10/10/2002

The Nordic Council has decided to extend its annual prize for literature and music to Scandinavian films. The Scandinavian film industry welcomed this important acknowledgement of the growing importance of their work. The award comes with a cash prize of DKR 350,000 (Euros 447,122) and will be presented in Helsingfors on 29 October in the presence of Scandinavian royalty and political elite. Each of the five Nordic Council member countries will present two feature films. Norway will be represented by Unni Strames and Musikk for bryllup og begravelser (Music for Weddings and Funerals), first presented in competition in Venice this year, and by Even Benestads’ Alt om min far (All About My Father). Lukas Moodysson’s Lilja 4-Ever and Mikael Hafstrom’s Liva Livet (Live Life) are Sweden's choice while Denmark went for Susanne Bier and her Elsker dig for evigt (Love You For Ever) and Okay by Jesper W. Nielsen. Finland will be represented by Aki Kaurismaki and his Man Without A Past and Rostislav Sergejevich Aalto’s Cleaning Up! while the two Icelandic films selected have a distinct nautical air to them, Baltasar Kormàkur’s The Sea - the first ever Icelandic film to have taken part in the San Sebastian film festival - and veteran director Ágúst Gudmundsson’s Seagull’s Laughter.

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