News

Exclusive: Focus Features has boarded Beast and Everest filmmaker Baltasar Kormákur’s romantic drama Touch, which begins principal photography Sunday in London. Focus will release domestically, with Universal Pictures International handling overseas distribution (excluding Iceland).

Touch is based on the bestselling Icelandic novel by Ólafur Jóhann Ólafsson, which was published in the U.S. in August this year. Ólaffson co-wrote the script with Kormákur.

Related Story Focus Features Acquires Willem Dafoe Thriller 'Inside', Sets Q1 2023 Release Related Story Film Festival Heat Brightens Arthouse Outlook; 'Honk For Jesus', 'Gigi & Nate', François Ozon's 'Peter Von Kant' Make Holiday Weekend Debut – Specialty Preview Related Story 'Armageddon Time' Director James Gray Reveals Real-Life Tragic Circumstances Of A Key Character In His Autobiographical Film – Telluride Q&a

The story spans several decades and continents as it follows one widower’s emotional journey to find his first love...

Grimur Hakonarson’s drama swept to 11 wins in Reykjavik.Scroll down for full list of winners

Rams, a drama directed by Grimur Hakonarson, brought home a grand total of 11 trophies at the Edda Awards, Iceland’s national film prizes, which the Icelandic Film and Television Academy presented over the weekend at a televised gala held in Reykjavik.

The story of two Icelandic brothers and sheep farmers who are forced to put aside their 40-year feud to save their sheep, won Eddas including for film, screenplay, director, cinematography and editing.

Both main actors in Rams - Sigurjon Sighvatsson and Theodor Juliusson - took home Eddas for their roles.

The Eddas for female roles went to two actresses in the TV series Case, Steinunn Olina Thorsteinsdottir and Birna Run Eiriksdottir.

Trapped, an Icelandic mystery television series, won an Edda as the best TV series. The broadcasting rights for Trapped have already been sold to several countries, including France...

Ultimately, it is unsurprising the love between estranged brothers at the heart of an isolated farming community in Iceland, so, at the heart of this film, is a strong one, disguised in a vehement stalemate where neither has spoken to the other in forty years. You wonder briefly where this schism comes from, but get swept into the emotional drama of both men losing their livelihood, a loss that asserts itself as a foil for their estrangement. Rams (Hrútar) can be bleak if you fast forward and pause in chunks, but reveals a vulnerable humanity punctuated by on-location natural beauty. Not since Midnight Cowboy perhaps, have I felt a brotherly love so wrapped in tactile closeness.

Early in Rams, local veterinarians give devastating news to brothers Gummi (Sigurður Sigurjónsson) and Kiddi (Theodór Júlíusson) along with their Bardardalur farming community. One of Kiddi’s rams has contracted scrapie, an incurable disease...

Örvarsson: 'It was a very difficult film to score because it's so sensitive, so fragile. It would be so easy to be overpowering' Cannes Un Certain Regard winner Rams is out on release in the UK and Us now. The tragicomic Icelandic drama tells the story of two brothers, Gummi (Sigurður Sigurjónsson) and Kiddi (Theodór Júlíusson), who haven't spoken for decades despite living on neighbouring farms. When their flocks are threatened with extermination due to an outbreak of scabies, the pair discover they may have to communicate after all. Due to the near-silent lives that the brothers lead, music plays a key role in supporting the story and I caught up with Icelandic-born composer Atli Örvarsson at Sundance Film Festival last month, where the film screened in the Spotlight section.

Composer Atli Örvarsson: 'It's not that I never watch entertainment or mainstream things, but I wanted to do something...

★★★★☆ Grímur Hákonarson's Rams is an affecting feature about sheep which also speaks reams about the human condition. Hákonarson focuses on two estranged brothers who share a passion for sheep farming. Set in a remote part of Iceland, Gummi (Sigurður Sigurjónsson) and Kiddi (Theodór Júlíusson) own adjacent land but have not spoken to each other in decades. They keep to themselves and avoid any form of verbal contact with one another. Wandering ewes are wordlessly returned if they stray onto each other's land. When forced to communicate, Gummi's sheepdog is employed to convey their hastily scribbled messages.

Grímur Hákonarson's Rams was one of the best films at 2015's (sometimes underwhelming) Cannes Film Festival, and is well worth seeing if you're a big fan of Scandinavian films. It tells the story of two brothers who live like two warring Santa bad-asses on a rural sheep farm they have inherited. Filled with fantastic Christmas jumpers, wonderful beards and some top-notch comedic acting by Sigurður Sigurjónsson and Theodór Júlíusson this film is definitely a lot of fun to watch. At the same time, however, the movie has a very touching dramatic story which arises out of a community's sheep falling victim to an outbreak of the fatal disease scrapie. Dealing with the deep emotional turmoil that causes - for many farmers, in many countries -...

