Bergen International Film Festival

History

In 2000, Bergen was a European Capital of Culture. Due to the occasion, the city of Bergen through Bergen kino established the Bergen International Film Festival, with the most important films from the festival circuit of the year and many sneak previews of movies already picked up for Norwegian distribution. BIFF was one of the most successful events to take place during the celebration of the Cultural City, and was arranged again the year after.

Over the years the festival has grown to become the biggest film festival in Norway, with more than 120 films and 55,000 admissions in 2024.

Programmes

Bergen International Film Festival is organised in various sections:

• Cinema Extraordinaire, the main international competition program of fiction films.
• Documentaire Extraordinaire, the main international competition program of documentary films.
• Checkpoints, a competition program consisting of documentaries focusing on human rights, in collaboration with the Rafto Foundation for Human Rights. Since 2010, a jury has selected a winner, where the prize is awarded to the organization or cause depicted in the film.
• The Golden Owl, a competition program consisting of documentaries focusing on the dissemination of science and research, in collaboration with the University of Bergen.
• Norwegian Documentary Program, with competition programs for best Norwegian documentary and best Norwegian short documentary.
• Norwegian Short Film Competition, a competition program of best Norwegian short fiction film.
• Norwegian Music Video Competition, a competition program of best Norwegian music video.

BIFF and education

Bergen International Film Festival has an extensive program for high school and junior high school students in Bergen. BIFFs offers schools in the area to participate in two different programs:

BIFF for Schools

For more than 20 years, Bergen International Film Festival has offered free film screenings with educational materials for schools. The selection is linked to the three cross-curricular themes in the Norwegian school system: democracy, sustainability and public health.

In 2010, former mayors of Bogotá, Antanas Mockus and Enrique Peñalosa held strong appeals to students of the power of local democracy after the showings of Bogota Change.

The School Film Festival

From 2003 to 2019 BIFF offered a crash course film school for junior high schools, with professional filmmakers holding seminars. The festival made camera and editing stations available for the students, and awarded one school each year for best student film.

Audience Numbers

Awards at Bergen International Film Festival

Cinema Extraordinare

The main award at the Bergen International Film Festival is presented to the best feature film. It was awarded from 2000 to 2010 and again since 2016. The award has had its current name since 2007. From 2000 to 2005 it was called The Jury's Award, and in 2006 to 2007 it was named The Norwegian Film Institute's Import Award, which included Norwegian distribution as part of the prize.

• 2000: Luna Papa, directed by Bakhtyar Khudojnazarov
• 2001: Lagaan, directed by Ashutosh Gowariker
• 2002: Dog Days, directed by Ulrich Seidl
• 2003: Blind Shaft, directed by Li Yang
• 2004: Mysterious Skin, directed by Gregg Araki
• 2005: Frozen Land, directed by Aku Louhimies
• 2006: The Minder, directed by Rodrigo Moreno
• 2007: Silent Light, directed by Carlos Reygadas
• 2008: The World is Big and Salvation Lurks Around the Corner, directed by Stefan Komandarev
• 2009: No One's Son, directed by Arsen Anton Ostojić
• 2010: Le Quattro Volte, directed by Michelangelo Frammatino
• 2016: House of others, directed by Rusudan Glurjidze
• 2017: A Ciambra, directed by Jonas Carpignano
• 2018: Ayka, directed by Sergei Dvortsevoy
• 2019: House of Hummingbird, directed by Bora Kim and La Llorona, directed by Jayro Bustamante
• 2020: The Trouble With Being Born, directed by Sandra Wollner
• 2021: Sundown, directed by Michel Franco
• 2022: The Five Devils, directed by Léa Mysius
• 2023: All Dirt Roads Taste of Salt, directed by Raven Jackson
• 2024: On Becoming a Guinea Fowl, directed by Rungano Nyoni

Best International Documentary/Documentaire Extraordinaire

Awarded since 2004. The prize is 30,000 NOK, since 2013 awarded by NRK.

