The European Film Festival "Scanorama" invites you to welcome the summer and have a free vacation with European cinema. Starting from May 28, the festival organizers will invite you to meet for selected film experiences every Wednesday in the alternative culture space "Utopija".
Scanorama continues its summer events, for the first time offering a broad and comprehensive program of European films to the residents of Vilnius. Viewers will have the opportunity to see the most prominent films of recent years from the North and all of Europe for free in the capital's alternative cultural space, open to a dynamic dialogue between the past and the present. It is no coincidence that the first Scanorama film program in Utopia will begin with Norwegian director Joachim Trier's film Louder Than Bombs, which opens up the topic of the complexity and subtleties of personal choices. Event "will become the beginning of constant communication with the general public of the capital. We hope that it will continue to grow the ranks of festival fans in the fall as well," says Gražina Arlickaitė, the founder and artistic director of the festival, introducing the summer film program.
Nordic Summer – on the big screen
The program will be opened by Norwegian director Joachim Trier's film "Louder Than Bombs" starring the talented French actress Isabelle Huppert. The film, presented at the Cannes Film Festival, explores issues of human identity and memory. According to the director, each person remembers the same events differently, which inevitably affects their personalities.
The Nordic part of the program will be complemented by Norwegian director Joachim Trier's "Telma", which tells the story of first love and self-discovery, the confrontation between the individual and a conservative society. The film was awarded the Norwegian Film Critics Award and was presented at the prestigious Toronto Film Festival. The theme of self-discovery from a woman's perspective will be continued by Norwegian director Anne Sewitsky's film "Sonja. The White Swan". The director invites you to watch the bright and colorful life of ice queen Sonja Henie: the main ice arenas, the splendor of Hollywood, world fame, luxury and the gloomy end of a fading star reveal the dramatic biography of the icon of modern skating. The film was presented at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival.
Norwegian director Hans Petter Moland's film "Stealing Horses" is an epic coming-of-age drama set against a stunning natural backdrop, covering a wide range of human emotions from love to loss, disappointment and guilt. The film was awarded the Silver Bear for Artistic Contribution at the prestigious Berlin Film Festival, and "Amanda" was recognized as the best Norwegian film of the year at the Norwegian Film Awards.
Tuva Novotny's film "The Blind Spot", representing the Norwegian wing, can be compared in its impact to E. Munch's famous painting "The Scream" - its actors masterfully convey an incredible breadth and depth of emotions, which remain in the audience's memory for a long time. Actress Pia Tjelta, who plays the main role, was awarded the Best Actress award at the prestigious San Sebastian Film Festival.
Danish director Gustav Möller's thriller "Guilt" draws you into a claustrophobic world of reality and imagination, and actor Jakob Cedergren's mastery captivates you from the first to the last minute of the film. The film won audience awards at the Sundance and Rotterdam film festivals. Swedish director Magnus von Horn's film "Sweat!" accurately and mercilessly depicts the narcissistic culture of opinion leaders and looks intently beyond the shiny glass, behind which the echoing emptiness opens. The film was presented at the Cannes Film Festival.
Swedish directors Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein's stylish film "Vertigo" follows William Shakespeare's timeless tragedy and writes a cinematic love letter to Stockholm's legendary amusement park "Gröna Lund". The feud between two families against the backdrop of World War II tests the feelings of the heirs of different amusement parks, but does not stop the spinning carousel of life.
Director Valdimar Johannsson's film "Avelė" will take you to the harsh beauty of Iceland. The visual and bold poem is an original interpretation of Icelandic myths and mercilessly exposes human nature. The film was memorable for both audiences and film critics - the film was awarded for originality at the Cannes Film Festival.
Man and society in the field of vision of the cinema lens
The summer film program also includes films that have been recognized at major film festivals and explore historical memory, changing society and personal destinies. The film "The Salesman" by the famous Iranian director Asghar Farhadi raises sensitive ethical questions and draws you into an unusual domestic drama, imbued with Hitchcockian tension. At the Cannes Film Festival, the film was awarded for best screenplay, and Shahab Hosseini, who plays the lead role, was awarded for best actor.
