THE LIFE OF BELLA BELLA'S REALITIES Iceland / 16 min / 2020 / Short Fiction Director: Andri Már Enoksson World Premiere / Heimsfrumsýning Bella is a young writer who is struggling to find her feet. She gets a job helping an elderly woman named Hildur. However, it soon becomes clear that Hildur doesn't need as much […]
YES-PEOPLE JÁ-FÓLKIÐ Iceland / 2020 / 9 min / Short Animation Directors: Gísli Darri Halldórsson Writer: Gísli Darri Halldórsson Producers: Arnar Gunnarsson, Gísli Darri Halldórsson Residents of an unnamed block of flats wake up one winter morning and the routine of everyday life takes over - whether it's work, school or home life. The film follows the people for one day, but as time passes […]
WOLF ÚLFUR / GUMPE In the wilderness of the tundra somewhere in Sápmi, a reindeer herder and his daughter are sitting quietly in their tent. Suddenly they hear the sound of a sledge coming closer. The father prepares his daughter for what she can expect. In the wilderness of the tundra somewhere in Sápmi, a reindeer herder and his daughter are […]
THE WISH ÓSKIN Iceland and United Kingdom / 19 min / Short Fiction / 2020 Director: Inga Lisa Middleton Writer: Inga Lisa Middleton Producer: Arnar Benjamín Kristjánsson World Premiere / Heimsfrumsýning Nine-year-old Karen has always dreamed of meeting her father, who is an actor and lives in London, and longs to meet […]
After a chance encounter on the street, a woman tries to encourage a pregnant domestic abuse victim to seek help. ---- After a chance encounter on the street, a woman tries to encourage a pregnant domestic abuse victim to seek help. Directors: Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers and Kathleen Hepburn CAN 2019 / 110 min
Alex is a lonely first-year college student. His home is 1500 miles away and all he can think about is transferring to a school closer to his family. However, everything changes one night when Alex takes the plunge and goes to a party at the infamous “Shithole” on campus, where he […]
The story of activist Greta Thunberg is told through gripping and previously unseen footage in this personal documentary by Swedish director Nathan Grossman. Grossman follows Greta - a shy high school student with Asperger's syndrome - every step of the way, documenting her journey, from her one-man climate strike outside the Swedish parliament that had the impact of a comparable […]
After being caught with her lover, a woman becomes hunted by her own relatives who want to kill her to uphold the family's honor. --- After being caught with her lover, a woman becomes hunted by her own relatives who want to kill her to uphold the family's honor. Turkey / 87 min / 2020 / Thriller […]
SAM AND THE PLANT NEXT DOOR Sam and the Nuclear Power Plant Next Door 11-year-old Sam grows up next to Britain's largest new nuclear power plant and is deeply concerned about the impact it will have on the world around him. He must examine his moral values and decide what kind of person he wants to be. […]
BABYDYKE YOUNG LESBIAN / BABYLEBBE Frede goes to a techno party with her older sister in an attempt to catch the attention of her ex-girlfriend. When that doesn't work, she takes her sister's advice and looks for other, less romantic ways to get over her heartbreak. But did she really want her ex back? […]
The Circus Director is a film about circus director Tilde Björfors who faced her fears and threw herself into the unknown. She brought modern circus art to Sweden twenty years ago and has since made her circus company Circus Cirkör one of the most well-known circus companies in the world. The Circus Director is a film about Tilde Björfors […]
Mustafa and his wife Salwa live 200 meters apart in their own villages, separated by a wall. One day, Mustafa receives the phone call that every parent dreads: his son has been in an accident. He rushes to the Israeli border checkpoint, but is denied entry due to a formality. However, fatherly love is stronger than bureaucracy […]
At the height of the Cold War, a Soviet spacecraft crash lands after a failed mission, leaving the mission commander the sole survivor of the crew. After a renowned Russian psychologist is brought in to assess the commander's mental health, it becomes clear that something dangerous may have followed him back to Earth... --- At the height of the Cold War, a Soviet spacecraft crash […]
A woman in her sixties who, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a modern-day nomad in a van. The film stars Frances McDormand. ---- A woman in her sixties who, after losing everything in the Great Recession, embarks on a journey through the American West, living as […]
'so real, so very now' is curated by Misha de Ridder and is intended as an exercise in seeing: to look, to look again and to look anew. Perception is the point of departure for a series of experiments in video within the restraint of one minute. An open call was preceded by a workshop […]
Everything changes in the life of 15-year-old hunter Leshka when he meets an unusual girl on the computer who captivates him beyond recognition. This state of the hero, falling in love with a distant image, the hazy outlines of a stranger, leads him to perform the most daring act of his life: to embark on a dangerous voyage across the turbulent waters of the Bering Strait into […]
A young woman inherits the house of her grandmother, whom she never met, in a city she has never seen. Against her mother's wishes, she embarks on a journey to understand the pain of her past, but in doing so she causes a stir and chaos from which she can only emerge alive with the help of her deceased ancestors and […]
Correspondence Correspondence / Correspondencia Spain, Chile / 2020 / 19 min / Short Fiction Directors: Dominga Sotomayor and Carla Simón Writers: Dominga Sotomayor and Carla Simón Producers: Carla Sospedra, Maria Zamora, Dominga Sotomayor In the form of filmed correspondence, two young filmmakers discuss films, families, inheritance and motherhood. Their reflections are personal and profound and appear […]