[Read the whole post on twitchfilm.com...]...

Rough tenderness forged from a life of silent hard work and self-imposed isolation is the defining quality of Grímur Hákonarson’s

characters and the trials they endure in “Rams,” a story about brotherly love gone awry set in the vast Icelandic countryside mostly populated by highly-regarded sheep. As is often the case with Scandinavian cinema, the film’s narrative is enhanced by its clever and precise use of dark and dry humor. However, Hákonarson’s rural portrayal of a relationship in need of mending is grounded on compelling human interpersonal afflictions, which serves as a sensible vehicle for the comedy to be delivered.

During a local competition between sheep farmers, Gummi, a levelheaded man who enjoys the pleasures of solitude, notices that his brother Kiddi’s most precious ram shows signs of a scrapie, a deadly and infectious disease that can kill entire flocks. Though the simplest way to ensure the safety of everyone’s sheep would be to talk to his brother, Gummi is aware this is not a viable path because, despite living on the same property they entire lives, they haven’t spoken in several decades. The looming possibility of losing their shared livelihood will widen the emotional gap between the two, one that can only be resolved if they join forces against the mortal virus and the authorities. Authentically Icelandic in content and execution, "Rams" was Iceland's official entry in the Best Foreign Language Film category at the 88th Academy Awards.

In our recent conversation with the Cannes-winning Icelandic filmmakers, Hákonarson discussed the relationship between the location and the film's visual approach, his homelands deeply ingrained love for sheep, the emerging local film industry, and the casting process to find the right four-legged stars for "Rams."

Carlos Aguilar: Tell me about the importance of sheep in Icelandic culture. Why do you think Icelandic people relate to these animals in such endearing fashion? They seem to not only be part of the pastoral lifestyle but of their interpersonal relationships.

Grímur Hákonarson: When the first settlers came to Iceland, the Vikings who came from Norway, they brought the sheep with them. Sheep were the main livelihood throughout the centuries. They used the wool for clothing and the meat and milk to feed themselves. It was their main livelihood. We didn’t have so many cows. People ate or use every part of the sheep except the anus. The anus was the only part people didn’t utilize. It stayed that way until the 20th century. Older people lived in farms until the 19th century and then it totally changed. Now older people live in the cities. There is this historical and cultural connection between Icelandic people and sheep. The farmers take the sheep to the highlands in the spring, then they have a competition, they hang around drinking and singing songs about sheep, so there is definitely a culture around sheep. But there also seems to be some kind of unexplained spiritual connection between farmers and their sheep. Many farmers say they relate in a stronger emotional way to sheep than to cows. Numerous farmers have told me this. I know farmers that have lost their sheep because of scrapie, and even though they had horses and cows, it was somehow much more difficult for them to get over losing their sheep.

CA: What was the motivation for using a story of two estrange brothers to tackle this singular aspect about Icelandic culture? Was any part of the premise based on actual events or stories you heard from people who made a living as sheep farmers?

Grímur Hákonarson: The film is based on a true story that my father told me years ago about two brothers who lived on the same land next to each other for 40 years and didn’t speak. I thought that story was interesting. I think it’s very Icelandic and it describes us a bit as a nation being an island and being isolated. People tend to be very independent and nationalistic. I also thought these idea could be a tragicomedy. The basic idea of these brothers is funny and sad at the same time. It’s sad that they don’t speak, but it’s also unique situation. I though that was interesting, and on the other hand I also wanted to make a film about this relationship with sheep, so I combined these two ideas.

CA: Both brothers seem to very territorial and they use concrete, not always well-intentioned, acts rather than using language to express their feelings.

Grímur Hákonarson: The reason they don’t speak to each other, of course, is because they don’t need to speak to each other. They act more than they talk. They rather speak to the sheep and they become very close with them. That’s also the reason there is not a lot of dialogue in the movie. It’s told mainly through images and through actions. The story I’m telling affected the filmmaking process in a way because it creates a unique kind of atmosphere. I was trying to capture life in this part of the world, which is kind of slow and relaxed. People live alongside sheep. The visual style of the film is also a bit slow-paced. This visual style is also trying to capture this way of living and its atmosphere.

CA: Did you based these two brothers on real life characters in the story your father told you, were they the result of different traits from people you know, or were they entirely fictitious? Once you have brought them to life on paper, how challenging was it to match them with the right actors?

