SIGNE BYRGE SØRENSEN
We are so proud and excited to announce that ‘Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other’ has been nominated for two British Independent Film Awards.
Not only has the film been nominated for Best Feature Documentary, but directors Manon Ouimet and Jacob Perlmutter are up for the Best Debut Director award for the genre.
Winners will be revealed at London’s Roundhouse on the 8th of December.
Watch the nomination announcement from BIFA here, and read more about all the nominees here.
We are so proud that Jacob Perlmutter and Manon Ouimet's beautiful debut film ‘Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other’ has received a Special Mention from the jury in the DOX:AWARD competition!
Here is the jury’s statement: “To fall in love is a magical thing, but to stay in love is a miracle. Two people find each other in middle age, and build a beautiful later life together that is documented here with grace, humor and honesty. For a film that is so immaculately crafted that right from its stunning opening frame, it is like being cradled in the familiar but electric embrace of a longtime lover, the jury awards a dazzled special mention to the wonderful, warm and wise TWO STRANGERS TRYING NOT TO KILL EACH OTHER directed by Jacob Perlmutter & Manon Ouimet.”
It has been absolutely wonderful to see how the film has met its audience at CPH:DOX in the most amazing way - with sold out screenings, standing ovations, and touching and generous Q&As. And now CPH:DOX is making it possible for even more people to see the film - there will be an extra screening on Monday March 25, at Cinemateket, at 16:30. Tickets available here.
DEADLINE has shared an exclusive clip from the documentary ‘Two Strangers Trying Not To Kill Each Other’ by Jacob Perlmutter and Manon Ouimet.
The documentary will have its world premiere this Saturday, March 16th during CPH:DOX.
From the article: It may not sound like it from the title, but the documentary Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other is, in fact, a love story. A love story not without complications.
The film directed by Jacob Perlmutter and Manon Ouimet explores the bond between artists Maggie Barrett and Joel Meyerowitz who have been together for decades. Their relationship takes a significant turn when septuagenarian Barrett breaks her leg, and her husband Meyerowitz, an octogenarian, becomes her caregiver.
Two Strangers Trying Not to Kill Each Other is making its world premiere in main competition this Saturday at CPH:DOX in Copenhagen. The same day, the documentary will screen at the Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival in Greece, technically considered the “international premiere” of Two Strangers. We have your first look at the film in the clip above.
Book your tickets for the premiere or for one of the other screenings during CPH:DOX here.
We are excited to announce that our film ‘Two Strangers Trying Not To Kill Each Other’ has been selected for the Feature-Length International Competition at Thessaloniki International Documentary Festival.
If you are at Thessaloniki please join one of the following screenings:
Saturday March 16th at 17.00 at Olympian
Sunday March 17th at 13.00 at Frida Liappa
Congratulations to the directors Jacob Perlmutter and Manon Ouimet and the whole team!
About the film:
Life, death and making meaning are the heart of a beautiful and often very witty film about an aging couple who, after an accident, face the inevitability of impermanence and seek a deep peace in their relationship while they still can.
The documentary will have its world premiere Saturday March 16th at 16.30 in Grand Theatre, Copenhagen, during CPH:DOX.
’Two Strangers Trying Not To Kill Each Other’ is selected for the main competition DOX:AWARD.
Other screenings during CPH:DOX:
Monday March 18th at 19.00 at Grand Theatre
Wednesday March 20th at 21.45 at Dagmar
Thursday March 21st at 14.30 at the DFI/Cinemateket
‘Two Strangers Trying Not To Kill Each Other’ by Manon Ouimet and Jacob Perlmutter is nominated for the DOX:AWARD at the 21st edition of CPH:DOX.
Besides being nominated for the main competition, the documentary will also have its world premiere at this year’s edition of CPH:DOX.
CPH:DOX will take place in Copenhagen from March 13th to 24th. The full festival programme will be announced on February 21st, and here you will be able to see more about when and where to watch ‘To Strangers Trying Not To Kill Each Other’.
TV-visning af ‘Dreaming Arizona’ på TV 2
Read MoreLast week the nominations for the One World Festival were announced and we’re excited that Anders Skovbjerg Jepsen’s A Silent Story is nominated for the International Competition and Matt Sarnecki’s The Killing of a Journalist is nominated for the Czech Competition. One World is the largest human rights film festival in the world.
Read MoreWe’re extremely proud to announce that 4 FCFR productions have made it into the CPH:DOX 2023 programme.
