06/02/2020 - The French international sales firm will be wagering on the Swedish documentary by Lia Hietala and Hannah Reinikainen at the EFM, a work which will enjoy its world premiere in the Panorama line-up

Specialising in the international sale of documentary works, the Parisian group Wide House, directed by Anaïs Clanet, will once again see one of its titles showcased at the Berlinale (whose 70^th edition runs 20 February - 1 March): Always Amber [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Hannah Reinikainen, Lia Hie…
film profile] by Swedish filmmakers Lia Hietala and Hannah Reinikainen.

Due to enjoy its world premiere in the Panorama Dokumente section, the film revolves around 17-year-old Amber and her best friend Sebastian. These two queer youngsters share a world far away from the judging eyes of society. When they’re together, anything feels possible. Always Amber follows them during this identity building period, where they share everything from dreams and parties to new friendships. But when Amber falls in love with Charlie, their utopian world is suddenly threatened. Trust issues emerge, and in the midst of all this, Amber must come to terms with the transition of their friendship on her own. The film gets straight to the heart of a new generation, who no longer accept societal dictates on identity, which is now more fluid than ever. Always Amber was produced by Göran Hugo Olsson and Melissa Lindgren on behalf of Story AB, with cinematography in the hands of Lia Hietala herself and music composed by ShitKid.

At the European Film Market, meanwhile, Wide House will be screening another of its Scandinavian works: The Quest for Tonewood by Norway’s Hans Lukas Hansen. Produced by Norsk Fjernsyn, this documentary is set in the forestland of the Balkans where maple trees can be worth their weight in gold, for these trees allow for the production of a priceless musical instrument: a violin which is as prestigious as an original Stradivarius. Violin-maker Gaspar Borchardt has been engaged in such a mission since travelling through Bosnia on a bicycle as a youth and discovering the most perfect tree he’d ever seen. At the time, he wasn’t able to bring the wood home with him, but he goes back to find the tree so as to create a violin for the world-famous musician Janine Jensen.

Likewise standing out on the market screenings agenda is I'm In Love With Pippa Bacca [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] by Italy’s Simone Manetti (a production helmed by Nacne), a film which retraces the path taken by the artist Giuseppina Pasqualino di Marineo. Better known by the name of Pippa Bacca, she hitchhiked her way across 11 countries involved in wars, in the company of another Milan-born artist, Silvia Moro, both adorned in bridal gowns. It was a performance for peace, aimed at demonstrating that only good things can come out of placing our faith in others. After travelling many roads together, the two artists decide to separate for a time in Istanbul, planning to reconvene in Byblos. So Pippa sets off alone. But no-one hears from her again, and her raped body is found in April 2018.

A market screening is also scheduled for the Austro-Romanian production The Royal Train by Johannes Holzhausen. The director of The Great Museum [+see also:
trailer
film profile] (which was presented at the Berlinale Forum 2014) has this time set his gaze on an event held on the same day each year, when a very special train crosses the Romanian countryside and thousands of people gather along the route to welcome and enthusiastically celebrate some of the last king of Romania’s descendants, who are whisked along the tracks in period carriages. The film shines a light on the history behind this nostalgic journey and uses the train as a springboard for a cinematic exploration of both the past and the present of this Eastern European country. It’s a high-end Royalist presentation delivered in a post-communist Republic.

Last but not least, the EFM will also see Wide House screening the American documentary Viral: Antisemitism in Four Mutations by Andrew Goldberg.

(Translated from French)