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Nordic films at the Danish documentary festival CPH:DOX

Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival

CPH:DOX, Copenhagen International Documentary Film Festival, is one of the biggest documentary festivals in the world! Founded almost 20 years ago, it usually showcases its films in the movie theatres, but this year due to Covid it will be a hybrid of online and in the cinema.

This year it runs from April 21st to May 12th 2021, and offers 177 new documentaries available to watch (for those based in Denmark), via its online streaming website, plus live talks, events and debates.

We have been privileged to gain access to the films, which are from all over the world. With so many great documentary films on offer, we decided – in true Minnis2Society style – to focus our attention on those directed by Nordic artists or filmed in the Nordic regions.

One particular area of focus is the Nordic Dox award. However, we have also been keeping an eye on Nordic features in other areas of the festival, such as the Danish Dark Blossom, nominated in both the NEXT:WAVE category and Politiken Danish:Dox Award.

Watch the official festival trailer

The NORDIC:DOX Award

The NORDIC:DOX award is for the biggest and brightest non-fiction Nordic documentaries and artists’ films, and there are a total of 12 nominees for this award – many of them getting their world premiere at the festival.

The 12 Nominees for NORDIC:DOX

The 12 films in the NORDIC:DOX competition are (in no particular order):

  • ‍The Hero’s Journey to the Third Pole – A Bipolar Musical Documentary With Elephants (Andri Magnason & Anní Ólafsdóttir, Iceland)
  • Elsewhere (Vibeke Bryld, Denmark)
  • ‍How to Kill a Cloud (Tuija Halttunen, Finland)
  • Raising a School Shooter (Frida Barkfors & Lasse Barkfors, Denmark/ Sweden/France/ Belgium)
  • ‍The Banality of Grief (Jon Bang Carlsen, Denmark)
  • ‍Seyran Ateş: Sex, Revolution and Islam (Nefise Özkal Lorentzen, Norway)
  • Julia&I (Nina Hobert, Sweden/Denmark)
  • Follow You Home (Kathrine Ravn Kruse, Denmark)
  • He’s My Brother (Cille Hannibal & co-dir. Christine Hanberg, Denmark/Norway)
  • Oh, It Hertz! (Gunnar Hall Jensen, Norway)
  • ‍Trust Me (Emil Trier, Norway)
  • ‍Solutions (Pernille Rose Grønkjær, Denmark)

Viewed and Reviewed

We are viewing all 12 documentaries in the running for the NORDIC:DOX award and will be bringing you an overview and our thoughts in separate posts over the coming weeks…

Winners

Danish documentary Dark Blossom went on to win the Politiken Danish:Dox Award!

And the winner of the NORDIC:DOX award is:

Congratulations to Nina, and Julia too.

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