Grímur Hákonarson: I had some prototypes to base them on. The real life characters died in the 90s because it’s an old story. I never met them, but I had some prototypes based on a pair of brothers I know. These brothers were living together and they were good friends, but they were very different characters. One of them was an introverts and the other was more of an extrovert. One was an alcoholic and the other was more feminine and cleaned and took care of things. I used these guys as prototypes for the characters, and when I selected the actors I knew the actor a little bit and I knew they shared some personality elements with the characters. In a way they were typed-cast both mentally and physically, Sigurður Sigurjónsson who plays Gummi is a small guy, and Theodór Júlíusson, who plays Kiddi, looks more macho and is bigger. They were physically and mentally perfect for the roles. I think that’s a good thing when you are picking an actor. It's important that the actor has experienced something similar or knows something about the inner emotions of the character.

CA: Loneliness comes across as an underlying theme in "Rams." These brothers who live so close to each other are still very lonely by choice. Is this concept something that you decisively considered when creating the characters?

Grímur Hákonarson: Of course, that makes it really tragic. They actually need to talk to each other but they are so stubborn that they never call a mediator or psychiatrist. The dog is the only link between them. Of course there is loneliness. Gummi, the main character, I think he is an introvert and he enjoys his life a lot. He enjoys his life, he is not unhappy. He is quite satisfied with his life, but his older brother is not and that’s because of this division of the land. He is unhappy. The idea was that the older brother Kiddi had had some girlfriends or wives before, but they got sick of him and moved out. Gummi, on the hand, was kind of this puritan who had never had any sex in his life. This loneliness is one of the reasons we shot on CinemaScope with anamorphic lenses. Also, the framing, which is kind of wide and static, was trying to capture this loneliness. They live lonely lives.

CA: In terms of the visual style and your decisions regarding the film's cinematography, how did the landscape and the nature of the story influenced these choices?

Grímur Hákonarson: The characters are living very close to nature and they spend a lot of time on the field with the sheep, so we wanted to capture the landscape and the nature around them and to connect them to it. That’s why we shot it using anamorphic lenses. I think 10 years ago we probably would have shot it on 35mm or 16mm because it’s that kind of film. It’s about these old farmers stuck in the past and it takes place in nature, so we tried to imitate this film look with the anamorphic lenses. The look of the film it’s a bit like a Western, if it had cows perhaps they would look like cowboys. We might have been a bit inspired by a movie like “There Will Be Blood.” There are some shots and scenes in “Rams” that were shot very similarly to those in “There Will Be Blood.” It’s an Icelandic Western with sheep and guns.

CA: I'm curious to know how was the casting process and working dynamic with the sheep. They are the stars of the film. Were they difficult to work with in a film like ths in which they play a very integral part? How did you know which sheep were the right ones to appear on camera?

Grímur Hákonarson: The most important thing was to find the right sheep. We had to select the right sheep and we did sheep casting. We saw a lot of sheep because the sheep that were living on the farm were too afraid of people. They would just ran away from you. We then found these sheep that looked really pretty because they are a good breed, but they were also very calm and they ere used to people. The reason for that is that their owners treat them as pets. They talk to them and pet them like if they were dogs. Those sheep were not afraid of humans. Then we hired a professional sheep farmer to train them and to be with us on set. We rehearsed all the sheep scenes before shooting them, like when Gummi bathes the ram. We said, “Ok lets bathe this ram,” and we found out that we needed five people to hold the ram in the bathtub but we couldn’t have all of them in the shot. When we filmed I told the actor, “ Ok Sigurður they are going to hold the ram but then they are going to run away and you just have to do it yourself and we’ll see what happens.” I said, “Action,” and the guys ran away and the actor was alone trying to hold the ram - it was interesting.

Thomas Vinterberg, who made “Far from the Madding Crowd,“ said that it was a disaster to work with sheep and that it was very difficult, but I have a different opinion about that. We usually didn’t have to shoot many takes with the sheep. Usually we did less than five takes in the scenes involving sheep. The sheep were very professional. Some of the actors went to 12 or 15 takes, but the sheep usually didn’t. They were one-take sheep.

CA: When the disease, scrapie, threatens the farmers way of life in the film a lot of them contemplate leaving it all behind and moving away. Would you say this this way of living is slowly dying not only because of occurrences like this but also because it's being overpowered by modern farming practices?