• 2004: The Master and His Pupil, directed by Sonia Herman Dolz
• 2005: The Boys of Baraka, directed by Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady
• 2006: God Grew Tired of Us, directed by Christopher Dillon Quinn
• 2007: Forever, directed by Heddy Honigmann
• 2008: War Child, directed by Christian Karim Chrobog
• 2009: Afghan Star, directed by Havana Marking
• 2010: The Autobiography of Nicolae Ceausescu, directed by Andrei Ujică
• 2011: Buck, directed by Cindy Meehl
• 2012:
• 2013: The Unknown Known, directed by Errol Morris
• 2014: Waiting for August, directed by Teodora Ana Mihai
• 2015: Pervert Park, directed by Frida Barkfors and Lasse Barkfors
• 2016: Brothers of the Night, directed by Patric Chiha
• 2017: Makala, directed by Emmanuel Gras
• 2018: Minding the Gap, directed by Bing Liu
• 2019: Midnight Family, directed by Luke Lorentzen
• 2020: The Wall of Shadows, directed by Eliza Kubarska
• 2021: Ascension, directed by Jessica Kingdon
• 2022: Crows Are White, directed by Ahseen Nadeem
• 2023: The Mother of All Lies, directed by Asmae El Moudir
• 2024: Soundtrack to a Coup D'Etat, directed by Johan Grimonprez

Best Norwegian Documentary

Awarded since 2011. The prize is awarded by NRK.

• 2011: Folk ved fjorden, directed by Øyvind Sandberg
• 2012: De andre, directed by Margreth Olin
• 2013: Banaz A Love Story, directed by Deeyah Khan
• 2014: Drone, directed by Tonje Hessen Schei
• 2015: Voldtatt, directed by Linda Steinhoff
• 2016: Barneraneren, directed by Jon Haukeland
• 2017: Nowhere to Hide, directed by Zaradasht Ahmed
• 2018: For vi er gutta, directed by Petter Sommer, Jo Vemund Svendsen
• 2019: Descent into the Maelstrom, directed by Jan Vardøen
• 2020: Odelsgut og Fantefølge, directed by Merethe Offerdal Tveit
• 2021: Sommerbarna, directed by Linn Helene Løken
• 2022: Hidden Letters, directed by Violet Du Feng & Zhao Qing
• 2023: Mammaen i Meg, directed by Hilde Merete Haug
• 2024: Pet Farm, directed by Finn & Martin Walther

Checkpoints

Awarded since 2010 and one of the main prizes at BIFF, selected by a jury from a competition program consisting of films focusing on human rights.

• 2010: Budrus, directed by Julia Bacha
• 2011: The Last Mountain, directed by Bill Haney
• 2012: ** Sons of the Clouds: The Last Colony**, directed by Alvaro Longoria
• 2013: The Act of Killing, directed by J. Oppenheimer
• 2014: Drone (2014 film), directed by Tonje Hessen Schei
• 2015: The Hunting Ground, directed by Kirby Dick
• 2016: The War Show, directed by Obaidah Zytoon and Andreas M. Dalsgaard
• 2017: ** Radio Kobani**, directed by Reber Dosky
• 2018: ** Laila at the Bridge**, directed by Elizabeth and Gulistan Mirzaei Afghanistan
• 2019: For Sama, directed by Waad Al-Khateab and Edward Watts
• 2020: Welcome to Chechnya, directed by David France
• 2021: Writing With Fire, directed by Rintu Thomas and Sushmit Gosh
• 2022: The Killing of a Journalist, directed by Matt Sarnecki
• 2023: Name Me Lawand, directed by Edward Lovelace
• 2024: The Sky Above Zenica, directed by Nanna Frank Møller and Zlatko Pranjic

The Golden Owl

Awarded by the University of Bergen since 2014 to the best science documentary, selected by a jury.

• 2014: How I Came to Hate Math, directed by Olivier Peyon
• 2015: Ice and the Sky, directed by Luc Jacquet
• 2016: Monster in the mind, directed by Jean Carper
• 2017: Let There Be Light, directed by Mila Aung-Thwin, Van Royko
• 2018: The Serengeti Rules, directed by Nicholas Brown
• 2019: Jim Allison: Breakthrough, directed by Bill Haney
• 2020: Lost in Face, directed by Valentin Riedl
• 2021: The Hunt for Planet B, directed by Nathaniel Kahn
• 2022: Framing Agnes, directed by Chase Joynt
• 2023: El Equipo, directed by Bernardo Ruiz
• 2024: Archive of the Future, directed by Joerg Burger

Best Norwegian Short Film

Awarded since 2004.

