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Seven projects to receive Nordic Genre Boost support

City State director Olaf de Fleur and Returning Home director Henrik Martin Dahlsbakken among those backed.

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Seven titles have been selected by the Nordisk Film & TV fund for the second round of its Nordic Genre Boost initiative.

Three sci-fi films, City State director Olaf de Fleur’s new project East By Eleven, Returning Home director Henrik Martin Dahlsbakken’s Substitute and To Guard A Mountain director Izer Aliu’s Deep Down, have been picked.

Also on the list are Thordur Palsson’s debut feature psychological horror The Damned, Saara Saarela’s dystopian drama Memory Of Water, Hanna Bergholm’s horror-drama Birds Of A Feather and Tor Fruergaard’s animation Bente And The Mutant Scouts.  

A total of 83 titles applied for the second round of the initiative, with the selected projects receiving a grant of $23.3k (NOK 200,000) for development support, access to two residential workshops with script tutoring, and assistance with marketing and sales.

As per the 2015 inaugural edition, the first workshop will be held in conjunction with Helsinki’s Night Visions International Film Festival (April 13-17) and the second during New Nordic Films in Haugesund (August 22-25), where the seven projects will also be pitched to potential co-financiers.

This year’s guest tutors include Todd Brown, head of acquisitions for XYZ Films, and Lindsay Peters, market and industry director at the Frontières International Co-Production Market.

THE 2016 NORDIC GENRE BOOST PROJECTS:

Bente And The Mutant Scouts (Denmark, animation)

Body Horror Fun. First feature by Tor Fruergaard, written by Sissel Dalsgaard and produced by Claudia Saginario (Good Company Films). Bente (10) is sent to scout camp and has to fight off mutants with her new friends; a disgusting, fun and absurd universe.

Birds Of A Feather (Finland, horror-drama)

First feature by Hanna Bergholm, written by Ilja Rautsi and produced by Mika Ritalahti (Silva Mysterium). A 12-year-old perfectionist girl, Tinja, hatches a bird-like doppelgänger to carry out all her buried worst impulses.

Deep Down (Norway, sci-fi) T

Third feature by Izer Aliu, written by Magnus Aspli and produced by Mikael Diseth (Fantefilm Fiksjon). A drilling mission in the Arctic Ocean turns up a strange substance that marine biologist Maria must uncover in order to survive what has been unleashed.

East By Eleven (Iceland, sci-fi)

New feature by writer/director Olaf de Fleur, produced by Kristin Andrea Thordardottir (Poppoli Pictures). A global organization, UNCC, have launched a physical memory system to manifest memories from prisoners for investigative purposes.

Memory Of Water (Finland, dystopian drama)

New feature by Saara Saarela based on the eponymous novel by Emmi Itäranta, co-written by Ilja Rautsi and produced by Misha Jaari and Mark Lwoff (Bufo Ltd). In a futuristic Lapland, water is a luxury, rationed by the military. When a young woman discovers a secret water source she has to decide if she is ready to risk her life by letting the water run free.

Substitute (Norway, sci-fi thriller)

New feature by Henrik Martin Dahlsbakken, written by Jan Trygve Røyneland and produced by Finn Gjedrum (Paradox Rettigheter). Memory archivist Eric returns from his sudden death as a so-called human substitute, all new and ingested with most of his memories, only to discover that he was murdered.

The Damned (Norway, psychological horror)

First feature written and directed by Thordur Palsson and produced by Kamilla Hodøl and Emilie Jouffroy (FilmBros Productions). Set in 1874 in an Icelandic frontier village, Eva starts losing her perspective as group mentality and survival instinct trump human ethics in a community crazed by guilt and superstition.

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City State 2 Makes It To Rotterdam International Film Festival

     Icelandic crime thriller, City State 2 (Borgríki 2 – Blóð hraustra manna) has been chosen to participate in the upcoming Rotterdam International Film Festival (IFFR).

   The film will be shown as a part of the festival’s Spectrum section which keeps tabs on new and recent feature-length works by experienced filmmakers and artists who provide, in the opinion of IFFR, an essential contribution to international film culture.

   The film by Ólafur de Fleur Jóhannesson, a sequel to City State released back in 2011, is set in Iceland and follows Hannes, an ambitious policeman within the Internal Affairs department put in charge of investigating the corrupt head of Narcotics.

