Norwegian films at CICFF in Chicago
The 26th annual Chicago International Children’s Film Festival (CICFF), taking place October 22- November 1, 2009, is the largest festival of films for children in North America and features over 200 animated and live action films from 40 countries, including 13 from Norway.
Programming the best children’s media for over 30 years, the Festival welcomes over 25,000 Chicago area children, adults, and educators to the screenings, and over 130 filmmakers, media professionals & celebrities attend the Festival to lead interactive workshops with kids. Click here for venues and screening times.
Norwegian Films Playing at the 2009 CICFF:
Angry Man (Norway, 2009) – 20 min Animated Short Directed By: Anita Killi Screening Times: Friday, October 30, 11:45 a.m., Facets Cinema A powerful and poetic film about family domestic issues, Angry Man explores secrets that shouldn’t be secrets. When young Boj’s favorite goldfish dies after one of his father’s “mean episodes”, the boy has had enough. He takes strength from his fantasies in order to confront his father.
The Castle (Norway, 2009) – 22 min Live-action Short Directed By: Tomas Kvaerner Screening Times: Saturday, October 31, 5:00 p.m., Facets Cinema Markus and his father have always had a rocky relationship, but a sudden loss in the family exacerbates their communication problems. While vacationing at an old castle, Markus befriends a mysterious ghost, and in the process summons the courage to finally open up to his father.
Fishing With Sam (Norway, 2009) – 6 min Animated Short Directed By: Atle S. Blakseth Screening Times: Thursday, October 22, 6:00 p.m., Thorne Auditorium Saturday, October 24, 1:00 p.m., Facets Cinema Monday, October 26, 9:45 a.m., Facets Cinema Saturday, October 31, 9:30 a.m., Facets Cinema Sunday, November 1, 11:00 a.m., Facets Cinema In this whimsical stop-motion animation film set in the North Pole, some Arctic creatures realize that others have a major advantage in fishing technique. How will they survive?
Guri Gursjen & Gursjan Gru (Norway, 2009) – 10 min Animated Short Directed By: Eirik Aure Johanne Anda Screening Times: Saturday, October 24, 5:00 p.m., Facets Cinema Wednesday, October 28, 11:45 a.m., Harold Washington Cultural Center Thursday, October 29, 11:45 a.m., Facets Cinema It’s not easy for Guri and Gursjan to rebel in punk-rock style within a world that wants them to conform.
Hot (Norway, 2009) – 4 min Child-produced Live-Action Short Directed By: Edward Granum Dillner Screening Times: Sunday, October 25, 11:00 a.m., Facets Cinema Sunday, October 25, 3:00 p.m., Facets Cinema Two penguins, Plipp and Plopp, must move from their iceberg in the Antarctic due to global warming. How will they survive the heat when they end up on a tropical island? Hubert: “Modern Art” (Norway, 2008) – 10 min Animated Short Directed By: Tom Petter Hansen Frank Mosvold Screening Times: Sunday, October 25, 1:00 p.m., Facets Cinema Tuesday, October 27, 11:45 a.m., Facets Cinema Hubert, a precocious first grader, has made a painting of the strict principal at his school. One morning on his way to class, Hubert’s painting gets mixed up with a totally different type of painting.
Lilliseed (Norway, 2009) – 16 min Live-action Short Directed By: Hanne Larsen Screening Times: Monday, October 26, 9:45 a.m., Harold Washington Cultural Center When 6-year old Lilliseed’s parents go out of town, Grandma drops by for a visit, bringing magic and storytelling into the house. But for how long will the magic last?
Pupil’s Concert (Norway, 2009) – 10 min Animated Short Directed By: Jan Otto Ertesvåg Screening Times: Friday, October 23, 11:45 a.m., Harold Washington Cultural Center Sunday, October 25, 1:00 p.m., Facets Cinema Wednesday, October 28, 9:45 a.m., Harold Washington Cultural Center Evan is going to play Beethoven’s “Für Elise” at a piano recital. He becomes tired of practicing the same tune over and over, so he starts daydreaming about playing his own music instead.
