In total 2,836 films have been watched and discussed, and today we present the final 67 films (or 2.4%) that made it through as this year’s competition program. We are proud of the international selections, but we can safely say that the selection process has been tough.
We are grateful to the pre-selection committee for the work they have put into evaluating all the submitted films and for making the final rounds such a difficult task.
The world is far from a pretty picture, clearly reflected in the enormous number of submissions. Despite the vast darkness, the filmmakers have not let dystopian feelings take hold, perhaps quite the opposite: We’ve seen a surge in innovative forms of expression and approaches to storytelling – a development often seen in connection with rights being threatened or taken away.
The level of the international films we receive is held to a high standard and we cannot recommend these films enough. We have had numerous enriching experiences, gained exciting and unique insights into the lives of others, good and bad, we have expanded our own horizons with films from countries we rarely see films from – told in very innovative ways. Many as a good reminder that we are all human and that no one is free until everyone is free.
This year’s international competition program deserves a broad audience, and we hope the filmmakers will find the audience they deserve in Grimstad – and we know that you as an audience will leave the cinema feeling everything we are left with.
Do take in this year’s international competition program – get surprised, get inspired!
BARD YDÉN, ANITA SVINGEN & INGRID LIAVAAG • APRIL 10th 2025
The Program Committee
Ingrid Liavaag works in film, performing arts and hybrid forms. She holds a master’s degree from the Oslo National Academy of the Arts, and studied theatre at the Ecole Jacques Lecoq in Paris, where she also studied scenography at the Laboratory of Movement Study (L.E.M.).
Liavaag is a co-founder of the international film collective Peggy Høy. The short film The Director, which she directed with Linda Gathu, won the Film Critics Award at the 2022 Short Film Festival. Her video work «Knuter» is part of the Sørlandssamlingen at Kunstsiloen, and her film Fasade was shown at the Statens Høstutstilling in 2024.
Foto: Julie Hrnčířová
Bard Ydén has worked with film festivals since 2003, and is editor and programmer for the Norwegian Short Film Festival since 2018. He is the Festival Director of Oslo/Fusion Int. Film Festival since 2007 (minus a one-year break), has consulted and curated for Norwegian and international film festivals, and has extensive jury experience. In 2017, he co-founded The Faroe Islands’ Int. Minority Film Festival, from 2018 to 2022 he was part of the organizing team for the European Film Market’s Horizons Start-Up program at Berlinale, and he is currently part of the New Dawn committee – an international production fund to support more diversity in film production.
Photo: Margarete Strandberg
Anita Svingen has been with the Norwegian Short Film Festival since 2006, and became the Festival manager in 2012. She has a bachelor’s degree in Film and Television Studies from the University of Westminster in London, and has experience as producer and program manager at SBS Radio.
She has worked in Norwegian television production for over a decade, including for companies such as Rubicon and Dinamo.
The Pre-Selection Committee
Sophia Aronsen graduated as a filmmaker from Kristiania College in 2020, winning the audience award at Amandus Blikkfang with her graduation film «Topp tur». Since then, she has worked freelance for companies such as Monster, Aparent TV and TRY. She recently went back to her film studies and is taking her bachelor’s degree at Westerdal’s Institute for Film and Media. She has worked as festival coordinator for HUMAN International Documentary Film Festival (2022) and Oslo/Fusion International Film Festival (2023 – 2024). She has been guest coordinator for the Short Film Festival since 2022.
Shahrukh Kavousi is an Iranian born director, educated at The Art Academy in Bergen and Nordland School of Arts and Film. His film debut, the documentary, Tvillingfrisørene fra Bagdad (2004), received honorable mention at both the Norwegian Short Film Festival in Grimstad and the Norwegian Documentary Film Festival in Volda. He has directed several short films and featurettes, as well as producing for others, such as Camilla Figenschous feature film Tauba (2020).
Kavousi runs the company Close Up Film AS, and is currently developing both a documentary and his first feature film.