• 2003: Fear Less, directed by Therese Jacobsen
• 2004: The Bible, directed by Bjørn Amundlien
• 2005: Drømme kan du gjøre senere, directed by Thomas A. Østbye
• 2006: Drømmehuset, directed by Øystein Mamen
• 2007: Bo jo cie kochom (Fordi jeg elsker deg), directed by Gine Therese Grønner
• 2008: Ekornet, directed by Stian Einar Forgaard
• 2009: Skylappjenta, directed by Iram Haq
• 2010: Jenny, directed by Ingvild Søderlind
• 2011: Asyl, directed by Jørn Utkilen
• 2012: Å vokte fjellet, directed by Izer Aliu
• 2013: Money Back Please, directed by Even Hafnor
• 2014: Ja vi elsker, directed by Hallvar Witzø
• 2015: Small Talk, directed by Even Hafnor
• 2016: The Committee, directed by Gunnhild Enger
• 2017: No Man is an Island, directed by Ali Parandian
• 2018: Kulturen, directed by Ernst De Geer
• 2019: Fun Factory, directed by Even Hafnor, Lisa Brooke Hansen
• 2020: Papapa, directed by Kerren Lumer-Klabbers
• 2021: Stikk, directed by Tobias Klemeyer Smith
• 2022: Portør, directed by Lisa Enes
• 2023: Grill, directed by Jade Hærem Aksnes
• 2024: Velkommen Hjem, directed by Amanda Nalbant Nordpoll

Best Norwegian Short Documentary

Awarded since 2011. Awarded by VGTV.

• 2011: Selger 327, directed by Kari Anne Moe
• 2012: Havets sølv, directed by Are Pilskog
• 2013: Du velger selv, directed by Kajsa Næss
• 2014: Dette er Kabul, directed by Sadaf Fetrat, Sahar Fetrat, Nargis Azaryun, Anders Sømme Hammer and Christoffer Næss
• 2015: Asylbarna: Farida, directed by Ragnhild Sørheim og Christer Fasmer
• 2016: Boys, directed by Sunniva Sundby
• 2017: I det fri, directed by Edvard Karijord, Bendik Mondal
• 2018: The Future of Iraq, directed by Thee Yezen Al-Obaide, Mats Muri
• 2019: Filmen om Farmor, directed by Anine Wiesner Barg
• 2020: Greetings From Myanmar, directed by Sunniva Sundby, Andreas J. Riiser
• 2021: Skolen ved Havet, directed by Solveig Melkeraaen
• 2022: Wherever I Look, directed by Emilie Adelina Monies
• 2023: Siste Kapittel, directed by Frøydis Fossli Moe
• 2024: Behind the Mask, directed by Håvard Bustnes

Best Norwegian Music Video

Awarded 2017-2020. Replaced Best Scandinavian Music Video.

• 2017: Daniel Kvammen feat. Lars Vaular - "Som om Himmelen Revna", directed by Eivind Landsvik
• 2018: Hanne Hukkelberg feat. Emilie Nicolas - "Embroidery", directed by Alam Ali
• 2019: Teddy and the Love Gang - "Nozomi", directed by Håvard Glad
• 2020: The Musical Slave - "They can´t stop you", directed by Kristin Vollset
• 2021: Ane Brun - "Crumbs", directed by Stian Andersen
• 2022: Gundelach - "Golden", directed by Fredrik Harper
• 2023: Rick Grove - "Blur", directed by Elliot Houwing-Endresen
• 2024: Honningbarna- "Avanti", directed by Sander Dahl

The Audience Award

• 2000: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, directed by Ang Lee
• 2001: Das Experiment, directed by Oliver Hirschbiegel
• 2002: Bowling for Columbine, directed by Michael Moore
• 2003: Kill Bill Vol. 1, directed by Quentin Tarantino
• 2004: Oldboy, directed by Park Chan-wook South Korea
• 2005: Sirkel, directed by Aleksander Nordaas
• 2006: The Queen, directed by Stephen Frears
• 2007: Fashion Victims, directed by Ingo Rasper
• 2008: Young@Heart, directed by Stephen Walker
• 2009: Bring Children from Streets, directed by Espen Faugstad and Eivind Nilsen
• 2010: World Peace and Other 4th Grade Achievements, directed by Chris Farina
• 2011: Bully, directed by Lee Hirsch
• 2012: Beasts of the Southern Wild, directed by Benh Zeitlin
• 2013: Siblings are forever, directed by Frode Fimland
• 2014: Good Girl, directed by Solveig Melkeraaen
• 2015: Raped, directed by Linda Steinhoff
• 2016: The Handmaiden, directed by Park Chan-wook
• 2017: Call Me By Your Name, directed by Luca Guadagnino
• 2018: En affære, directed by Henrik Martin Dahlsbakken
• 2019: Woman, directed by Yann Arthus-Bertrand, Anastasia Mikova