   Rotterdam’s International Film Festival begins later this month on the 21 of January and will continue until February 1.

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Screendaily, 2014 | Interview with Olaf de Fleur Johannesson

Olaf de Fleur’s City State “stand-alone sequel”, Brave Men’s Blood, comes out in Icelandic cinemas this month. He says it is the “same tone” as the first film but on a slightly bigger budget (still less than $1m). “The reason for the sequel is that I felt something in my chest that had to come out,” he says.

  Darri Ingolfsson (Dexter) leads the cast; Celluloid Dreams/Mongrel Media represent sales rights. Meanwhile, New Regency bought remake rights to crime thriller City State with James Mangold attached to direct.

   De Fleur, whose diverse credits include Berlinale 2008 award-winning Philippine transsexual story The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela, is very much a rising star overseas — Summit bought his big-budget sci-fi script Revoc, and he will direct that film in English. The story follows a man who is an alien interrogator working after aliens invade Earth. “I’ve always been a sci-fi fan. I let myself think very freely,” the writer-director says.

    De Fleur, repped by WME, is also a producer through his busy company, Poppoli Pictures.

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Brave men's blood review | Morgunblaðið

Directed by: Olaf de Fleur. Screenplay: Hrafnkell Stefansson and Olaf de Fleur. Starring: Darri Ingolfsson, Agusta Eva Erlendsdóttir, Ingvar E. Sigurdsson, Sigurdur Sigurjonsson, Zlatko Krickic and Hilmir Snaer Gudnason. 95 minutes.

BRAVE MEN'S BLOOD

★★★★

The director Olaf de Fleur, along with screenwriter Hrafnkell Stefansson, manages to create a tight and rather realistic cop flick. The characters in the film each have their own demons to struggle with, they are neither invulnerable nor superhuman, which helps the film stay away from heroic clichés. The characterization is well rounded and gives the audience a full understanding of the actions and motivation of the main characters, without necessarily condoning them. Each character is also consistent in their actions but their fates are nicely unexpected. Everyone seems to be a pawn in someone else's powerstruggle, and no one can be trusted.

The film's conversations flow with ease and the performances are outstanding. Darri Ingolfsson and Zlatko Krickic lend their characters such emotional depth that they become instantly immortalized in the audiences mind. Siggi Sigurjons and Ingvar E. are no lesser performers and prove once again that they are acting chameleons and present us with characters that are unique and memorable. Agusta Eva and Hilmir Snaer have strong performances as well but their roles seem to be more centered on strengthening the other four. In their supporting roles, actors like Thorbjorg Helga, Elva Osk, J.J. Fields and Leo Sankovic make their mark on the movie along with fighting champion Jon Vidar, whose character mostly drives the story along rather than being a flesh and blood character.

The story is based on the realities of the Icelandic police and darkness of Reykjavik’s underworld but around that the films spins a narrative that plays on the boundaries of reality and fiction. It’s a tight story with clever twists of betrayal, where all that matters is the law of the jungle where one man’s death is another man’s bread. The storytelling is linear with some time jumbles where we get to see the same events from the perspective of different characters. That makes the audience more aware of the imminent dangers that each characters is faced with.

The film makes good use of the cinematic language with exceptional technical work. The shots are short and to the point, and there’s a lot going on in every scene. The editing darts from cinemascope-like craneshots to extreme close-ups of the characters desperation. This intensifies the films tension along with the strong sense of reality to the story.

The special effects and fight sequences are well orchestrated and balance nicely with the films plot so that the viewer forgets the theater surroundings and immerses himself in the story. Nothing is spared in depicting the ruthless actions and harsh violence of the characters but the greatest harm is often left up to the imagination which only serves to increase the influence without losing the audience to shock or numbness.

It is evident that a finely tuned crew is behind this film and it is produced it with great ambitions, prudent planning and precision in post-production so the end result is almost bulletproof.

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It's a wrap!

Filming is over for Poppoli Pictures new feature film, 'Brave Men's Blood', which is a stand alone sequel to Poppoli's critically acclaimed 2011 film 'City State'.

