23/08/2021 - The triple win for Benjamin Ree’s film, with additional gongs for Gunda and Generation Utøya, means a strong year for documentaries at the Norwegian national film awards

The Painter and the Thief producer Ingvil Giske, director Benjamin Ree, thief Karl-Bertil Nordland and painter Barbora Kysilkova with one of their Amanda Awards (© Alexander Hegerland)

A piece of history was made at the 37^th edition of the Norwegian national film awards, the Amanda ceremony, which took place as usual on the opening night of the Norwegian International Film Festival in Haugesund. The winner in the Best Norwegian Feature Film category turned out to be the first documentary to snag the trophy since 2002, when Even Benestad’s All About My Father got the honour. This time around, top medallist The Painter and the Thief [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Benjamin Ree
film profile] also managed to pick up the Best Documentary Award, plus Best Editing – a real win-win.

Having premiered at Sundance this January and originally planned as a short by director Benjamin Ree, The Painter and the Thief chronicles the aftermath of the theft of two paintings at an art gallery, after which the robber and the robbed unexpectedly form a deep friendship spanning the years to come. The film has seen solid festival success, has been sold to 45 territories and was shortlisted for the 93^rd Academy Awards. To boot, the friendship between painter Barbora Kysilkova and thief Karl-Bertil Nordland (now going straight) still endures.

This year’s top contender in terms of the number of nominations, the drama-comedy Ninjababy [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Kristine Kujath Thorp
interview: Yngvild Sve Flikke
film profile], managed to cash in on four awards out of its 11 nods, with accolades for director Yngvild Sve Flikke, actors Kristine Kujath Thorp and Nader Khademi, and the screenwriting team of Sve Flikke, Johan Fasting and Inga H Sætre. Other acting awards went to Jakob Oftebro and Pia Halvorsen in the World War II drama Betrayed [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], which also won for Best Production Design. The curious pig documentary Gunda [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile], another well-travelled Oscar shortlister, won for Best Cinematography and Sound Design, and yet another internationally acclaimed entry, Gritt [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Itonje Søimer Guttormsen
film profile], picked up the Best Costumes gong. This strong year for documentaries was furthermore confirmed by the Audience Award winner, Generation Utøya [+see also:
film review
film profile], an account commemorating the decade since the 2011 Utøya terror attacks, focusing on four young female survivors.

The Amanda Awards are voted for and chosen by 15 appointed representatives of the Norwegian film industry. The host of this year’s ceremony was comedian-actor Odd-Magnus Williamson.

Here is the full list of winners:

Best Norwegian Feature Film
The Painter and the Thief [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Benjamin Ree
film profile] – Benjamin Ree (Norway)

Best Director
Yngvild Sve Flikke – Ninjababy [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Kristine Kujath Thorp
interview: Yngvild Sve Flikke
film profile] (Norway)

Best Actress in a Leading Role
Kristine Kujath Thorp – Ninjababy

Best Actor in a Leading Role
Jakob Oftebro – Betrayed [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Norway)

Best Actress in a Supporting Role
Pia Halvorsen – Betrayed

Best Actor in a Supporting Role
Nader Khademi – Ninjababy

Best Screenplay
Johan Fasting, Yngvild Sve Flikke and Inga H Sætre – Ninjababy

Best Cinematography
Egil Håskjold Larsen and Victor Kossakovsky – Gunda [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] (Norway/USA/UK)

Best Editing
Robert Stengård – The Painter and the Thief

Best Documentary
The Painter and the Thief - Benjamin Ree

Best Children’s Film
Sisters: The Summer We Found Our Superpowers – Silje Salomonsen and Arild Østin Ommundsen (Norway)

Best Short Film
What Is a Woman – Marin Håskjold (Norway)

Best Foreign-language Film
Another Round [+see also:
film review
trailer
film profile] – Thomas Vinterberg (Denmark/Sweden/Netherlands)

Best Sound Design
Alexander Dudarev – Gunda

Best Original Score
Thomas Dybdahl – Sisters: The Summer We Found Our Superpowers

Best Costumes
Ingjerd Meland, Marianne Stranger, Itonje Søimer Guttormsen, Birgitte Larsen and Nina Buer Brun – Gritt [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Itonje Søimer Guttormsen
film profile] (Norway)

Best Make-up
Maria Bjørnnes Hermansen and Fie Baro – Projekt Z (Norway)

Best Production Design
Ulrika Axén and Tobias Eiving – Betrayed

Best Visual Effects
Dennis Kleyn and Peer Lemmers – Dragon Girl (Norway)

The People’s Amanda (Audience Award)
Generation Utøya [+see also:
film review
film profile] – Sigve Endresen, Aslaug Holm (Norway)

The Amanda Committee Honorary Award
Director-screenwriter-producer Oddvar Bull Tuhus