The 48th Göteborg Film Festival taking place January 24 to February 2, 2025 in Gothenburg, Sweden, unveiled the program lineup featuring 270 films from 83 countries
The festival kicks off with the world premiere of Safe House (Før mørket), directed by Norwegian filmmaker Eirik Svensson, a film based on real events from the autobiography Det finnes ingen de andre – det er bare oss by Lindis Hurum, Secretary General of Doctors Without Borders in Norway.
Safe House (Før mørket) is set during the civil war in the Central African Republic in 2013. On Christmas Eve, a desperate Muslim man seeks refuge at a field hospital, while a threatening Christian militia gathers outside, demanding his life. At the center of the unfolding events is Norwegian aid worker Linn, played by Kristine Kujath Thorp, who faces a series of moral dilemmas as she strives to protect the man without endangering her colleagues’ safety.
“What an honor and great joy it is to have our premiere as the opening film at the fantastic Göteborg Film Festival! In today’s climate, with a world on fire, it has felt deeply meaningful to contribute to telling this powerful story. We all benefit from reflecting on the responsibility we have and what we can mean to another person. I hope people embrace the film, and I am very much looking forward to returning to Göteborg and the festival,” says director Eirik Svensson.
Safe House starring Kristine Kujath Thorp, Alexander Karim, Bibi Tanga, Mattis Hermann Nyquist, Tracy Gotoas, and Alma Pöysti, is competing in the Nordic Competition
Other highlights include The Brutalist directed by Brady Corbet and starring Adrien Brody will screen as centerpiece film; with Stranger directed by Mads Hedegaard as the festival’s closing film.
Honorary Dragon Award will be presented to Julie Delpy at the premiere of Meet the Barbarians; and Thomas Vinterberg will be awarded the Nordic Honorary Award along with a screening of The Celebration.
2024 Göteborg Film Festival Lineup
Focus: Disobedience.
Under the heading Focus: Disobedience, the festival will explore the power of civil resistance.
“During the 48th Göteborg Film Festival, we will explore the concept of disobedience by showing contemporary films that explore the theme, and highlighting their significance in society. We look forward to discussing, problematizing, and mobilizing our defiance during the festival,” says Pia Lundberg, artistic director of the Göteborg Film Festival.
Four films that will be part of Focus: Disobedience incude Little Jaffna directed by Lawrence Valin; Once Upon a Time in a Forest directed by Virpi Suutari; April directed by Dea Kulumbegashvili, and No Other Land directed by Basel Adra, Hamdan Ballal, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor.
Nordic Competition
Safe House, by Eirik Svensson (Norway)
When the Light Breaks, by Rúnar Rúnarsson (Iceland/Netherlands/Croatia/France)
Live a little, by Fanny Ovesen (Sweden/Norway/Denmark)
Kevlar Soul, by Maria Eriksson-Hecht (Sweden/Norway/Finland)
My Eternal Summer, by Sylvia Le Fanu (Denmark)
Love, by Dag Johan Haugerud (Norway)
The Girl With the Needle, by Magnus von Horn (Denmark/Poland/Sweden)
Sauna, by Mathias Broe (Denmark)
Orenda, by Pirjo Honkasalo (Finland)
Ingmar Bergman Competition
Cactus Pears, by Rohan Parashuram Kanawade (India, United Kingdom, Canada)
Then, the Fog, by Martín Sappia (Argentina)
The Land of Morning Calm, by Park Ri-woong (South Korea)
Gülızar, by Belkis Bayrak (Turkey, Kosovo)
On Falling, by Laura Carreira (United Kingdom, Portugal)
Crocodile Tears, by Tumpal Tampubolon (Indonesia, France, Singapore, Germany)
The Last Romantics, by David Pérez Sañudo (Spain)
Hanami, by Denise Fernandes (Switzerland, Portugal, Cape Verde)
Nordic Documentary Competition
Ultras, by Ragnhild Ekner (Sweden/Denmark/Finland)
Mr. Nobody Against Putin, by David Borenstein and Pavel Talankin (Denmark/Czech Republic)
Alexandra – If Not Seen, You Don’t Exist, by Olivia Kastebring (Sweden)
The Mind, by Roozbeh Janghorban (Sweden)
Kyiv Soloists, by Trond Kvig Andreassen (Norway/Netherlands/Ukraine)
About a Hero, by Piotr Winiewicz (Denmark/Germany/USA)
The Dialogue Police, by Susanna Edwards (Sweden)
Trans Memoria, by Victoria Verseau (Sweden/France)
International Competition
Pheasant Island, by Asier Urbieta (Spain)
Measures for a Funeral, by Sofia Bohdanowicz (Canada)
Memoir of a Snail, by Adam Elliot (Australia)
Ma – Cry of Silence, by The Maw Naing (Myanmar/South Korea/Singapore/France/Norway/Qatar)
Inside, by Charles Williams (Australia/Sweden)
All We Imagine as Light, by Payal Kapadia (India/France/Netherlands/Luxembourg)
The Quiet Son, by Delphine Coulin and Muriel Coulin (France)
To a Land Unknown, by Mahdi Fleifel (United Kingdom/Palestine/France/Greece/Netherlands/Germany/Qatar/Saudi Arabia)
Vermiglio, by Maura Delpero (Italy/France/Belgium)
Tre väninnor, by Emmanuel Mouret (France)
Three Kilometres to the End of the World, by Emanuel Parvu (Romania)
September Says, by Ariane Labed (Ireland/Germany/Greece/United Kingdom/France)
Santosh, by Sandhya Suri (United Kingdom/India/France/Germany)
Maybe It’s True What They Say About Us, by Sofía Paloma Gómez and Camilo Becerra (Chile/Argentina/Spain)
En by vid paradisets rand, by Mo Harawe (Austria/France/Germany/Somalia)
Super Happy Forever, by Kohei Igarashi (France/Japan)
Beloved Tropic, by Ana Endara (Panama/Colombia)
Honeymoon, by Zhanna Ozirna (Ukraine)
