Returning to Oslo for the third time on October 11-15, 2023, MIRAGE is an international film festival that celebrates “the art of the real” by drawing from a variety of media such as cinema, music, or visual arts. Racha Helen Larsen, Festival & Program Director, elaborates on what this philosophy entails and how it is reflected on this year’s program.

MIRAGE Film Festival 2023. Photo: Vivi Eng / PRESSET.

Hi, Racha, and thanks for taking the time to talk to PRESSET. in your cozy office in Factory Tøyen!

– Thank you for coming! With days until the festival, we are a bit overwhelmed with all the little tasks we need to complete: last-minute bookings, reservations, confirmations, posting... And oh, how many emails do we get! (laughs) There is truly a lot to do! But we are also very enthusiastic about the program that we’ve designed, and our whole team is looking forward to seeing how everything plays out.

So is everyone, especially in the Norwegian film industry, I’m sure! After all, MIRAGE is quite heavy on the filmmaking part of cinema, right?

– That’s true. MIRAGE is a film festival not just for the audience but also for the film industry – for the professionals who are behind every production: cinematographers, editors, sound designers… We strive to explore how it is to make films as a collaborative team. So it is not as much about the story that makes the film rather than about how one makes the story. It is the craft of filmmaking that is the focus of MIRAGE.

Some of the members of the MIRAGE team in their office in Factory Tøyen. Photo: Vivi Eng / PRESSET.

How did the idea of such a film festival come to be?

– Egil Håskjold Larsen, my partner, and I, had been nurturing the concept of MIRAGE for nearly 10 years before we finally had the time to bring it to life. Both of us are filmmakers, and establishing a festival for film artists has always been a dream of ours. We felt like this was something that Norway was lacking, and the pandemic gave us ample time and opportunity to do something about it.

What perspectives does being both a filmmaker and a festival organizer add to MIRAGE?

– As programers, Egil and I see film as an art form. That’s why every year we aim to build a selection that demonstrates the vastness of what films could be about – without any theme in a traditional sense of it. The selection itself becomes an art form for us, in a way.

On top of that, with MIRAGE, we want to make a dialogue between different art forms. That’s why we have music and sound performances, exhibitions, and literary events that are part of the festival. Let me give you a couple of examples.

This year we have invited Gisle Nataas, who is both an architect and sound artist, who is going to do a sound performance. Afterward, he will have a conversation with Christian Pagh, Chief Curator Oslo Architecture Triennale 2022, and Javier Umpierrez, star Sound Designer of EAMI, on how one creates sound in architecture and film and how important this element is in general.

We are also collaborating with a Norwegian painter Jonas Daatland who will watch the film Steam of Life (2010) by Joonas Berghäll and Mika Hotakainen during MIRAGE and then express his impressions and thoughts about it in a painting. On the last day of the festival, we will showcase the result and discuss it.

One of the slogans for MIRAGE is that it is a film festival for “the art of the real.” What are the meanings behind this notion?

– For us, it stands for the interest in nonfiction in film. “The art of the real” is an art form that reflects what is happening around you, and these surroundings become the foundation of films. Whatever surrounds you becomes a story, in a way.

We also want to blur the line between nonfiction and fiction, and there are many films in this year’s selection that do exactly that, such as Pacifiction (2022) by Albert Serra, De Facto (2023) by Selma Doborac, Between Revolutions (2023) by Vlad Petri, or Pornomelancolía (2022) by Manuel Abramovich. These films use elements of both fiction and nonfiction, they are in-between genres, and they are incredibly interesting to experience.

I have noticed that you use the term “nonfiction” instead of “documentary.” Is it deliberate?

– Yes. It’s not like we have a problem with the word “documentary,” but we are trying to use it as little as possible – mostly because of its connotations. Instead of an art form, documentary is often associated with something important, thematic, dull even. But the reality is that this genre is so vast and artistic… The term “nonfiction” reflects these notions much better.

Compared to the previous two years, what new concepts have been introduced to MIRAGE?

– From the film industry perspective, we have two new things: the “Looking Up” initiative and a collaboration with the Nordic Unions. “Looking Up” is a part of what we call “MIRAGE Professionals.” For this initiative, we have invited young artists from across Norway that work with cinematography and sound. They will have a chance to pitch themselves in front of film companies, meet with the industry professionals, and collaborate with them. Additionally, this time around we have brought all the Nordic unions to the festival – for photography, cinematography, sound, and editing. We are expanding our international community and encouraging them to come to Norway.

Racha Helen Larsen, Festival & Program Director, MIRAGE Film Festival 2023. Photo: Vivi Eng / PRESSET.

So far we have talked only about the film industry aspect of MIRAGE. But what about the audiences, that is, non-professional guests? What will the festival be like for them?

– Immersive first and foremost. MIRAGE is not just about screenings of films – it is about everything else that surrounds them. We really wanted to expand the universe of each film we are showcasing. That’s why this year we are experimenting with the format of a music festival – when you can come and go in and out of different performances. We are calling it “MIRAGE Cinema Club,” and it is a collaboration with Vega Scene. The screenings start at 12.30 am, and guests can roam between the rooms and the dancing floor – there will be a DJ, and Vega will stay open until 3 in the morning!

And of course, the audience will have a chance to watch very rare films – films that will probably never appear on a TV screen, because they have never been digitized. Jonas Mekas’s shorts are a great example of that – Jonas was a legendary avant-garde filmmaker, and yet very few people have seen his work.

I also noticed that the festival this year is child-friendly – MIRAGE Mini is a new concept, too?

– Yes, it wasn’t there last year. Egil and I, we are parents to a three-and-a-half-year-old, and for some time now we have felt that there are a lot of silly things taking place in the city for children of this age. These children are perceived as too little for something more “serious,” like a classical music concert. And we wanted to do something about it – but with cinema. And that’s how MIRAGE Mini came to be. It is immersive, too, music, narration, and film are in dialogue with each other, but it also takes into consideration the curiosity of children – they ask countless questions when they are young! And during MIRAGE Mini they can learn a little bit more about cinema, the role of light in it, and even the world around us.

Sounds great! And what about Festival Routes – what do they offer to those attending MIRAGE?

– Every festival offers a variety of options, and it can be really challenging to choose from them. That’s why we have these Routes – they are a guide on what to see and do. You can watch a nonfiction film and go to a bar for a drink afterwards, or start in a bar and then have an immersive cinematic experience. These are just suggestions, though, the final decision is up to the audience, of course. We just want everyone to have a good time and enjoy our selection of films!

“A film festival about the craft of filmmaking”