Read More
At this year’s IDFA (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam) we are proud and happy to have two of our latest films screening.
Jon Bang Carlsen’s Dreaming Arizona is selected for the Main Competition where it will be having its World Premiere. The film has the following screening times:
13 Nov 09:00 - 10:19 - Pathé City 1 press & Industry only
13 Nov 18:30 - 20:01 - Munt 12 official world premiere, film team present
14 Nov 15:15 - 16:51 - Tuschinski 6 Q&A with the director
17 Nov 15:45 - 17:21 - Tuschinski 5
19 Nov 10:00 - 11:19 - Munt 13
Simon Lereng Wilmon’s A House Made of Splinters is screening in the Best of Fests section, and has the following screening times:
11 Nov 20:30 - 22:17 - Munt 11 Q&A after the screening
12 Nov 21:30 - 23:17 - Rialto De Pijp: Bovenzaal Q&A after the screening
17 Nov 14:45 - 16:15 - Ketelhuis: Zaal 1
18 Nov 18:30 - 20:00 - DeLaMar: Wim Sonneveld Zaal
For the screenings of A House Made of Splinters we are teaming up with ShareDoc, a new platform that enables audiences to donate directly to the participants of documentary films.
To buy tickets or read more about the festival, please click here.
Festival news: We are so proud to announce that ‘Dreaming Arizona’ by Jon Bang Carlsen will have its world premiere at IDFA, where it has been selected for the main competition!
‘Dreaming Arizona’ takes place in a small town called Winslow. At the town’s high school, we meet five teenagers, each with their own dream of the future. Like all teenagers around the world, they are in a transition where they have to shape their own lives, find a way out of childhood and create a new identity as adults. Their desire for freedom is strong, and there are consequences when parents, society or their own conscience restrict it. Film director, Jon Bang Carlsen, examines the teenagers’ basic need to stage their own lives as the documentary imperceptibly seeps into fiction. Together with the main characters, the director has created some imaginary life paths and thereby our teenagers comment on their own situation, the audiences’ anticipations and the director's vision.
The film is produced by Heidi Elise Christensen and Signe Byrge Sørensen.
Click here to see the full festival program.
This years DOCNYC is right around the corner, and we are happy to announce that we have ‘A House Made Of Splinters’ and ‘The Killing Of A Journalist’ screening at the festival.
The Killing of a Journalist is directed by Matt Sarnecki and produced by Signe Byrge Sørensen, editing is by Janus Billeskov Jansen, and music by Kristian Eidness. The film is co-produced with GotFat Productions in Aarhus, Denmark, and Frame Films in Czech Republic, with support from the West Danish Film Fund and Czech Film Fund. The Killing of a Journalist premiered at HotDocs 2022, screened at Karlovy Vary Int FF, and recently won the TRUTH DOX award at DokuFest.
A House Made of Splinters is directed by Simon Lereng Wilmont, and produced by Monica Hellström, edited by Michael Aaglund, sound design by Heikki Kossi, Pietu Korhorhonen, Peter Albrectsen & Sune Kaarsberg, music by Uno Helmersson. The film is co-produced by Story in Sweden, Donkey Hotel in Finland, Moon Man in Ukraine and MDR in collaboration with Arte (GER/FR), with support from The Danish Film Institute, Danish Film Directors, The Swedish Film Institute, The Finnish Film Institute, AVEK, Nordic Film & Tv Fond & Creative Europe: TV Programming. A House Made of Splinters premiered at Sundance 2022, winning the Best Directing Award, and went on to also receive the Dragon Award for Best Nordic Documentary at Gothenburg Film Festival as well as the Politiken:DOX Award at CPH:DOX and two awards at Thessaloniki IFF.
See the full program for DOCNYC here
We have some great news to announce. ‘The Killing Of A Journalist’ by Matt Sarnecki received a Special Mention in the Documentary Competition at Zurich Film Festival this past weekend.
‘The Killing Of A Journalist’ is directed by Matt Sarnecki and produced by Signe Byrge Sørensen, editing is by Janus Billeskov Jansen, and music by Kristian Eidness. The film is co-produced with GotFat Productions in Aarhus, Denmark, and Frame Films in Czech Republic, with support from the West Danish Film Fund and Czech Film Fund. The Killing of a Journalist premiered at HotDocs 2022.
Click here to see the full list of the winners of a Golden Eye and Special Mention Awards from the 18th Zurich Film Festival.