Grímur Hákonarson: Today there are not many sheep farmers like these brothers who live only from their sheep. It’s becoming more like a hobby today. It’s lees of a business. It’s difficult to make a living from sheep farming. There are not so many farmers like the brothers in the film who can only live from that. They have a tough life. They are quite poor. They can’t afford much. Sheep farming in Iceland has been declining and it’s struggling. It’s always going to be there and it’s always going to be a part of our culture, but it’s becoming more and more difficult to live from it. The brothers in the film are a bit like the last Mohicans. They are the last remains of this old farming society. This disease, scrapie, has caused a lot of harm in Iceland. Sheep are becoming less abundant. About 30 years ago, in the 1980s, there were three times more sheep in Iceland.

CA: Scandinavian humor is clearly idiosyncratic and definitely dry, but you managed to blend the comedy elicited from the characters' circumstance with the emotional poignancy of the story rather organically. How did merging these two tonal elements come about when crafting the film?

Grímur Hákonarson: The basic idea about these brothers living so close together but not speaking to each other is a good premise for black comedy. It has a tragicomic element. That’s why humor is a naturally underlying element throughout the whole film because the basic idea is a bit humorous itself. Then there are some scenes that are very funny of course, and those are supposed to make you laugh. I don’t like to make films that are too serious or too heavy. I try to pick stories that have a little bit of lightness in them and in “Rams,” maybe, I managed to master this balance. Some people cry in “Rams” and it can get really emotional. It has a strong message, but it’s also entertaining. I’m inspired by filmmakers like Aki Kaurismäki, known for his Finnish dark comedies, Bent Hamer in Norway, or Swedish director Roy Andersson. I’m inspired by these Scandinavian directors. My humor is pretty dry and people who know me see Grímur’s humor in the film. If I wasn’t a humorous person I would make different films.

CA: Despite the overall comedic tone of the film, the ending is particularly moving and shows a tenderness we hadn't fully seen before in the film. Why did you feel this was the correct way to conclude this tale about two brothers whose broken relationship gets a second chance thanks to the sheep?

Grímur Hákonarson: I think the ending is symbolic. It’s about these two brothers and their relationship. It’ a very powerful ending and it’s also an open ending. It makes people think and it stays with people. I’m really happy with it. It’s also a kind of risky ending, many people who read the screenplay warned me, “Grímur, you really think it should end like this? You don’t want to explain it a bit more?” But I went for this ending. When I was shooting, making the ending work was one of the most difficult things. It was worth the risk.

CA: Do you have any brothers? If so, is anything in "Rams" specifically related to your personal relationship with your brothers or siblings and what did they think of that being depiction in the film?

Grímur Hákonarson: Yes I have a brother. We were just Skyping recently. He’s seen the film and I think he never though it was about him because we have a good relationship. There is nothing in my family like in the film. My family is quite peaceful, so the story of the brothers is not connected to me personally. What’s connected to me personally is that my mother passed away when I was writing the script. The film is dedicated to her. She grew up on a sheep farm, so I feel like “Rams” is a bit a film about my ancestors, my family, and where we come from.

CA: Considering the acclaim and attention "Rams" received abroad, how as the reaction to the film in Iceland? Was it embrace by your compatriots?

Grímur Hákonarson: It was good. We decided to go straight to cinemas after Cannes to use the attention we got there. We won the Un Certain Regard Prize, it was a big prize for the Icelandic film industry. It’s maybe the biggest prize an Icelandic film has won, so of course it was a big thing. Iceland is a small country. People were really proud of it. I think about 10% of the nation’s population saw the film.

CA: How difficult, financially and logistically, is it to make films in Iceland? It appears that in recent years there has been an explosion of talent that has made a mark in the international festival scenes. What makes these new Icelandic voices distinct from the rest of the world?

Grímur Hákonarson: It’s a small industry. The Icelandic Film Fund is not very big, so we depend on doing co-productions and getting money from abroad. Icelandic films are cheaper to make than those in the rest of Scandinavia - like three times cheaper. “Rams” was made for 1 million Euros, mostly made up of Icelandic money. We got maybe 15% of the money from the Danish Film Fund. We don’t make so many movies so we have to be practical and we have to make contemporary simple stories. We can’t really make an expensive sci-fi film or large period movies in Icelandic. Maybe it’s a bit sad that we haven’t. I think it would be nice to do a costume drama set in the 30s, but it’s not possible to do that in Iceland.

What connect these new directors from Iceland like me, Dagur Kári, Rúnar Rúnarsson, or Benedikt Erlingsson, is that we are making contemporary, humanistic, and simple stories. We are not trying to hunt Hollywood. We are not trying to make blockbusters. Maybe because we don’t have so much money we have to make simple stories and we make films taken from Icelandic reality. Maybe that’s the right recipe for our films. Maybe that’s the reason they are special. Maybe that’s the reason people want to see them.

"Rams" is currently playing in La at the Laemmle Royal and in NYC at the Film Forum and Lincoln Plaza Cinemas...

