23/09/2024 - We discover more details about four of the six projects close to completion that were showcased at this year's gathering in Sweden

On 22 September, Nordisk Panorama (19-24 September) hosted the Work-in-Progress presentations of six nearly finished documentaries. The projects were presented to a group of international and Nordic decision makers at a tailor-made event held at Malmö's Scandic Triangeln. In this article, we explore the details of four of these projects.

Lust for Life – Viktor Nordenskiöld (Sweden/Germany/Norway/Qatar)
This coming-of-age creative documentary zooms in on a wounded teenager called Saeed, who is literally carried to Europe by his friend Hazim. In Germany, the two become caretakers for CP-affected Marius and find a new mother in Astrid. The Syrian boys took a vow to never separate but Hazim gets sick and disappears. Saeed cannot walk, but now it is his time to carry. 

The project, backed by the Swedish Film Institute, Film Stockholm, the Swedish Arts Grants Committee, the Stockholm University of the Arts and MOIN Filmförderung, is budgeted at €470,000 and is aiming for a festival release in 2025.

It is being produced by Mario Adamson and Paulina Knobloch for Sisyfos Film, in co-production with Nordenskiöld for Freetown Films, Dirk Manthey for Dirk Manthey Film UG, Beathe Hofseth for Fri Film, and Al Jazeera Documentary.

"This is a project that spans almost a decade, a film about friendship that asks, on both an individual and societal level, who really carries who. We may not carry each other at the same time all the time, we take turns, and we carry in different ways. But everyone needs carrying at some point. When the one who can walk gets serious mental problems, the one who can't walk starts carrying. The film has two parallel readings. It can be read as a classic coming-of-age story, with pain, humour and warmth, entertaining in its own right. But it can also be read as a choreographic thought piece. The film is a celebration of interdependency," says Nordenskiöld in his director’s statement.

Kyiv Soloists - Trond Kvig Andreassen (Norway/Ukraine/Netherlands)
Thrown into the limbo of being war refugees, the musicians in Kyiv Soloists try to navigate the road while advocating for peace with their powerful music. On 23 February, 14 of the Ukrainian musicians appearing in the film started a short tour with their orchestra to Italy. Together with their instruments - cellos and violins - they packed light spring clothes for a couple of weeks. The day after, they woke up to the news that Russia had invaded their homeland. In the midst of chaos, the orchestra decided to expand their tour across Europe to raise awareness of the atrocities in Ukraine. Through their art and music, they create support and empathy for Ukraine. They start the mission together, but as time goes on, they need to find their own missions and ways to live with the war and fight for their independence. We leave the orchestra as they have their first steps towards acceptance of their new realities.

The feature is being produced by Indie Film, Tabor Production and Witfilm. The team includes DoPs Lars Erlend Tubaas Øymo and Vyacheslav Tsvetkov, composer Mykolay Makev, editor Karen Gravås, producer Karianne Berge and executive producer Carsten Aanonsen.

ILOVERUSS – Tova Mozard (Sweden)
"Twenty years ago, a budding filmmaker met a Hollywood extra on a film set. Together they created a fantasy world in the shadow of the glitzy parts of Los Angeles, a sanctuary away from the bustle of modern life. Neither fiction nor reality, but both at the same time." This is the premise of this feature documentary, which the team believes is "destined to be a true festival darling."

"Our aim is to work together with an international distributor as well as the Swedish Film Institute to secure a high-profile international festival premiere during the first half of 2025. Following this, we anticipate a widespread festival run both domestically and internationally. Following the festival run, the film will be released in domestic cinemas by Swedish distributor Lucky Dogs,” the team says, defining it as "a film about a simpler and freer life which countless people around the globe are yearning for."

The feature is being produced by Daniel Pynnönen and Alice Sunnelius Aldén for Picky Pictures.

The Arctic Circle of Lust – Markku Heikkinen (Finland/Germany/Sweden)
This documentary centres on the relationships and self-image of family men living in Finland's remote northern regions, who are thrown into a crisis when one of them is caught having an affair with another man.

The team describes the film as "a warm-hearted family film about ordinary Finnish men who face an unnamed sexual desire, bisexuality, which they have kept a secret from their spouses and partly from themselves."

The film, budgeted at €538,000 and set for a release in February 2026, is being produced by Hannu-Pekka Vitikainen for Zone2 Pictures, Dirk Manthey for Dirk Manthey Film and Fredrik Lange for Vilda Bomben.

Partners and financiers attached include the Finnish Film Foundation, AVEK, YLE, VGTV, SVT, RTS, the Swedish Film Institute, Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein and the Nordisk Film and TV Fond.