Sweden’s Göteborg Film Festival will open with a world premiere screening of Norweigan filmmaker Eirik Svensson’s latest feature Safe House (Før mørket).
Set during the Central African Republic’s civil war in 2013, the film centers on a desperate Muslim man seeking refuge in a field hospital on Christmas Eve, while a threatening Christian militia gathers outside, demanding his life. At the heart of the events is Norwegian aid worker Linn, played by Kristine Kujath Thorp, who must make moral decisions to protect the man without endangering her colleagues.
The film will screen in satellite venues across Sweden at the same time as the Göteborg premiere. The film will also be available to watch through the festival’s digital platform.
Göteborg will this year also hand honorary awards to Thomas Vinterberg and Julie Delpy. The festival has said it is honoring Vinterberg for his deft talent for portraying “deeply human and complex emotions” and “challenging audiences to confront themselves” with films like The Celebration, The Hunt, Another Round, and Dear Wendy. As part of the awards ceremony, Vinterberg will give an on-stage ‘Directors Talk’ after a screening of The Celebration at Stora Teatern on January 28.
The festival described Delpy — who will receive her honorary award on January 29 — as “one of international film’s most versatile and talented voices.”
Göteborg artistic director Pia Lundberg said Delpy’s films “have a rare blend of humor, depth, and sensitivity that touch audiences worldwide. She is a pioneer and a source of inspiration, and we are very proud to be able to honor her with this year’s Honorary Dragon Award.”
Delpy’s honorary award will be held in conjunction with the Swedish premiere of her latest directorial effort Meet the Barbarians. She will also take part in a ‘Directors Talk’ session.
Other highlights from this year’s Göteborg programme include a centenary celebration of Swedish filmmaker Mai Zetterling. The festival will screen her films Loving Couples (1964), Night Games (1966), The Girls (1968), Dr. Glas (1968), The Moon Is a Green Cheese (1977), Scrubbers (1982), and Amorosa (1986).
Contemporary films such as Brady Corbet’s The Brutalist, Magnus von Horn’s The Girl with the Needle, and Joshua Oppenheimer’s The End will also screen at the festival.
Göteborg runs from January 24 to Feburary 2. This year marks Lundberg’s first year in charge. She was announced as Jonas Holmberg’s successor in November 2023. Holmberg ran the festival for a decade.