NordenBladet – A short film by Faroese director, Andreas Høgenni, has won an award at the Cannes Film Festival. The film, titled “Ikki Illa Meint” (No Ill Will in English), was one of ten nominated films at the Semaine de la Critique (Critic’s Week). This is the first time a Faroese film or director has won at Cannes Film Festival.
“This award proves that there is interest from abroad in viewing films that use the Faroese language,” says Andreas. “Hopefully this will make it easier to convince investors to take a chance on Faroese films.”
At the awards ceremony, held on 22 May, Andreas was too caught up in the moment to register the judge’s statement, explaining why the film had won.
“When I realised Ikki Illa Meint had won, everything suddenly went black and my heart just started pounding,” Andreas recalls. “Before I knew it, I was standing on the stage with the award in my hands.”
Ikki Illa Meint is a tragicomedy the centres around two female friends that randomly meet one another in a supermarket. An initially relaxed chat about daily life turns into a confrontation about their friendship. One has blocked the other on Facebook and does not want to reveal her motive. A hunt to find out why ensues.
The Semaine de la Critique (Critic’s Week) showcases rising talents in the film industry. Ten feature films and ten short films are nominated each year, chosen from thousands of entries. Short film directors are invited to take part in NEXT, a five-day workshop organised by Cannes where creatives meet to discuss and learn more about the future of film. Directors are also given the chance to work on their ongoing projects during the workshop.