European Distributors on releasing Nordic films - hopefully with public coin

Last Thursday’s panel ‘How are Nordic Films Released around Europe? co-organised by New Nordic Films and Europa Distribution, was a valuable opportunity for professionals to get a concrete overview of the health of the arthouse market post-Covid, through the case studies of two Nordic films: Iceland’s Beautiful Beings, which won the Europa Cinema label at the Berlinale 2022, and Norway’s Sick of Myself, selected for last year’s Un Certain Regard in Cannes.

Beautiful Beings go Dutch
Kickstarting the presentation was Hans Kok, managing partner at Dutch arthouse distribution outfit Arti Film, who outlined the launch strategy for Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson‘s Beautiful Beings, which opened September 29, 2022 in the Netherlands.

The film was acquired in Berlin 2022, based on the successful release of Gudmundsson’s earlier film Heartstone, the strength of the Nordic label/Icelandic landscape, the strong cast and coming-of-age story about bullying, friendship and loyalty. These key selling elements were used to position the film to the general audience.

Following a pre-launch at the Dutch ‘Film by the Sea’ Festival early September 2022, the film went wide with a release in 49 cinemas across 27 cities, and a simultaneous launch on the online platform Picl. The marketing campaign relied on the traditional mix of trailer, poster, leaflets, print/online media, advertising and reviews.

The very good reviews were used to get the word of mouth going across SoMe and tradition media.

The international artwork was just slightly adapted with fresh trade quotes, but the international trailer was changed to downscale the violence. “This was key for our audience. You should not hesitate adapting a trailer for your core local audience,” insisted Kok.

The film eventually sold more than 9,000 tickets in the Netherlands, plus 2,074 in the Dutch speaking part of Belgium, and TV rights were sold to VRT.

UK-Italians Get Sick of Myself
Eva Zvedeniuk from UK arthouse distributor Modern Films then detailed the UK release of Kristoffer Borgli’s satire Sick of Myself about a self-obsessed young woman and her boyfriend’s toxic relationship. Released April 21, 2023 in the UK after a festival launch at the London Film Festival 2022, the campaign exploited the film’s divisive nature to sparkle debate and get the word of mouth going.

The marketing relied on the usual poster/trailers, plus give away competitions and heavy merchandising with the creation of caps, hoodies and peppermint pills referring to the main female character’s drug addiction.

Four preview screenings with Q&As, supported by the Norwegian Royal Embassy in London were sold out. After a two-month run from 39 sites, the film grossed £103,000. “We’re super happy with the results and the film is still playing,” said Zvedeniuk.

Beatrice Moia of Italy’s Wanted Cinema, said Sick of Myself’s Italian release scheduled for September 28, will rely predominantly on the existing material and campaign used by Modern Films. “It’s key to connect with other distributors to discuss the release strategies, especially with films for the younger audience,” said the marketing executive who hopes to achieve similar B.O. results as with Ali Abbasi’s Border, which grossed around €300,000 in Italy.

Commenting on cinema trends post-Covid, Moia said the younger audience have come back to the silver screen, but older crowds are still missing. “It’s easier to reach people, but at the same time, it’s harder today to convince them to watch a particular movie. Competition is fierce, therefore it is crucial to clearly identify the target audience,” she said.

Zvedeniuk agreed: “Post-Covid, the pace of the theatrical releases is wild. We are therefore more selective in our acquisitions, evaluating each film’s theatrical potential. It is also key for us to get distribution support from film funds, such as the Norwegian Film Institute,” she underscored.

Norwegian-Finnish distribution support
Invited to present the NFI’s new International Distribution scheme, international relations advisor Hanne Merethe Okstad said the initiative was launched in 2022 as part of a post-Covid stimulus package from the government, to boost the export of Norwegian films.

Grants per film available to foreign distributors via a Norwegian producer, range from NOK 50,000 (€5,000) to NOK 250,000 (€25,000) per territory or up to NOK 600,000 (€60,000) per film. (see conditions to apply here).

Jenni Domingo from The Finnish Film Foundation said a similar international distribution support scheme set up in 2021, is available in Finland. Grants per film amount to €7,000 per territory and each film can get up to €40,000 (see here).

The panel 'How are Nordic Films Released around Europe?' was moderated by UK-based Michael Gubbins.