We are happy to announce that Matt Sarnecki’s 'The Killing Of A Journalist' will be screened at Zurich Film Festival and is one out of 14 films in ZFF’s Documentary strand for a Golden Eye.
‘The Killing Of A Journalist’ explores the brutal murder of a young Slovakian investigative journalist and his fiancée. Their deaths inspire the biggest protests in Slovakia since the fall of communism. The story takes an unexpected turn when a source leaks the secret murder case file to the murdered journalist’s colleagues which includes the computers and encrypted communications of the assassination’s alleged mastermind, a businessman closely connected to the country’s ruling party. Trawling these encrypted messages, journalists discover that their country has been captured by corrupt oligarchs, judges and law enforcement officials. A reckoning awaits.
The film is directed by Matt Sarnecki and produced by Signe Byrge Sørensen, editing is by Janus Billeskov Jansen, and music by Kristian Eidness. The film is co-produced with GotFat Productions in Aarhus, Denmark, and Frame Films in Czech Republic, with support from the West Danish Film Fund and Czech Film Fund. The Killing of a Journalist premiered at HotDocs 2022, screened at Karlovy Vary Int FF, and recently won the TRUTH DOX award at DokuFest.
Click here to see the rest of the films in the documentary competition
We are very proud to announce that Tarik Saleh’s film 'Boy From Heaven' has been chosen as Sweden’s submission for the 2022-23 Academy Awards Best International Feature Film category.
The political thriller won the best screenplay award at Cannes earlier this year, as well as the François Chalais Prize.
‘Boy From Heaven’ is produced by Kristina Åberg at Atmo Sweden, in co-production with Monica Hellström and Signe Byrge Sørensen from Final Cut for Real, Memento Film, Bufo, Arte France and Film i Väst.
The film is supported in Denmark by The Danish Film Institute and DR.
Click here to see the full list of contenders in the category.
We are happy to announce that this year’s Nordisk Panorama in Malmö will have two films from Final Cut for Real in the main competition for Best Nordic Documentary!
Read More
We are sad to announce that The Government of Zimbabwe has slapped a ban on our Oscar-shortlisted documentary, PRESIDENT, by Camilla Nielsson. The reason for the ban is based on the argument that the film “has the potential to incite violence” as Zimbabwe gears up for presidential elections in 2023.
In an exclusive article published by Variety on August 8, film director, Camilla Nielsson and producer, Signe Byrge Sørensen comment upon the ban and how it’s a clear example of a growing crackdown on dissent by the Zimbabwean government.
Click her to read the full article from Variety.
These are very sad and disturbing news, however we are unfortunately not surprised with the verdict, and we continue to fight and challenge the ruling in Zimbabwe’s constitutional court, promising a long legal battle ahead.
While we wait for a solution on this critical censorship, PRESIDENT is in the meantime having it’s release across the U.S. on PBS’ POV documentary series on August 8.
This year’s Karlovy Vary International Film Festival is right around the corner, and we are happy to announce that our film ‘The Killing of a Journalist’ has been selected for the Special Screenings section, which represents an exclusive selection of international and Czech films presented as premieres and avant-premieres.
‘The Killing of a Journalist,’ directed by Matt Sarnecki and produced by Signe Byrge Sørensen, will have its European premiere on July 5, 2022.
The film explores the brutal murder of a young Slovakian investigative journalist and his fiancée. Their deaths inspire the biggest protests in Slovakia since the fall of communism. The story takes an unexpected turn when a source leaks the secret murder case file to the murdered journalist’s colleagues which includes the computers and encrypted communications of the assassination’s alleged mastermind, a businessman closely connected to the country’s ruling party. Trawling these encrypted messages, journalists discover that their country has been captured by corrupt oligarchs, judges and law enforcement officials. A reckoning awaits.
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival is the largest film festival in the Czech Republic and one of the most prestigious festivals in Central and Eastern Europe. Every year, the festival presents more than 200 films from around the world, and regularly hosts famous and important filmmakers.
Click here to read more about the other films selected for the Special Screenings section.
We are very excited to announce that ‘Boy From Heaven’ directed by Tarik Saleh has won Best Screenplay at the 75th Festival de Cannes. The film is produced by Kristina Åberg at Atmo Sweden, in co-production with Monica Hellström and Signe Byrge Sørensen from Final Cut for Real, Memento Film, Bufo, Arte France and Film i Väst. ‘Boy From Heaven’ further won the Francois Chalais Prize – an award dedicated to the values of life affirmation and journalism.
