Statement of Pre-Selection Committee:

In the process of selecting films to the Norwegian Shorts program, we have had an emphasis on highlighting originality, a will to utilize and develop the medium’s characteristics, as well as heartfelt connections in the storytelling.

This year’s selected films are signed by both well-known, established filmmakers as well as new, up and coming breaths of fresh air, and we have put together a diverse program with a wide range of voices, genres, and expressions.

197 films were submitted to us this year, and several other, well-made and strong films would have deserved a place in the program.

The Pre-Selection Committee for Norwegian short films is: 

Unni Straume is considered one of the most significant modern filmmakers in Norway. She is a Professor of directing and has been Head of Directing at the Norwegian Film School. Straume made her breakthrough in 1990 with her first feature film, "Til en ukjent", and her films have been screened at festivals such as Cannes, Sundance, Venice, San Sebastian and Toronto, and "Thrane's metode" (1998) was purchased by the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA). She has received several awards at home and abroad and was awarded the Norwegian Film Critics Award for "Drømspel" (1994). She has also received the film industry's own award - Gullklapperen. The Norwegian Short Film Festival in Grimstad curated a retrospective of her short and documentary films in 2018.

Shahrukh Kavousi is a director born in Iran and based in Oslo. He is a graduate of Bergen Academy of Art and Design, and Nordland School of Arts and Film. His debut film, the documentary "The Twin Hairdressers from Baghdad" (2004), received honorable mention at The Norwegian Short Film Festival and The Norwegian Documentary Film Festival. Since then he has directed several shorts and novella films, and produced films for others, like Camilla Figenschou’s feature film, "Tauba" (2020). Kavousi runs his own company, Close Up Film AS, and is currently developing his first feature film.

Tove Undheim is educated from the Oslo National Academy of The Arts (KHIO) and The Norwegian Film School. She has written and directed several critically acclaimed short films and documentaries, including last year’s "Quarantined Family Karlsen", which also screened at the Short Film Festival. In 2020 she made her feature film debut with "Twigson & The Sea Monster".