The Swedish Film Institute and Swedish film in Cannes 2016

Five films by a Swedish director or producer

David Herdies, co-producer of Madre, Simon Vahlne, director of Fight on a Swedish Beach, Alexandra-Therese Keining, director of Girls Lost.

This year three Swedish productions were screened in Cannes. Girls Lost (Pojkarna) by Alexandra-Therese Keining in Écrans Junior and two short films competing for a Palme d'Or; Fight on a Swedish Beach, directed by Simon Vahlne for Plattform Productions and the Swedish-Colombian Madre by Simòn Mesa Soto co-produced by David Herdies, Momento Film.

- To see the film in the Palais de Festival was an incredible feeling. We recommend it! said a happy Simon Vahlne after the red carpet screening on Saturday. David Herdies agreed: - It was a really nice selection of films this year, and an honour to be amongst them.

An additional two Swedish co-productions were displayed on the Croisette this year; Wolf and Sheep by the Afghan director Shahrbanoo Sadat, co-produced by Madeleine Ekman for Zentropa, and The Happiest Day in the Life of Olli Mäki by Juho Kuosmanenco, co-produced by Nicklas Wikström Nicastro for SF Studios. Both of them received the top awards in their respective categories Directors' Fortnight and Un certain regard.
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Press conference - ”Meet the Swedes in Cannes”

Frida Bargo was this year's Producer on the Move. Here interviewed by the Swedish Film Institutes Director of Communications, Rebecka Ioannidis Lindberg.

Frida Bargo represented Sweden this year as Producer on the Move in Cannes, selected by the Swedish Film Institute and European Film Promotion. During the Film Institute’s press meeting on May 13 she revealed more about her next film project, Euforia, which Bargo co-produces with, amongst others, Alicia Vikanders company Vikarious. The Oscar-awarded Swedish actress will also play the lead and it is to be directed by Lisa Langseth. Alexandra Therese-Keining disclosed the fact that she has embarked on an international career and is about to start shooting a film in English, with a hitherto secret international cast.  She was reluctant to reveal much about the theme of the film but did say that it would be a dramatic, political conspiracy film. Other guests included the director Ruben Östlund, this year in Cannes as a member of the jury for Un certain regard but also to present his new project The Square together with the producer Erik Hemmendorf. Aliette Opheim, selected Rising Star at Stockholm Film Festival 2016 told the gathered press that she is about to go to the States to shoot a TV-series. The pressconference ended with the Film Institute giving away a few more details about Filip and Fredrik’s new film The Cake General (Tårtgeneralen), which is set to receive automatic funding.

Borg/McEnroe

The team behind Borg/McEnroe, from left to right: Ronnie Sandahl (script), Fredrik Wikström Nicastro (producer), Sverrir Gudnason (plays Björn Borg), Janus Metz (director) and Jon Nohrstedt (producer).

Scandinavian Terrace is where you meet in  Cannes to present Scandinavian film to buyers, producers, investors, festivals and to, last but not least,  international press. On Saturday May 14 the team behind a film which will reach international movie theaters in 2017 attended the terrace and the Swedish Film Institute. The film's title is Borg/McEnroe and will be directed by Janus Metz and produced by Fredrik Wikström Nicastro and Jon Nohrstedt for SF Studios with support from the Swedish Film Institute. The film project had already had a lot of prior publicity and many from the international corps of journalists turned up to celebrate the project and to find out more about how the two tennis legends will be portrayed on the silver screen. The script is written by Ronnie Sandahl, Sverrir Gudnason plays Björn Borg, Shia LaBoeuf John McEnroe and Stellan Skarsgård plays the part of Borg’s coach Lennart Bergelin.
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Gender equality seminar ”Fiftyfifty by 2020”

The Minister of culture & democracy, Alice Bah Kuhnke, spoke at the Swedish Film Institute's seminarium, which was attended by a large and engaged audience.

The Swedish Film Institute were this year given the task by the Department of Culture to arrange a seminar in Cannes with focus on the journey towards gender equality in film production. It was called "Fiftyfifty by 2020", and with the successful results of the Swedish work towards equal funding as the starting-point, the purpose of the seminar was to raise international interest on the topic. The Minister of culture & democracy Alice Bah Kuhnke, together with the CEO at the Swedish Film Institute Anna Serner, invited a panel consisting of Alexandra Therese-Keining, director, Emilie Lesclaux, director, Chiara Tilesi, founder of the production company " We do it together", Ruben Östlund, director, and Roberto Olla, CEO Eurimages. The panelists discussed the how's and why's and the different possibilities to reach a more equal gender distribution in the film industry. Olla also presented Eurimages' plan for gender equality in European film production. The Minister of culture & communication in France, Audrey Azoulay, gave the opening speech in front of a crowded Plage Royale.
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