The film reunites Saleh with the top creative team from ‘The Nile Hilton Incident’ (Saleh’s first film exploring the modern Arabic world) including Swedish actor Fares Fares, production designer Roger Rosenberg, French cinematographer Pierre Aïm, Danish editor Theis Schmidt and VFX specialist Peter Hjorth, VFX producer Mikael Windelin and editing consultant Janus Billeskov Jansen. For 'Boy From Heaven' the Danish team has been expanded with the Danish actor Hassan El Sayed.
The film is supported in Denmark by The Danish Film Institute and DR.
The Cannes Film Festival 2022 took place on the 17th May to the 28th May. The Festival is organised in various sections, where ‘Boy From Heaven’ was presented in Competition, the category displaying films that are representative of “arthouse cinema with a wide audience appeal”.
To read more about the Festival de Cannes click here.
We are proud and happy to announce that He’s My Brother directed by Cille Hannibal and co-director Christine Hanberg and produced by Monica Hellström and President directed by Camilla Nielsson and produced by Signe Byrge Sørensen and Joslyn Barnes has been selected for the 35th Season Lineup at POV.
POV is the longest-running series for independent documentaries on television and launches on July 11th. As is tradition, the series will program social issues films topics including environmental justice, immigration and systemic inequity.
Read more about the 35th POV lineup here.
It is our great pleasure to announce that we have four films screening at the HotDocs film festival, all of which will be part of the Nordic Bridges programme. These include: “A House Made of Splinters” directed by Simon Lereng Wilmont; “The Killing of a Journalist” directed by Matt Sarnecki; “Our Memory Belongs to Us” directed by Rami Farah; and “Outside” directed by Olha Zhurba. You can read more about each of them, including tickets and streaming info, below:
‘A House Made of Splinters,’ directed by Simon Lereng Wilmont and produced by Monica Hellström, follows three children at a temporary shelter, as war-torn Ukraine leaves devastating and enduring marks on the population. Through the eyes of kids, the film depicts a personal, tender, and simultaneously tragic and hopeful story about lives in limbo. Gorgeous, patient camerawork respects the children's vulnerability but expertly detects the unmistakable normalisation of violence in their desperate play, temporary friendships and fragile family connections.
‘The Killing of a Journalist’, directed by Matt Sarnecki and produced by Signe Byrge Sørensen, explores the brutal murder of the Slovakian investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée Martina Kušnírova. Their deaths inspire the biggest protests in Slovakia since the fall of communism. When prosecution efforts turn up honey-pot schemes, paid assassins and dubious political appointees instead of delivering justice, democracy itself may not survive in one of the European Union's most jaw-dropping corruption scandals
“Our Memory Belongs to Us” directed by Syrian filmmaker Rami Farah and produced by Signe Byrge Sørensen, Liana Saleh and Anne Köhncke, reunites citizen journalists Yadan, Odai and Rani in an empty theatre to watch smuggled footage on the big screen nearly 10 years after the beginning of the Syrian revolution. Together, they revisit the events, people and places that changed the trajectory of their lives. How does one survive - by forgetting or by remembering? Building to a shattering crescendo, this collective memory exercise provides a corrective history and chronology for the revolution that was reframed as a civil war by a dictator who preferred to displace over six million people rather than be deposed — and is confirmation that people must tell their own stories.
“Outside” directed by Olha Zhurba, produced by Darya Bassell and Viktoria Khomenko for Moon Man and co-produced by Anne Köhncke and Monica Hellström for Final Cut for Real, follows 13-year old Roma, an abandoned street kid adopted by random soldiers in Kyiv’s Independence Square during Ukraine’s Maidan Uprising. But when the media and military encampments cleared out, he was again discarded, this time to an orphanage. At 18, with just a knife and a lighter in his pocket, can he possibly take control of his life? Security footage, heartbreaking phone calls and chance meetings populate this expertly layered study of a lost soul who belongs to no one and has nowhere to go.
The Nordic Bridges programme is a year-long initiative led by Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre fostering cultural exchange between the Nordic Region and Canada. Working with partners across Canada, Nordic Bridges presents multidisciplinary contemporary art, culture and ideas throughout the year.
To read more about the HotDocs film festival, online streaming or how to secure a ticket, click here.