Serbian director Srdan Golubović's drama "The Father" sensitively tells the story of a father's attempt to preserve human dignity and win back his children, tirelessly navigating the labyrinths of corrupt local government. The film won the Berlin Film Festival's "Panorama" audience and ecumenical jury awards.
Polish director Jan Paweł Matuszynski's film "Leave No Trace" takes us to Poland in 1983. The country is shaken by the case of Grzegorz Przemyk, a student, son of poet and Solidarity activist Barbara Sadowska, who is beaten to death by the police. Based on historical events, the director creates a compelling and captivating story that is shocking in its timeless relevance. The film was presented at the Venice Film Festival.
The Israeli director's film "Here We Are" was presented at the Cannes Film Festival - a story filled with the classic calm of storytelling and a moderate sense of humor, revealing the drama of the relationship between a father and his son with autism spectrum disorder and unfading hope. A completely different note is struck by the film "The Beast of the Jungle" by French director Patrick Chiha, presented at the Berlin Film Festival. The film freely interprets the work of the famous writer Henry James, turning it into a cinematic love story, a story of obsession and a soundtrack from 1979-2004, pulsating with disco and techno rhythms.
The most daring and unconventional film of the program, the documentary "De Humani Corporis Fabrica" by French directors Verena Paravel and Lucien Castaing-Taylor, invites you to look inside the human being and experience its beauty and horror. Presented in the Cannes Film Festival's "Two Directors' Weeks" program, this ode to the human body and the work of a doctor opens up bodily geography not only to the eyes of operating room workers, but also to film audiences.
Free movie screening program
May 28 20 p.m. "Guilt", Dir. Gustav Möller, 1 hr. 25 min. | Drama, crime, thriller | N-13, 2018: Denmark
June 4th at 20 p.m. "Stealing Horses”, Dir. Hans Petter Moland, 2 h. 3 min. | Drama | N-13, 2019: Norway
June 11 20 p.m. "Sonja. The White Swan", Dir. Anne Sewitsky, 1 h. 54 min. | Drama, biographical, historical | N-13, 2018: Norway
June 18 20 p.m. "Sweat!" Dir. Magnus von Horn, 1 hr. 45 min. | Drama | N-13, 2020: Sweden, Poland
June 25 20 p.m. "Father", Dir. Srdan Golubović, 2 hrs. | Drama | N-13, 2015: Germany, North Macedonia, France
July 2 at 20 p.m. "Vertigo", Dir. Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein, 1 hr. 44 min. | Romance | N-13, 2019: Sweden
July 9 at 20 p.m. "Blind Zone", Dir. Tuva Novotny, 1 hr. 38 min. | Drama | N-13, 2018: Norway
July 16 at 20 p.m. "Telma", Dir. Joachim Trier, 1 hr. 56 min. | Drama, thriller, fantasy | N-13, 2017: Norway, France, Denmark, Sweden
July 23 at 20 p.m. "Avelė", Dir. Valdimar Johannsson, 1 hr. 55 min. | Drama, mystery | N-16, 2021: Iceland, Sweden, Poland
July 30 at 20 p.m. "Leave No Trace", Dir. Jan Paweł Matuszynski, 2 h. 40 min. | Drama, historical | N-16, 2021: Poland, France, Czech Republic
August 6 20 p.m. "Here We Are", Dir. Nir Bergman, 1 hr. 34 min. | Drama | N-13, 2020: Israel, Italy
August 13 20 p.m. "De Humani Corporis Fabrica", Dir. Verena Paravel and Lucien Castaing-Taylor, 1 hr. 55 min. | Documentary | N-16, 2022: France
August 20, 20 p.m. "The Beast in the Jungle", Dir. Patric Chiha, 1 hr. 43 min. | Drama, Romance | N-13, 2023: France
August 27 20 p.m. "The Salesman", Dir. Asghar Farhadi, 2 hrs. 5 min. | Drama, thriller | N-13, 2016: Iran, France
Location: Alternative Culture Space "Utopija" (T. Kosciuškos g. 1, Vilnius)