When eighty-year-old widow Mantoa loses her only surviving son in a mining accident, she begins to prepare for her own death. Mantoa packs up her belongings and finds a man from the village to dig her grave. Her plans for a peaceful end, however, are thwarted when she learns that a reservoir is to be built in the village, […]
A few days after Christmas, half-sisters Ida and Tuva go on a diving expedition off the Norwegian coast. Towards the end of the expedition, a rock slide causes Tuva to become trapped underwater. The sisters are completely helpless and have no way to call for help. A desperate struggle for survival begins that will be the ultimate test of Ida’s skills and resourcefulness. While Ida […]
Sometimes the most unexpected roads in life are in the detours you didn't mean to take. A gripping drama follows the […]
DRIFTING REKI / 漂流 China and United States / 2019 / 16 min / Short Fiction Directors: HanXuing Bo Nordic Premiere / Nordic Premiere Yan is his parents' illegitimate second child, as he was born in China when laws and regulations stipulated that couples could only have one child. To avoid […]
Sweat recounts three days in the life of fitness influencer Sylwia Zajac, who has gained fame and fortune through her social media use. Despite having hundreds of thousands of followers, being surrounded by a dedicated staff, and being adored by everyone she knows, she is still searching for true intimacy. Sweat recounts three days in the […]
In the highest part of the Argentine highlands, in a small community located 4000 meters above sea level, lives Fidel, a llama herder. His livelihood has been repeatedly threatened by a puma that has been killing livestock. He sets out on an expedition to find the puma, where strange things are revealed about him, his ancestors, and […]
With the Icelandic Film Center as our partner, RIFF introduces a diverse Work-in-Progress showcase, presenting excerpts from the latest Icelandic film and TV productions, curated by RIFF's head of programming Frédéric Boyer. Participants will also have exclusive access to market screenings of selected projects as well as B2B meetings. PROFESSIONALS ONLY. STRICTLY UNDER REGISTRATION RSVP […]
TV series productions have increased internationally over the last few years as an effective response to the uprising of VOD platforms. Iceland has produced 10 TV series about the curse of 2020. What are the main changes that the Icelandic film industry had to overcome to adjust its strategy to match this new trend format? […]
The story of activist Greta Thunberg is told through gripping and previously unseen footage in this personal documentary by Swedish director Nathan Grossman. Grossman follows Greta - a shy high school student with Asperger's syndrome - every step of the way, documenting her journey, from her one-man climate strike outside the Swedish parliament that had the impact of a comparable […]
OUR HEARTS BEAT LIKE WAR / Zchuhit Bayam Israel / 2020 / 15 min / Short Fiction Director: Elinor Nechemya Writer: Elinor Nechemya Producers: Elinor Nechemya, Omer Harel European Premiere / European Premiere With his eyes glued to a fairy tale and his ears to the horrifying story of an Eritrean refugee, the nine-year-old falls asleep […]
The residents of a shantytown near Madrid are forced to abandon their homes after the land they live on is sold. As the process unfolds, the members of the Gabarre Mendoza family have to deal with the consequences and the changes in their lives, each in their own way. In a shantytown near Madrid, the […]
He was one of the great masters of photography, a true legend. Magnificent, witty, inventive, provocative, inspiring. This year, sixteen years after Helmut Newton's death in Los Angeles, he would have been 100 years old. A life that was like a movie now appears, for the first time, on the big screen. --- He was one of the Great Masters of photography, […]
Iceland as a post COVID production service role model. While people were quarantined around the world during the COVID-pandemic, VOD and in-demand services had enormous growth and popularity. In contrast, most worldwide productions suffered a huge cycle contraction and even completely stopped. By antithesis, Icelandic film productions never ceased, it's more, the industry experienced a flourishing [...]
The free-spirited, passionate and clever Eleanor was the youngest daughter of Karl Marx. Eleanor was among the leading women who first brought together feminism and socialism and participated in the workers' struggle, fighting for increased women's rights and the abolition of child slavery. In 1883 she met Edward Aveling and their passionate but reluctant love turned her life upside down. The film was among […]
RIFF TALKS are a series of concise and polished presentations by established creative film professionals who were willing to share their knowledge of "how to break through" where filmmakers & audiences would be inspired. RIFF Talks are held in the spirit of TED Talks but with the focus on filmmaking. Each talk is given […]
The extraordinary story of two Welsh brothers who turned their dairy farm into one of the most successful recording studios of all time. Black Sabbath, Queen, Robert Plant, Iggy Pop, Simple Minds, Oasis, The Stone Roses, Coldplay and many more recorded their music at Rockfield Recording Studios over the decades. This is a story of dreams of rock and roll, intertwined […]
There is a theory that says that we should all be born with a drop of alcohol in our blood and that this mild intoxication would open our eyes to the world around us, reduce our problems and increase our creativity. With this theory as a guide, Martin and his three friends, all tired high school teachers, decide to try […]