Directed by Olaf de Fleur, based on a screenplay by Hrafnkell Stefánsson and Olaf de Fleur, the film stars Darri Ingolfsson (Dexter), Ágústa Eva Erlendsdóttir (Jar City), Ingvar E. Siguðursson (K-19: The Widowmaker), Sigurður Sigurjónsson, Zlatko Krickic and Hilmir Snær Guðnason (Angels of The Universe) with an appearance by J.J. Field (Captain America: The First Avenger)

International sales representative is French distributor Celluloid Dreams lead by Hengameh Panahi. The film, produced by Kristín Andrea Þórðardóttir, Ragnar Santos and Olaf de Fleur, is currently in post production and is expected to hit theatres in late 2014. 

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Sci-Fi Thriller Revoc Sold To Summit By Icelandic Filmmaker Olaf de Fleur Johannesson

A new science-fiction story is on the horizon and this one hails all the way from the Nordic nation of Iceland. Olaf de Fleur Johannesson, who has become well known in his home country for his action thriller Borgríki (known here in the U.S. as City State) has sold a pitch to Summit Entertainment for a new sci-fi action movie called Revoc. 

The Hollywood Reporter first reported the news about the acquisition, but just about all details about the plot are being kept under wraps at this time. The only thing that's known about the story is that it is in the same vein as Neill Blomkamp's District 9 and Duncan Jones' Moon and is "a post-alien invasion." Given those comparisons it sounds as though the movie is going to be a lower-budget affair and be a bit more character based than standard blockbusters. David Hoberman and Todd Lieberman of Manderville Films will be producing the project, making it the second time that they have paired up with Summit. Their first collaboration, the zomromcom Warm Bodies, will be in theaters early next year. 

I am totally in favor of science-fiction moving in this direction. Big blockbusters are great, but District 9 and Moon are two of the best examples of the genre in recent memory because they used the concepts and interesting aspects of sci-fi rather than just the possibilities for big action sequences and special effects (not that District 9 didn't have those, and they were great). We'll just have to wait and see what de Fleur Johannesson has up his sleeve. 

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City State has been released on DVD in the United Kingdom.

Buy it now on Amazon

- More news about releases abroad coming soon.

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CITY STATE Remake Penned by LARA CROFT: TOMB RAIDER Scribes -

The writing duo behind 2001′s Lara Croft: Tomb Raider feature has been tapped to remake the Icelandic thriller, City State for New Regency.  Patrick Massett and John Zinman will pen the new version of Olaf de Fleur Johannesson’s 2011 feature.  We previously reported that directorJames Mangold (Walk the Line) would be moving onto City State after wrapping on The Wolverine.The story of City State follows four characters caught in the cross-hairs of a drug syndicate and juggles “a crooked police captain in love with a prostitute, an aging crime boss with a heart condition looking to get out of the game alive, a mechanic determined to avenge the death of his unborn child, and a female cop who is attacked by thugs and takes matters into her own hands.”  Hit the jump for more on City State.

Variety reports that Massett and Zinman will relocate the Icelandic original to a Stateside setting.  The duo, who previously worked together on the television series Friday Night Lights, Caprica and The Finder, also recently submitted a 2010 Black List script, Gold, concerning securities exchange fraud in the U.S. Michael Mann and Paul Haggis are teamed up to direct and produce that project, respectively.  

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EOne grabs U.K., Canada rights to 'City State'

EOne has acquired U.K. and Canada rights to Olaf de Fleur's "City State," a crime thriller that has been snapped up for international distribution by Hengameh Panahi's Gallic sales-production house Celluloid Dreams.

Panahi is also bringing "City State" sequel "Brave Men's Blood" to the Cannes Market.

The eOne buy, Celluloid Dreams' double pickup and other early reactions to "City State" -- including negotiations for a U.S. remake with a view to James Mangold ("Knight and Day") directing -- mark Iceland's de Fleur ("The Amazing Truth About Queen Raquela") as a talent to track.

Read more ...

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Undying Love by Omar Hauksson | Produced by Olaf de Fleur and Kristin Thordardottir

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The City State trailer is now available with subtitles in these languages 

| French | German | Spanish | Japanese |

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  Nominations for the Edda, the Icelandic Film Awards, were announced this past weekend and Poppoli Pictures is proud to have received 13 nominations for the features City State and Polite People that both saw theatrical releases in Iceland in 2011. CITY STATE received 9 nominations including best picture, best director; Olaf de Fleur and best actor; Sigurður Sigurjónsson. Furthermore, Polite People received 4 nominations including best script and Eggert Þorleifsson received best supporting actor nomination for his outstanding performance as Markell the mayor. We at Poppoli Pictures are thrilled and honored and wish to express out deepest gratitute to all our crew and cast and everyone who helped us make these films become a reality, especially The Icelandic Film Centre and Myndform, our national distributor. The Edda Film Awards will be held on February 18th and will be broadcasted live throughout the country. For a full list of nominations for both films please see below.

