Rare gems on a big screen – Oslo Film Festival ‘23
Feature - Arina Kosareva
After a three-year COVID-induced break, the Oslo Film Festival finally returned to Norway’s capital with an exceptional selection of independent films from all over the world. Held for two weekday evenings in a row in what once was a bank vault (!), the event gathered quite a diverse and international crowd, which chimed nicely with one of its principal themes – an everlasting fascination with multiculturalism and the controversiality of the daily.
Oslo Film Festival
Photo: Arina Kosareva / PRESSET.
Diversity, contradictions, and accessibility of alternative cinema
In the pre-pandemic 2018 and 2019, the Oslo Film Festival took place at Kunstnernes Hus – an art space well known for its unique exhibitions and independent film screenings. This year’s event broke with the seemingly emerging tradition and occupied Sentralen, former Christiania Sparebank’s headquarters now transformed into a vast cultural space, on February 23 and 24. This relocation signifies, perhaps, an ontological shift in the festival’s perception – what initially seemed to be a phenomenon cherished by primarily art connoisseurs and cinephiles has now finally become a meeting place for everyone wishing to learn a little bit more about film.
“We want to build a community in Oslo and connect filmmakers with locals, so that as many people as possible can have a good time and be moved by the art of the cinema,” shares Alkmini, one of the organizers of the event. “Igniting an open dialogue between cultures is also very important to us.” Oslo Film Festival is one of a series of 26 film festivals spreading across 15 countries. First held in Oslo in 2018, this festival is curated by HF Productions, an international company based in Athens that aims to “open the path to voices who have a compelling story to tell.”
And this year’s program is indeed a diverse palette of voices from all across the globe. Shorts, documentaries, animation films from China, Switzerland, France, Spain, Bulgaria, Lebanon, Canada, Taiwan, you name it, touch upon universal themes – coming of age, guilt, love, grief, ambition, or memory. They are snippets from the daily lives of people with different cultural backgrounds – a sort of reimagining of the ordinary, an invitation to observe and reflect upon the unique and yet somehow familiar experiences of those who are quite often – and unfairly for sure – compartmentalized as “the Other.”
Oslo Film Festival took place in what used to be a bank’s vault.
Arina Kosareva / PRESSET.
It is precisely this clash between the common and the unknown, the expected and the unpredictable that crystallizes the character of Oslo Film Festival in 2023. It took place behind a hefty door made of thick steel – essentially, in a former bank vault now repurposed for film screenings and concerts. Sentralen itself has a very classic vibe, with its majestic marble stairs and bronze statues, – and yet it is a contemporary hang-out space for writers, programmers, students, families, and teenagers that might decide to drop by to watch and independent film or two. “Contradictions is where art is born,” remarks Alkmini, “and we wanted to reflect this in both the space and the program.”
Accessibility is another significant feature of the Oslo Film Festival. Alternative film is notorious for its nonconformism and somewhat confrontational stand towards the mainstream, which makes it significantly less attractive to general audiences than one would care to admit. Be that as it may, the festival gathered impressive crowds on both days – a “full house,” as Alkmini calls it, – with guests perching on the stairs and even hunkering down on the floor, using their backpacks and winter coats as cushions. There may be myriads of reasons for such popularity, including the post-COVID hunger for communal events, but one in particular does stand out – the Oslo Film Festival was free of charge for everyone. “It was intentional, of course,” admits Alkmini, “since it helps to promote independent films and attract as many people as possible.”
A relevant and tailored film selection
The program of the Oslo Film Festival was quite intense, with an impressive selection of 23 short films in various genres being screened within only two days. Each day was divided into two slots with 5-6 films in each, though, with a fifteen-minute break in between. Bringing food and drinks to the room was forbidden, but could anyone really sit through three hours of film without sustenance? Guests sneaked in nuts, chocolates, Chupa Chups, and eventually even glasses of wine and cups of coffee from the downstairs bar. A little innocent mischief never hurt anybody.
The reasoning behind the selection became most apparent during the second day of the festival. Films flowed together quite naturally, speaking to each other and to the viewers from different corners of the world. There were thought-provoking takes on:
Various stereotypes: Not the 80s (2022, Germany), Mother Tongue (2021, Netherlands, Sjeemte in original), Deloping (2022, UK),
Challenges of emigration: An Invitation (2021, China), Under the Ashes of Mekong (2021, France),
Loneliness, struggle of having to get by: The Letter Room (2020, USA), Daron, Daron Colbert (2022, USA), Night Shift (2020, Bulgaria), My Grandmother Is an Egg (2021, Taiwan),
Memory, dealing with loss, grieving: The Censor of Dreams (2021, France), Juli. (2022, Norway), Lay Me by the Shore (2022, Canada), The Record (2022, Switzerland),
Love to someone else or yourself, and everything it entails: Eat It (2023, UK), No one in Particular (Finland), The Jackpot (2019, Germany), Not the 80s, Downfall (2021-2022, Lebanon).
Unique relationship between humans and nature was, perhaps, one of the most unexpected and riveting themes of the selection. Animals became a powerful and satirical metaphor on the notion of power – Louis I. King of the Sheep (2022, France), posed as guides though the city – Suburb (2021, UK) and life – Your Mountain is Waiting (2021, Switzerland), and even acted as the agents of fate – The Jackpot. These short and animation films evoked smile, laughter, sympathy – in other words, moved deeply. And interestingly enough, the Oslo Film Festival positioned itself as a nature-friendly, sustainable event – very few programs were printed out, and guests were referred to the event’s website if they wanted to learn more about the films.
As the festival was coming to an end, more and more people wondered where some of the favored films could be re-watched – or the rest of program accessed, for that matter, since only a handful of all of the accepted by the jury films were actually screened. The total of 39 pieces constituted the 2023 Oslo Film Festival, with each nominated in one of the eight categories. Out of all the screened films, only three winners ended up being featured: The Censor of Dreams received the “Best Short Film” award, The Record was named the “Best Animated Film,” and Daron, Daron Colbert – the “Best Experimental Film.” As it is with everything, some of the films can be found online, provided that the filmmakers uploaded them themselves, some cannot – thus, the only solution is to attend more and more independent festivals and immerse yourself deeper in the world of alternative film. As for the Oslo Film Festival, they plan to return soon with another exciting selection – and there is no doubt it will also be a success.
