The animation film Niko & The Way to the Stars made history last Sunday at Finland's annual film awards, the Jussis, by winning Best Film and Best Screenplay. At the same time in Copenhagen, the Danish equivalent, the Robert awards, turned into a Terribly Happy evening with seven wins for Henrik Ruben Genz. Both films were supported by Nordisk Film & TV Fond.

After conquering the world, Niko co-directed by Michael Hegner and Kari Juusonen, won the hearts of Filmiaura, the association of Finnish film professionals who for the first time ever, gave the top Jussi award to an animation film. "This is a historical moment as Niko by all means is a mainstream movie, family entertainment and a children's film," commented producer Hannu Tuomainen who shared the producing credit with Petteri Pasanen, and the scriptwriting Jussi with Marteinn Thorisson. "Maybe times are changing and the false wall between art and entertainment is being torn down stone by stone."

The other major winner of the Jussi evening was Dome Karukoski's Home of the Dark Butterflies that picked up four Jussis including Best Director and the Audience Award. The romantic drama Falling Angels won three Jussis (including Best Actor to Tommi Korpela and Best Actress to Elena Leeve), a number matched by horror film Sauna. John Webster's Recipes for Disaster won Best Documentary.

In Denmark, Terribly Happy produced by Fine & Mellow, swept the top Robert awards in the Film, Director, Lead Actor (Jakob Cedergren), Lead Actress (Lene Maria Christensen), and Screenplay (Genz and Dunja Gry Jensen) categories. Last year's Danish mega-hit Flame & Citron by Ole Christian Madsen was the second biggest winner with five Roberts, but in less prominent categories, such as Set Design, Costumes and Sound. Niels Arden Oplev's Worlds Apart won four Roberts including Best Supporting Actor (Jens Jørn Spottag), and Supporting Actress (Sarah Boberg). Lotte Svendsen's family film Max Embarrassing, screening this upcoming week at the Berlinale Generation KPlus, was voted Best Children & Youth Film, Anders Høgsbro Østergaard's Burma VJ-Reporting from a Closed Country Best Documentary, and Jan Troell's Everlasting Moments, Best Foreign Film (non US).

For full list of Jussi awards, check: http://www.ses.fi/
For full list of Robert awards, check: http://www.filmupdate.dk/robert-vindere-2009/