Amsterdam selects seven Danish films


Seven Danish documentary films are selected to participate at this year's IDFA International Documentary Festival, Amsterdam (22 Nov–2 Dec 2007). Three will run in competition programmes.

Competition programmesPhie Ambo and Tju-Bang Film's "Mechanical Love" will run in the Joris Ivens Competition. In her thought-provoking film, Ambo explores the possibility of love between humans and robots. In 2001 Ambo and Sami Saif's film "Family" won the Joris Ivens Award.

Jon Bang Carlsen and C&C Productions' "Purity Beats Everything" is selected for the Silver Wolf Competition. Drawing into his film the testimonials of two Holocaust survivors, Bang Carlsen delves deep into the layers underlying Nazism's purity ideals, traces of which, he contends, still exist today.

Also competing in the Silver Wolf Competition are two international co-productions: "Lakshmi and Me" (India-Denmark) and "Dolls – A Woman from Damascus" (Syria-Denmark).

Ditte Haarløv Johnsen's graduation film "One Day" is selected for IDFA Student Competition. Produced at the National Film School of Denmark, the film tells the story of a 36 year old African woman living in Copenhagen and working as a prostitute.

Reflecting Images: PanoramaReflecting Images: Panorama has selected Michael Christoffersen and Team Productions' "Miosevic on Trial", a documentary about the courtcase against former Serbian president, Slobodan Milosevic, tracking events from the beginning of the case until the president's death in 2006. Key persons involved in the courtcase are interviewed.

Kids & DocsIn IDFA’s programme for children, Maria Bäck's "Christopher Wants to Fly" is chosen to participate in Kids & Docs. Christopher is obsessed with airplanes and spends most of his time spotting planes flying in and out of Copenhagen Airport.

IDFA's 20th Anniversary selectionOn the occasion of IDFA's 20th anniversary, aficionados of the festival have been given the opportunity to choose their favourite among all films screened at IDFA during it's 20-year existence. Two of the films chosen until now are Danish films: Pernille Rose Grønkjær's "The Monastery", and Asger Leth's "Ghosts of Cité Soleil". The Finnish-Danish co-production "The 3 Rooms of Melancholia" is also among the favourites.

ForumPitching this year at Forum is Michael Madsen and Magic Hour Film's "Into Eternity", a group portrait of the pioneers involved in constructing a chamber that can encapsulate radioactive nuclear waste for 100,000 years. Last year's Danish pitch was for Phie Ambo's "Mechanical Love".

Read more about Danish documentaries in the latest issue of DFI's magazine: FILM#60.
For further information:
Danish Film Institute (DFI) webside for IDFADFI at IDFA
International Documentary Film Festival, IDFA Amsterdamwww.idfa.nl
DFI factsheetsMechanical Love Purity Beats Everything Lakshmi and Me Dolls – A Woman from Damascus Milosevic on Trial One Day Christopher Wants to Fly The Monastery Ghosts of Cité Soleil The 3 Rooms of Melancholia
Danish Film Institute (DFI)Anne Marie Kürstein, +45 3374 3609, cell +45 4041 4697 kurstein@dfi.dkVicki Marie Synnott, +45 3374 3438, cell +45 5054 5011 vickis@dfi.dk