Xan Brooks, Peter Bradshaw and Henry Barnes review Rams, an Icelandic drama about a pair of brothers keen to fleece each other out of the top prize from a local livestock competition. Starring Sigurður Sigurjónsson and Theodór Júlíusson, the team say Rams is a sheer pleasure. Rams, written and directed by Grímur Hákonarson, is released in the UK on 5 February

Continue reading...

In Grímur Hákonarson’s darkly funny Rams, two brothers who haven’t spoken in decades must unite forces to save their legacy when the government demands all their livestock must be slaughtered to contain a disease. Hidden behind long beards and stubbornness, Gummi (Sigurður Sigurjónsson) and Kiddi (Theodór Júlíusson) take on the impossible task of trying to outsmart the government, making for a fascinating allegory about the things we lose in the name of progress. After premiering at the Cannes Film Festival, where it won the top prize in the Un Certain Regard category, Rams went on to being chosen as Iceland’s Foreign Language Oscar submission. As the film opens in the Us, I got a chance to sit down with Hákonarson who spoke about how his childhood shaped the film, how Cannes changed his life, and shared interesting trivia about sheep.

Jose: Your parents used to send you...

Hou Hsiao-hsien’s “The Assassin” and “Rams” actors Sigurður Sigurjónsson and Theodór Júlíusson are among jury award winners of the 27th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival. The festival was held from Jan. 1-11, and screened 180 films from 60 countries. “Assassin,” which follows a beautiful and deadly woman on a mission in 9th century China, came out on top alongside India’s “Umrika,” which won the Hp Bridging the Borders Awards. The men of “Rams,” about estranged brothers on a sheep farm, were recognized by the jury “for the graceful way in which they guided their characters from animosity to interdependence.

Jan 10 Update: Giulio Ricciarelli’s German foreign-language Oscar submission Labyrinth Of Lies won on Sunday the Palm Springs Film Festival’s Mercedes-Benz Audience Award for best narrative feature and Jacob Bernstein and Nick Hooker’s Everything Is Copy from the Us earned the documentary award.

On Saturday Hou Hsiao-hsien’s Taiwanese foreign-language Oscar submission The Assassin won the Fipresci Prize at the 27th annual festival.

In other juried award winners announced at a luncheon on January 9, the Fipresci Prize for Best Actor of the Year in a Foreign Language Film went to Sigurður Sigurjónsson and Theodór Júlíusson from Grimur Hakonarson’s Icelandic Oscar submission Rams.

Fipresci’s Best Actress of the Year in a Foreign Language Film went to Alena Mihulová from Slávek Horák’s Czech Oscar submission Home Care.

The New Voices/New Visions competition honoured Xavier Seron’s Death By Death (Belgium-France), while a special mention went to Thithi (India-us) by Raam Reddy.

The...

Hou Hsiao-hsien’s Taiwanese foreign language Oscar submission has won the Fipresci Prize at the 27th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival (Psiff).

In other juried award winners announced at a luncheon on January 9, the Fipresci Prize for Best Actor of the Year in a Foreign Language Film went to Sigurður Sigurjónsson and Theodór Júlíusson from Grimur Hakonarson’s Icelandic Oscar submission Rams.

Fipresci’s Best Actress of the Year in a Foreign Language Film went to Alena Mihulová from Slávek Horák’s Czech Oscar submission Home Care.

The New Voices/New Visions competition honoured Xavier Seron’s Death By Death (Belgium-France), while a special mention went to Thithi (India-us) by Raam Reddy.

The John Schlesinger Award for a first-time documentary filmmaker was awarded to The Birth Of Saké (Japan) by Erik Shirai, while the Hp Bridging The Borders Award went to Umrika (India) by Prashant Nair

The audience award winners will be announced on January...

Sundance 2016 is fast approaching. Last week we posted the movie lineup of Midnight and Competition film selections. We now have the complete lineup for the premieres in both the feature film and documentary categories. We also have their selections for the Spotlight and Kid films. I've also included a list of special events.

There are a lot of great films on this list that I'm excited about seeing because of the incredible talent involved. Viggo Mortensen and Frank Langella star in Captain Fantastic; Laura Dern, Kristen Stewart, Michelle Williams star in Certain Women; Rachel Weisz, Michael Shannon, Kathy Bates and Danny Glover star in Complete Unknown; Paul Rudd and Selena Gomez star in The Fundamentals of Caring; John Krasinski directed a film called The Hollars which he stars in with Anna Kendrick, Margo Martindale, Richard Jenkins, Sharlto Copley, and Charlie Day; Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi has made a new...

