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REYKJAVIK 2021

Eight films vying for the Golden Puffin at Reykjavik

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- The 18th edition of the Reykjavik International Film Festival will showcase 85 features from 61 countries and boasts a nigh-on 50/50 gender ratio among their directors

Eight films vying for the Golden Puffin at Reykjavik
The Worst Person in the World by Joachim Trier

The 18th edition of the Reykjavik International Film Festival (RIFF) will take place from 30 September-10 October, opening with Joachim Trier's The Worst Person in the World [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Joachim Trier
film profile
]
, which garnered Renate Reinsve the Best Actress Award at Cannes. Trier will receive a special Prize for Outstanding Artistry, as will Mia Hansen-Løve, whose Bergman Island [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Mia Hansen-Løve
film profile
]
is also featured on the programme, and both filmmakers will enjoy retrospectives of their earlier works.

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Also among the special guests are Debbie Harry, who will come along for a Q&A session in support of the short film Blondie: Vivir en la Habana, and celebrated Danish actress Trine Dyholm, who plays the eponymous Scandinavian ruler in Margrete - Queen of the North [+see also:
trailer
interview: Charlotte Sieling
film profile
]
, the closing film of the festival.

There are eight titles vying for the Golden Puffin Award in the main competitive section, New Visions, intended for first or second films by their directors. Three are coming from the Berlinale (Andreas Fontana's Azor [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Andreas Fontana
film profile
]
, Jacqueline Lentzou's Moon, 66 Questions [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Jacqueline Lentzou
film profile
]
and Alexandre Koberidze's What Do We See When We Look at the Sky? [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Alexandre Koberidze
film profile
]
), two from Cannes (Vincent Le Port's Bruno Reidal, Confession of a Murderer [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Vincent Le Port
film profile
]
and Nathalie Álvarez Mesén's Clara Sola [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Nathalie Álvarez Mesén
film profile
]
), two from Tribeca (Thomas Dameskov's Wild Men [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Thomas Daneskov
film profile
]
and US director Nana Mensah's Queen of Glory) and one from Karlovy Vary (Dina Duma's Sisterhood [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Dina Duma, Antonia Belazelk…
film profile
]
).

One more competitive selection, in addition to three sections dedicated to international and Icelandic short films, is A Different Tomorrow, which deals with socially important issues. In total, 80% of the films in this competition are directed by women, and the titles include Marta Popivoda's Landscapes of Resistance [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Marta Popivoda
film profile
]
, Robin Petré's From the Wild Sea [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Robin Petré
film profile
]
, Engeli Broberg's Gabi, Between Ages 8 and 13 [+see also:
trailer
film profile
]
, Salomé Jashi's Taming the Garden [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Salomé Jashi
film profile
]
and Aïcha Macky's Zinder [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Aïcha Macky
film profile
]
. For the full list, please click here.

Other sidebar sections include the newly established Cinema Beats as well as Documentaries, Open Seas, Dutch Focus and, for international guests, the particularly appetising Icelandic Panorama featuring eight fresh Icelandic titles.

Two recently departed industry professionals, Icelandic director Árni Ólafur Ásgeirsson, and Greek curator and film critic Dimitris Eipides, who in addition to programming for the Thessaloniki, Toronto and Montreal Film Festivals served as the programme director at RIFF, will have tribute programmes dedicated to them.

RIFF's famed special events in unusual locations continue this year, with highlights including screenings of Jim Henson's Labyrinth in the Raufarhólshellir cave and Wes Anderson's The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou in a swimming-pool cinema. Plus, Hildur Guðnadóttir’s Academy Award-winning score for Joker will be performed by SinfoniaNord and conducted by the composer’s father, Guðni Franzson, set to a projection of the film.

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