Armita Keyani is a Norwegian filmmaker from Rælingen municipality with bachelor degrees in Film and Television studies from Wales, and Contemporary Art from Tromsø Art Academy, as well as a degree from Nordland School of Arts and Film. Her films are mostly dramedies set in unusual situations to explore larger themes. Her films have won several awards, including Vimeo’s 2019 Comedy of the Year award in 2019, has screened at several Academy Award qualifying festivals, such as Tribeca, Palm Springs Int. ShortFest and The Norwegian Short Film Festival.
Marius Lunde is a filmmaker from Stavanger whose work mostly centers around the film collective, Blæst, which he co-founded. His work is often influenced by older genre films, both in combination and contrast with other expressions.
Marius’ first time with a short in competition at Kortfilmfestivalen was in 2009 and he has since participated with both short films and music videos as an actor, screenwriter, set designer and effects maker.
In 2023, Blæst’s feature-length documentary, Codename Nagasaki, where Marius is the documentary subject, author, actor and animator, was nominated for the national film award, Amanda.
Kalle Løchen is a film disseminator. He has been editor of the film magazine film&kino and editorial member of the film magazine Z. He has been a short and documentary film consultant at the Norwegian Film Institute and several regional film centers. He has taught film history and film studies at a number of colleges in Norway. He has moderated conversations with filmmakers at several film festivals in Norway and the Nordic region.
Daniel McIntyre is a celluloid-based artist exploring concepts of memory, identity, and history. Working with hand-processing, found footage, and photographic technique, his work involves a crucial connection between visual structure and subject matter. McIntyre holds an MFA from York University and exhibits worldwide at venues including Oberhausen Kurzfilmtage, The National Gallery of Art, Cinémathèque québécoise, The British Film Institute, the Istanbul Modern, and the Museum of the Moving Image. He is currently experimenting with organic film chemistry, animation techniques, and formal structures.
Julie Pichard has a degree in film editing and has worked extensively as an editor in France and Norway. She has also studied cultural project management and was coordinator for Institut Français at the French Embassy to Norway. Julie started as guest coordinator for the Norwegian Short Film Festival in 2019 and took over as Festival Producer in 2020.
Meena Rathor is a director and screenwriter with an MFA in Directing from Columbia University in NY. She directed commercials internationally before moving on to writing and directing drama.
Her short films have been screened and won awards nationally and internationally.
With her unique views on society, Meena continues to produce films that engage and hit audiences, often by challenging set norms.
Silvia Rossi is an Italian filmmaker based in Oslo with over 10 years of experience in directing commercials, music videos, art films and short films. After pursuing a bachelor degree at Ca’ Foscari University in Venice she studied directing at the National Film School CSC – Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia – in Milano.
She is partner and co-founder of «BOM films» a directors duo that works in the field of advertising and of «Peggy Høy» a women lead independent production company based in Norway.
Samanta Sokolowski is Argentine born and based in Berlin. Her passion for good stories, people and films, led her to the world of film festivals, where she has worked for over 20 years, currently including for the Berlin International Film Festival and Norway’s Oslo/Fusion. She loves being moved and surprised by daring new ways of storytelling, and for the opportunity to showcase new talents.
Nastaran Tajeri-Foumani (no pronouns) is a German-Iranian non-binary curator, activist, musician and lecturer*researcher, focusing on intersectional*queer*feminism, social justice, anti-discriminatory practice and on queer topics in film and art. Nastaran has moderated for Berlinale since 2011, and held various positions at XPOSED Queer Film Festival Berlin since 2013, as well as moderated political panels and film talks all over Europe since 2010. Nastaran is right now founding an institute for anti-discriminatory consultation for film production.
With the life goal of holding strong behind the camera when turning 140 years old (or the camera holding him, perhaps), Gaby Zarazir has always been interested in mixing contrasting ideas to achieve innovative perspectives and original themes. Gaby, based in Beirut, works as a writer, director, and producer. He particularly enjoys working on projects with out-of-this-world ideas, adding his creative touch to every scene.
Michel Zarazir is a Lebanese filmmaker who thrives on the edge of chaos, crafting narratives that juxtapose the absurd with the profound. He writes, directs, and produces films that spark both laughter and contemplation. His works, celebrated across the globe, have garnered accolades from prestigious festivals on every continent, except Antarctica. His original cinema embraces comedy and madness, mocking even the most serious themes.