01/12/2005

After Berlin, Lübeck, New-York, Paris and Rome, London is the new host for the 100 years celebration of Norway as an independent nation with a music and film festival at the Barbican Center from December 1-4, 2005.

Erik Skoldbærg, the acclaimed Norwegian filmmaker of Insomnia and Prozac Nation will kickstart the event tomorrow and inaugurate a series of Screen Talks with the presentation of his new film An Enemy Of The People, a modern version of Ibsen’s classic play.
The Norwegian poet and playwright who will be the focus of another major Norwegian cultural celebration in 2006 with the centenary of his death, is also the inspiration for Victor Sjöström’s classic 1916 film A Man There Was U (t.o. Terje Vigen) based on Ibsen’s epic poem, which will screen as the closing night special presentation with a piano accompaniment from the acclaimed Norwegian pianist and composer Ketil Bjørnstad.

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Otehr films participating in the mini-festival include Karoline Frogner’s documentary film Tinkers, the story of a 45 year old man who discovers that his biological parents are Travellers from whom he was stolen by the Norwegian State when he was just one year old. The director will give a screen talk following the screening of her film. Last year’s Norwegian Oscars submission Hawaii, Oslo [+see also:
trailer
film profile] directed by Erik Poppe and this year’s candidate Sara Johnsen’s Kissed By Winter [+see also:
trailer
film profile] will also be shown, together with the Christmas classic film from 1976 A Journey To The Christmas Star directed by one of Norway’s most distinguished filmmakers Ola Solum.