Kate Plays ChristineThe lineup for the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, taking place between January 21 -31, has been announced.U.S. Dramatic COMPETITIONAs You Are (Miles Joris-Peyrafitte, USA): As You Are is the telling and retelling of a relationship between three teenagers as it traces the course of their friendship through a construction of disparate memories prompted by a police investigation. Cast: Owen Campbell, Charlie Heaton, Amandla Stenberg, John Scurti, Scott Cohen, Mary Stuart Masterson. World Premiere The Birth of a Nation (Nate Parker, USA): Set against the antebellum South, this story follows Nat Turner, a literate slave and preacher whose financially strained owner, Samuel Turner, accepts an offer to use Nat’s preaching to subdue unruly slaves. After witnessing countless atrocities against fellow slaves, Nat devises a plan to lead his people to freedom. Cast: Nate Parker, Armie Hammer, Aja Naomi King, Jackie Earle Haley, Gabrielle Union, Mark Boone Jr. World PremiereChristine (Antonio Campos,...

Top brass at the Park City festival have rounded out the feature line-up with a dazzling selection on paper that includes new work from Asif Kapadia and other returning alumni such as Todd Solondz, Taika Waititi and Joshua Marston.Scroll Down For Full List

Road movie The Fundamentals Of Caring by Rob Burnett starring Paul Rudd will close the festival, while Maggie Greenwald’s Sophie And The Rising Sun is the Salt Lake City Gala Film. Heid Ewing and Rachel Grady’s Norman Lear: Just Another Version Of You is a Day One Film.

The Premieres line-up introduces Indignation, the feature directorial debut from former Focus Features CEO and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon screenwriter James Schamus, and the latest world premieres from John Carney, Kenneth Lonergan, Ira Sachs and Diego Luna.

The Documentary Premieres section encompass latest films from Werner Herzog, Spike Lee, Liz Garbus and Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato.

The Spotlight...

Top brass at the Park City festival have rounded out the feature line-up with a dazzling selection on paper that includes new work from Asif Kapadia and other returning alumni such as Todd Solondz, Taika Waititi and Joshua Marston.Scroll Down For Full List

Road movie The Fundamentals Of Caring by Rob Burnett starring Paul Rudd will close the festival, while Maggie Greenwald’s Sophie And The Rising Sun is the Salt Lake City Gala Film. Heid Ewing and Rachel Grady’s Norman Lear: Just Another Version Of You is a Day One Film.

The Premieres line-up introduces Indignation, the feature directorial debut from former Focus Features CEO and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon screenwriter James Schamus, and the latest world premieres from John Carney, Kenneth Lonergan, Ira Sachs and Diego Luna.

The Documentary Premieres section encompass latest films from Werner Herzog, Spike Lee, Liz Garbus and Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato.

The Spotlight...

Gummi (Sigurður Sigurjónsson). Grímur Hákonarson: "We actually did a sheep casting and we found sheep who were used to being around humans, because most sheep will just run away." Photo: Sturla Brandth Grøvlen It's been a strong year for Icelandic film, with Rams (Hrutar), Sparrows (Þrestir) and Virgin Mountain (Fusi) - all titles redolent of the natural landscape - scooping awards at world festivals. Grímur Hákonarson's Rams is the leader of the flock, winning the Un Certain Regard prize at Cannes and going on to be his country's Foreign Language Oscar nomination. It will also vie for the title of Best European Film at the European Film Awards against A Pigeon Sat On A Branch Reflecting On Existence, Lux prize winner Mustang, The Lobster, Youth and Victoria.

Not bad for a film about sheep farming and a 40-year stand-off between two brothers. The idea may sound simple but...

Rams Movie Trailer. Grímur Hákonarson‘s Rams (2015) movie trailer stars Sigurður Sigurjónsson, Theodór Júlíusson and Charlotte Bøving. Rams‘ plot synopsis: “In a remote Icelandic farming valley, two brothers who haven’t spoken in 40 years have to come together in order to save what’s dearest to them – their sheep.” According to FirstShowing, “Cohen Media Group has debuted an official Us trailer for […]...

"Let's put a stop to this nonsense!" Cohen Media Group has debuted an official Us trailer for the Icelandic dark comedy Rams, from writer/director Grímur Hákonarson. The film is also Iceland's entry into the Oscars this year, and they're banking on it so much the film is set for release in February right after the nominations but before the awards hit. The film premiered at Cannes, played at Telluride, Vancouver, Toronto and many other film festivals, and comes with rave reviews that are quoted numerous times in this trailer. The film is about two brothers, named Gummi and Kiddi played by Sigurður Sigurjónsson and Theodór Júlíusson, respectively, who are rural sheep farmers in Iceland that run into trouble when some of their sheep are sick. It's a great film and comes highly recommended if you're into Icelandic dark comedy. Here's the official Us trailer for Grímur Hákonarson's Rams,...

