Edward Berger caused a splash in 2015 with the sleeper-hit TV series Deutschland ’83, a slow-build spy drama set in the deep freeze of the cold war. This year he went even further back into Germany’s history for All Quiet on the Western Front, a brutal retelling of Erich Maria Remarque’s First World War novel, first published in 1929. Many years in limbo, including a period of time with Daniel Radcliffe attached, the project received an adrenaline shot when Berger came on board to take the novel back to its German roots. The harrowing Netflix production has captivated audiences all over the world with the story of rookie soldier Paul Bäumer (Felix Kammerer), and has a strong shot at the International Oscar, having made the 15-title shortlist while opening up four further possibilities for music and craft.
‘War Sailor’ Director Gunnar Vikene Recounts How Daughter’s Tears Over Child Casualty Of Syrian Conflict Spurred Film – Contenders International
04.12.2022 - 00:11 / deadline.com
Gunnar Vikene’s War Sailor tells the forgotten story of the 30,000 Norwegian civilian sailors who were conscripted at the beginning of World War II to serve on convoys keeping Allied supply chains open.
Conditions were treacherous with a high risk of being torpedoed by German U-boats or attacked from the air. When ships went down, it was too dangerous for other vessels to stop or turn back to pluck sailors from the water, a fact that would haunt survivors.
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Spanning the years 1939-72 and drawing on true stories, the drama follows the fate of friends and civilian sailors Alfred and Sigbjørn as they face endless perils at sea, buffeted by a war in which they are not playing a combat role.
Back home in Bergen, Alfred’s wife struggles to survive with their three children as the port becomes a target for British bombing raids, due to the presence of German submarine bunkers in it waters.
“I met these sailors when I was 13,” Vikene said Saturday on a panel at Deadline’s International Contenders event. “My father was a painter, and they were his colleagues. They were self-medicating with alcohol and very traumatized. We were painting a flour silo, and one of them took his shirt off and was walking around the edge, 60 meters from ground. He was playing with his life.
“I couldn’t understand why he was doing it,” he added, “but then my father told me he had been torpedoed twice and seen so many horrors. It got to me, and since I have family members who sailed, I started collecting these stories.”
It would take Vikene another 30 years to write a screenplay as he forged a career first as a submarine engineer and then as a filmmaker focusing mainly on contemporary
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‘War Sailor’ Review: Gunnar Vikene’s Norwegian Oscar Entry
From Bergen to Malta, Liverpool, New York and Halifax: Norwegian merchant seamen Alfred (Kristoffer Joner) and Sigbjorn (Pal Sverre Hagen) sometimes seem to be competing for screen time with datelines in Gunnar Vikene’s epic War Sailor, Norway’s Oscar submission. Sprawling, packed with anecdote and surging from one dramatic peak to the next, War Sailor sets out to tell the stories of the ordinary but unsung heroes who helped defeat Germany in 1945. It has the best of intentions.
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European Film Promotion Unveils 2023 Shooting Stars; ITV Orders ‘Waco’, ‘Nolly’ & ‘Stonehouse’ Docs & Newen Connect’s ‘Women At War’ Feted With Unifrance Export Prize – Global Briefs
European Film Promotion Unveils 2023 European Shooting StarsBelgian actress Joely Mbundu, co-star of Luc and Jean-Pierre Dardenne’s Cannes 2022 feature Tori And Lokita, is among the eight rising talents selected for the 2023 edition of European Film Promotion’s European Shooting Stars initiative. The selection also includes Italy’s Benedetta Porcaroli, seen recently in Venice Horizons 2022 title Amanda, and Norway’s Kristine Kujath Thorp, who previously made her mark in Fanny, The Burning Sea and Ninjababy, and also won praise for her performance in Cannes Certain Regard 2022 selection Sick of Myself. The other spotlighted titles comprise Alina Tomnikov (Finland), Leonie Benesch (Germany), Yannick Jozefzoon (The Netherlands), Judith State(Romania), Gizem Erdogan (Sweden) and Kayije Kagame (Switzerland) Thorvaldur Kristjansson (Iceland). This year’s talents were selected by an eight-person jury featuring Polish director Jan Komasa, Dutch casting director Rebecca van Unen and Norwegian producer Maria Ekerhovd. The eight talents will participate in a four-day program during the upcoming Berlin Film Festival (February 16-26), during which they will meet journalists, casting directors, producers and filmmakers.
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Director Paz Encina Talks Trauma Of Separation From Loved Ones & Climate Crisis In ‘Eami’ – Contenders International
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Director Philip Yung On Hong Kong’s Oscar Entry ‘Where The Wind Blows’: “It’s A Memory Of A Former Time” – Contenders International
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