Youth Jury's Documentary Award

A prize awarded since 2004 by a jury consisting of high school students that choose from the films that is a part of the BIFF for Schools program.

• 2004: Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism, directed by Robert Greenwald
• 2005: Lost Children, directed by Oliver Stoltz
• 2006: A Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash, directed by Basil Gelpke and Ray McCormack
• 2007: Sharkwater, directed by Rob Stewart
• 2008: Yodok Stories, directed by Andrzej Fidyk
• 2009: The Cove, directed by Louie Psihoyos
• 2010: Bogota Change, directed by Andreas Møl Dalsgaard
• 2011: Bully, directed by Lee Hirsch
• 2012: 5 Broken Cameras, directed by Emad Burnat & Guy Davidi
• 2013: The Human Scale, directed by Andreas Dalsgaard
• 2014: We Are the Giant, directed by Greg Barker
• 2015: The Mask You Live In, directed by Jennifer Siebel Newsom
• 2016: The Crossing, directed by George Kurian
• 2017: Plastic China, directed by Jiuliang Wang
• 2018: Silvana film), directed by Mika Gustafson, Olivia Kastebring, Christina Tsiobanelis
• 2019: Drag Kids, directed by Megan Wennberg
• 2020: Vinden Snur, directed by Kieran Kolle
• 2021: Faceless, directed by Jennifer Ngo
• 2022: The Territory, directed by Alex Pritz
• 2023: Name Me Lawand, directed by Edward Lovelace
• 2024: Igualada, directed by Juan Mejía Botero

Young Talent Award

A cash prize awarded from Vestnorsk Filmsenter since 2005.

• 2005: Aleksander Nordaas
• 2006: Morvary Samaré and Astrid Schau-Larsen
• 2007: Tor Kristian Liseth
• 2008: Olav Øyehaug
• 2009: Espen Faugstad and Eivind Nilsen
• 2010: Kedy Hassani
• 2011: Frida Eggum Michaelsen
• 2012: Are Pilskog
• 2013: Mads Andersen
• 2014: Kjell Mathiesen
• 2015: Hildegunn Wærness
• 2016: David Alræk
• 2017: Arne Daniel Storevold Haldorsen
• 2018: Thorvald Nilsen
• 2019: Unknown
• 2020: Selim Mutic
• 2021: Benjamin Garcia Langeland
• 2022: Mathilde Meraki Ypsøy
• 2023: Sivert Kalvø Harang og Christer Steffensen
• 2024: Birk Øren

Best Scandinavian Music Video (discontinued)

Awarded 2010-2013.

• 2010: Torgny - "The Only Game", directed by Emil Trier
• 2011: Who Made Who - "Every Minute Alone", directed by William Stahl
• 2012: Todd Terje - "Inspector Norse", directed by Kristoffer Borgli
• 2013: The Knife - a Tooth for an Eye,

The Critic's Award (discontinued)

Only awarded once, by the film journalists attending the festival in 2003.

• 2003: A Good Lawyer's Wife, directed by Im Sang-soo South Korea

The Festival by year

• 2003 Bergen International Film Festival
• 2009 Bergen International Film Festival
• 2010 Bergen International Film Festival

References

References

1. "Besøkstall og Historie".
2. https://www.biff.no/arkiv/2017/article1336243.ece {{Dead link. (February 2022)
3. "Årets prisvinnere 2018".
4. "Årets prisvinnere 2019".
5. "Årets prisvinnere 2020".
6. "Årets prisvinnere 2021".
7. "Årets prisvinnere 2022".
8. "Årets prisvinnere 2023".
9. "Årets prisvinnere 2024".
10. "Årets vinnere er kåret! - BIFF".