Grímur Hákonarson’s Rams has been rounding the festival circuit this past year, making stops at Berlin, Tiff, and even picking up Un Certain Regard at this year’s Cannes (we even reviewed it quite positively out of the festival). There’s previously been an international trailer, but today, we have a U.S. trailer that gives the best sense of both the story and the overall sensibility.

Recently announced as the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar submission from Iceland, Rams is the story of two estranged brothers and sheep farmers (it’s been four decades since they’ve even spoke to each other) living in an isolated Icelandic village, who grudgingly band together in the face of a sheep-killing epidemic. The rapidly spreading disease soon attracts the watchful eye of the government, who demand that the brothers’ sheep be killed to stamp out the possibility of further infection.

Despite the high-stakes narrative framing though,...

The Icelandic contender for Oscar nomination in the Best Foreign Language Film category, “Rams” (“Hrutar”) by Grímur Hákonarson premiered in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard where it won the award for best picture. It went on to play in Telluride and Toronto. Its international sales agent, New Europe Film Sales is a comparatively new company, the first private enterprise out of Poland, founded by former American Film Festival/ Us in Progress publicist, Jan Naszewski. Cohen Media will release the film in the U.S.

"Rams" screens at AFI Fest on November 6 at 6:45 Pm and on November 11 at 1:15 Pm

AFI Programmer Beth Hanna describes the film here:

Two estranged brothers in rural Iceland must come together when a fatal outbreak strikes their sheep herds.

Sheepherder brothers Gummi and Kiddi have been estranged for years, going about their separate lives on neighboring farms in northern Iceland. When Gummi discovers a fatal outbreak in his brother’s herd, their community spirals into grave uncertainty, unsure how to survive when the animals they’ve built livelihoods around must be put down. What results from these dire circumstances is at once surprising, quietly hilarious and heartbreaking. With dry humor, great sympathy and a patient, stark filmmaking style, director Grímur Hákonarson shows us how seemingly doomed relationships can change when we least expect them to.

Cohen Media will release stateside.

International Film Agent, New Europe Film Sales, has sold this to Australia--Palace Films, Austria--Filmladen Ges.M, Belgium--Imagine Film Di, Canada--Métropole Films, China--Lemon Tree Media, Costa Rica--Pacifica Grey, Czech Repu--Aerofilms, Denmark--Scanbox Entertainment, Ecuador--Tropico Cine, Germany--Arsenal Filmver, Greece--Ama Films, Hong Kong--Encore Inflight, Hungary--Mozinet Ltd., Italy--Bim Distribuzio, Japan--Gaga Corporation, Mexico--Interior 13 Cine, Netherland--Imagine Film Di, Norway--Arthaus, Poland--Gutek Film Ltd, Portugal--Leopardo Filmes, Romania--Transilvania Film, Slovenia--Demiurg, Spain--Karma Films, Switzerland--Xenix Filmdistr, Taiwan--Maison Motion, Turkey--Filmarti Film, U.K.--Soda Pictures-

Director: Grímur Hákonarson

Screenwriter: Grímur Hákonarson

Producer: Grímar Jónsson

Director of Photography: Sturla Brandth Grøvlen

Editor: Kristján Loðmfjörð

Production Designer: Bjarni Massi, Sigurb Jörnsson

Music: Alti Örvarsson

Cast: Sigurður Sigurjónsson, Theodór Júlíusson, Charlotte Bøving

Iceland, 2015

93 min.

Feature

World Cinema Section

AFI Fest presented by Audi is a celebration of global cinema and today’s Hollywood. It is an opportunity for master filmmakers and emerging artists to come together with audiences in the movie capital of the world. AFI Fest is the only festival of its stature that is free to the public. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognizes AFI Fest as a qualifying festival for both Short Film categories for the annual Academy Awards®.

Free tickets: http://afi.com/afifest/freetickets.aspx

Connect with AFI Fest at facebook.com/Afifest, twitter.com/Afifest and youtube.com/Afifest...

The American Film Institute announced today the films that will screen in the World Cinema, Breakthrough, Midnight, Shorts and Cinema’s Legacy programs at AFI Fest 2015 presented by Audi.

AFI Fest will take place November 5 – 12, 2015, in the heart of Hollywood. Screenings, Galas and events will be held at the historic Tcl Chinese Theatre, the Tcl Chinese 6 Theatres, Dolby Theatre, the Lloyd E. Rigler Theatre at the Egyptian, the El Capitan Theatre and The Hollywood Roosevelt.