  City State:

- BEST PICTURE -

Best Director: Olaf De Fleur

Best Actor: Sigurður Sigurjónsson

Cinamatography: Bjarni Felix Bjarnason & Gunnar Heidar

Editing: Olaf de Fleur & Sigurður Eyþórsson

Sound: Gunnar Arnason

Production Design: Heimir Sverrisson

Costume Design: Ellen Loftsdottir

Make Up: Elín Reynisdóttir & Eygló Ólöf Birgisdóttir

  Polite People:

Best Script: Olaf De Fleur Johannesson & Hrafnkell Stefánsson

Best Supporting Actress: Halldóra Geirharðsdóttir & Margrét Ákadóttir

Best Supporting Actor: Eggert Þorleifsson

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Criminal Element | Leslie Gilbert Elman

Now that Contraband, based on the Icelandic film Reykjavík-Rotterdam and with a screenplay by crime novelist Arnaldur Indridason (Indriðason), has hit box-office gold, how long before the next American thriller based on an Icelandic film is announced? Apparently not long at all. Word is the 2011 low-budget Icelandic film Borgríki (City State) will be given the full Hollywood treatment.

Read more

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FRETTATIMINN NEWSPAPER REVIEW | CITY STATE

By Thorarinn Thorarinsson

★★★★

City State; A hardboiled crime thriller.

Let’s get straight to the point. Olaf De Fleur’s CityState is an incredibly cool hardboiled crime thriller which raises the bar for the Icelandic crime thriller genre. The actors were fantastic, the cinematography was slick, and the film has an intoxicatingly cool style and feel about it.

It doesn’t hurt that the film realistically depicts Iceland’s underworld, with of course minor embellishes to build suspense. Even though the violence in the film is very rough, it’s very tastefully handled and shouldn’t drive anyone away. The fights scenes are beautifully choreographed by Mjölnir MMA fight-club.

Olaf De Fleur is a gentle soul, as witnessed in his previous films and would never offer up an empty plate of action and violence. You could say that film is split up in three parts; Sergej a Serbian immigrant, Andrea a young policewoman and Gunnar a crime boss. None of these characters are model citizens but still you can’t help connecting with them and the people in their lives.

The worlds of these three characters collide violently, when Sergej’s wife miscarries after an attack from Gunnar’s thugs. Sergej proceeds to gather a group of tough fellow Serbians, comes full force, after his new enemy Gunnar. Andrea and her police cohorts then land smack in the middle of Gunnar’s and Sergej’s personal war.

It’s certainly not easy to create a story with as many characters as City State and manage to weave them expertly together like Olaf does in the film. He’s not re-inventing the wheel, and uses a story telling device from Tarantino’s Reservoir Dogs, which was clearly the best solution to a complex story.

There’s not enough room here to praise every single actor in an amazing cast. Ingvar E. Sigurdsson rarely fails to deliver and certainly didn’t this time around. Ágústa Eva was wonderful in her portrayal of Andrea, an innocent flower turned into an avenging angel. Sigurður Sigurjónsson’s fantastic performance as a corrupt policelieutenant is in a league of its own. With all that said, the star of the film is without a doubt Zlatko Krickic which blew the audience away with his portrayal of Sergej. There are barely words to describe the brilliant balance of tenderness and toughness in his performance. An amazing actor! And an absolutely amazing film!

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UNDYING LOVE BY OMAR HAUKSSON | SHORT MOVIE | PRODUCED BY OLAF DE FLEUR AND KRISTIN A. THORDARDOTTIR

Twitch writer Swarez last year got involved in making a short movie which he co-wrote and directed with the help of friends including Icelandic filmmaker Olaf De Fleur. After much encouragement UNDYING LOVE was shot in 2010 and is currently in post production for release very shortly creating a little zombie epic, its only 30 seconds long no dialect, some sound but very powerful stuff,check it out….

Watch the Undying Love Trailer

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City State Drama 2012

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Polite People Comedy 2011