The Secret Country (Norway, 2009) – 19 min Live-action Short Directed By: Nina Knag Screening Times: Friday, October 30, 9:45 a.m., Harold Washington Cultural Center Best friends Lisa and Aisha enjoy escaping to their imaginary world whenever they can. But with childhood’s impending end growing closer, what will happen to their fantasy land – and friendship?
SOS – Summer of Suspense (Norway, 2008) – 87 min Live-action Feature Directed By: Arne Lindtner Næss Screening Times: Friday, October 30, 11:15 a.m., Kerasotes Showplace 14 The sun shines brightly upon the shore of Noora’s small coastal community but dangers lurk in the distance. After discovering an orphaned seal pup playing with a mysterious package floating in the reef, 12-year-old Noora hides the innocent pup from visiting seal hunters. Little does she know, however, that her heroic mission to save the seal pup will puts her in conflict with everyone on the island! When three young tourists staying in Noora’s family’s rental cottage realize that their important parcel has gone missing, things take a turn for the worse. Now it is up to Noora, her brother Morten, and their friend Ludvik to figure out what makes this package so valuable. This nail-biting adventure starring Afro Norwegian characters is guaranteed to keep you at the edge of your seat!
Through a Glass, Darkly (Norway, 2008) – 85 min Live-action Feature Directed By: Jesper W. Nielsen Screening Times: Sunday, October 25, 9:00 p.m., Facets Cinema Wednesday, October 28, 11:15 a.m., Kerasotes Showplace 14 Christmas is just around the corner, and Cecilie wishes nothing more than to ski down the snowy Norwegian slopes behind her house! But her health keeps her stuck inside, where she dreams of Sebastian, a boy whom she met on vacation last summer. When an angel named Ariel appears to her one night, Cecilie begins to learn that she cannot redo her past but must instead live her life to the fullest in the present. She and Ariel have much to learn from and teach one another, but their time together is achingly brief. Through a Glass, Darkly is a touching, magical, and playful story of a girl’s realization of the wonders of life in the midst of one of its darkest moments.
The Young Detectives: “Mirror to the Past” (Norway, 2008) – 10 min Live-action Short Directed By: Nefise Özkal Lorentzen Screening Times: Saturday, October 24, 1:00 p.m., Facets Cinema Friday, October 30, 9:45 a.m., Facets Cinema Sunday, November 1, 11:00 a.m., Facets Cinema Though the detectives have decided to strike (too many clients, too much stress!), they can’t turn away Bella – a little girl who has lost her teddy bear. See how the super sleuths use a mirror of the past to find the missing bear.
The Young Detectives: “The Compass of Love” (Norway, 2008) – 9 min Live-action Short Directed By: Nefise Özkal Lorentzen Screening Times: Monday, October 26, 9:45 a.m., Harold Washington Cultural Center Thursday, October 29, 11:45 a.m., Harold Washington Cultural Center Saturday, October 31, 12:00 p.m., Wilmette Theater With Carmen’s entrance into the Detective Club (from the drama series of the same name) comes the use of her grandmother’s various magical tools, among which is The Compass of Love. When a romantic triangle is interrupted by a pair of lost soccer tickets, the detectives find a use for the mysterious Compass.
The Young Detectives: “The World of the Imagination” (Norway, 2008) – 11 min Live-action Short Directed By: Nefise Özkal Lorentzen Screening Times: Sunday, October 25, 1:30 p.m., Bank of America Cinema Wednesday, October 28, 9:45 a.m., Facets Cinema Thursday, October 29, 9:45 a.m. Harold Washington Cultural Center Saturday, October 31, 3:00 p.m., Facets Cinema 9-year-old Victor’s father writes fantasy books, and has disappeared into his own novel. Carmen, the most recent gumshoe to join the Detective Club, meets Victor at the library and uses another one of her grandmother’s magical tools to bring Victor’s father back to reality.