World Cinema showcases the most acclaimed international films of the year; Breakthrough highlights true discoveries of the programming process; Midnight selections will grip audiences with terror; and Cinema’s Legacy highlights classic movies and films about cinema. World Cinema and Breakthrough selections are among the films eligible for Audience Awards. Shorts selections are eligible for the Grand Jury Prize, which qualifies the winner for Academy Award®consideration. This year’s Shorts jury features filmmaker Janicza Bravo,...

Iceland’s submission to the Best Foreign-Language Film category will be Grímur Hákonarson’s Rams.

Iceland has selected its entry for the 2016 Best Foreign-Language Film Oscar: Rams, a drama about two brothers who haven’t spoken in 40 years reuniting with a common goal – to save their sheep.

Written and directed by Grímur Hákonarson (A Pure Heart), the film stars Sigurður Sigurjónsson (Brave Men’s Blood) and Theodór Júlíusson (Jar City) as the two brothers.

The film premiered at Cannes in May, where it won the Un Certain Regard prize. Since then, it has played Karlovy Vary and Telluride, and will screen in Toronto next week. It was also a competitor for this year’s Lux Prize.

International sales are being handled by New Europe Film Sales, who have sold the film to 40 countries worldwide, with releases scheduled between November 2015 and February 2016. Cohen Media Group are handling Us distribution.

Iceland’s only previous Oscar nomination in the Best...

Iceland’s submission to the Best Foreign-Language Film category will be Grímur Hákonarson’s Rams.

Iceland has selected its entry for the 2016 Best Foreign-Language Film Oscar: Rams, a drama about two brothers who haven’t spoken in 40 years reuniting with a common goal – to save their sheep.

Written and directed by Grímur Hákonarson (A Pure Heart), the film stars Sigurður Sigurjónsson (Brave Men’s Blood) and Theodór Júlíusson (Jar City) as the two brothers.

The film premiered at Cannes in May, where it won the Un Certain Regard prize. Since then, it has played Karlovy Vary and Telluride, and will screen in Toronto next week. It was also a competitor for this year’s Lux Prize.

International sales are being handled by New Europe Film Sales, who have sold the film to 40 countries worldwide, with releases scheduled between November 2015 and February 2016. Cohen Media Group are handling Us distribution.

Iceland’s only previous Oscar nomination in the Best...

★★★★☆ A story of filial rivalry in a remote valley in Iceland, Grímur Hákonarson's second narrative feature Rams (Hrútar, 2015) begins as an oddball comedy about sheep farming and grows slowly into a tale of elemental and moving power, deservingly winning the Un Certain Regard sidebar at Cannes. The film focuses, and initially sides with, Gummi (Sigurður Sigurjónsson), an unmarried solitary sheep farmer, whose affection for his flock is obvious and heartfelt, sniggering aside. Like a long term dog owner, he's even grown to resemble them with his woolly jumpers and woolly beard. He lives one hundred yards from Kiddi (Theodór Júlíusson), his elder brother with whom he hasn't exchanged a word for forty years.

Having made its UK debut at Eiff last month, Baltasar Kormákur’s The Deep is finally heading into cinemas on our shores this weekend.

The film won a slew of awards at the Edda Awards last year, which is the rough equivalent to the Oscars in Kormákur’s native Iceland. And after seeing the UK trailer surface a few weeks back, Metrodome have released a new Making Of featurette.

Based on incredible real life events, The Deep tells the story of a lone survivor of a fishing boat accident, who defies nature by surviving the freezing Icelandic sea in the midst of winter. Persevering against the odds, he makes the journey to islands nearby and now must face a gruelling trek across volcanic terrain before eventually arriving to safety. His intense ordeal wins him international attention, but brings the pressure of extensive physical investigation as he is left to deal...

Acclaimed Icelandic director Baltasar Kormákur’s latest film, The Deep, was released late last year in his native Iceland, picking up a slew of awards at the country’s equivalent to the Oscars earlier this year.

Having spent much of the past few months on the festival circuit, the film is finally due to arrive in UK theatres next month, following its UK premiere at the Edinburgh Film Festival. And Metrodome have released the UK trailer to whet our appetites for what’s to come.

Based on incredible real life events, The Deep tells the story of a lone survivor of a fishing boat accident, who defies nature by surviving the freezing Icelandic sea in the midst of winter. Persevering against the odds, he makes the journey to islands nearby and now must face a gruelling trek across volcanic terrain before eventually arriving to safety. His intense ordeal wins him international attention,...