succeeds in telling a story that reveals the impact of tradition and culture and the fact that they can be conquered by naïve, true love,” reasoned the jury. Also last year, a Norwegian film - Arild Andresen’s Company Orheim - left Göteborg with the top prize.
“This is a fantastic start for Zaman and his film,” commented Norwegian producer Stein B Kvae, who staged the production with Finn Gjerdrum for Paradox Produksjoner. After opening Norway’s Tromsø International Film Festival January 14-20) and competing in Göteborg (which ends today, February 4), the film will be domestically released on February 7 by Scanbox.
Starring Taher Abdullah Taher, Suzan Ilir, Bahar Özen and Birol Ünel – “an exceptional cast”, according to the the jury - Before Snowfall follows Siyar, who searches for his eldest sister, after she has fled her wedding in the littlevillage in Iraqui-Kurdistan.
Since their father is dead, it is up to Siyar to find her, bring her back and restore family honour. In Zaman and Kjell Ola Dahl’sscreenplay for the “East-West road-movie” he starts in Istanbul, where he meets a young girl, and they travel together through Greece, Germany and Norway. Zaman’s credits include the award-winning short, Bawke (2005).
Other festival awards announced at the Dragon gala in Göteborg’s Stora Teatern:
The Ingmar Bergman International Debut Award
Chilean director Fernando Guzzoni’s Dog Flesh
Dragon Award Best Nordic Documentary
Finnish director Mika Ronkainen’s Finnish Blood, Swedish Heart
The Lorens Award (+ free development of the winner’s next feature, worth app €58,000)
Swedish director Malik Bendjelloul’s Searching for Suger Man
The international critics’ FIPRESCI prize
Danish director Michael Noer Northwest
The international web-based short film prize
French director Simon Filliot’s La Ravadeuse
The Audience Award for Best Feature
Saudi Arabian director Haiffa al-Mansour’s Wadjda [+see also:
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The Audience Award for Best Nordic Feature
Danish director Tobias Lindholm’s A Hijacking [+see also:
film review
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interview: Tobias Lindholm
film profile]
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