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The Playmaker has closed several distribution deals for the World War II drama “Never Alone,” directed by Klaus Härö.

“Never Alone” has been picked up for distribution in Bulgaria (Beta Film), India (BookMyShow), Latin America (Encripta) and Spain (Twelve Oaks). As previously announced, the rights in North America were acquired by Menemsha. The film was released in Finland in January by Nordisk Films.

“Never Alone,” based on the life of Abraham Stiller, tells the story of Jewish refugees seeking safety in Finland during World War II. As Nazi influence grows, Stiller, a Jewish leader in Helsinki, must risk everything to protect his community.

The cast is led by Ville Virtanen, Nina Hukkinen and Rony Herman. The film is produced by Ilkka Matila of Mrp Matila Röhr Prods., in co-production with Samsara Filmproduktion, Taska Film, Penned Pictures and Hobab.

It is supported by the Finnish Film Foundation, the Austrian Film Institute,...

Icelandic film production company Sagafilm and Sweden’s LittleBig Productions are developing a historical series about 17th-century Icelanders abducted by Barbary corsairs and sold into slavery in North Africa.

Tentatively titled “Salé” — a city on the North African coast that was also a haven for pirates — the series is inspired by true events. It begins in the summer of 1627, when several hundred people in settlements along Iceland’s coast are captured by Barbary privateers under the command of the Dutch pirate Jan Janszoon, more commonly known as Admiral Murat Reis. Among his prisoners are Gunnur, the wife of a young fisherman, and her 12-year-old daughter Gríma. When they are brought to the North African slave markets, mother and daughter are separated, sold to different masters and forced to develop different strategies in order to survive.

Described as a thrilling tale of love, survival, revenge, and the power of hope, “Salé...

German sales outfit The Playmaker Munich, formerly Arri Media International, has shared with Variety the international trailer of psychological thriller “Wolka,” produced by leading Icelandic banner Sagafilm with Poland’s Film Produkcja.

The feature will bow as a market premiere at Haugesund’s New Nordic Films, Scandinavia’s major film showcase which runs Aug. 24-27.

The atmospheric trailer follows Anna (Olga Bołądź) as she gets out of a Polish jail on parole after 15 years behind bars. She soon travels from Warsaw to Iceland, on the tail of a mysterious Dorota (Anna Moskal) who has blended into the nation’s largest ethnic minority. Composer Atli Örvarsson and cinematographer Marek Rajca (“South by North”) capture the escalating tension as Anna’s arrival rocks Dorota’s life, established under a false identity.

The images reveal the cultural challenges for the strong community of nearly 10,000 immigrant Poles living in Iceland, tagged by Dorota in...

Final film ‘Wolka’ is set for release later this year.

Icelandic filmmaker Árni Ólafur Ásgeirsson has died aged 49 following a short illness.

The filmmaker was finishing his latest feature film Wolka, a Poland-Iceland co-production that is planned for release later in 2021.

The crime drama, produced by Iceland’s Sagafilm and Poland’s Film Produkcja, is sold internationally by Arri Media. The story follows a woman who is released from a Polish prison and breaks her parole to try to find a woman in Iceland’s Westman Islands.

Ásgeirsson, known in Iceland as Árni Óli, debuted with short film Anna’s Day starring Iben Hjejle,...

Icelandic production powerhouse Sagafilm and Germany’s Splendid Film are teaming on the major feature project “Operation Napoleon,” to be lensed mostly in English.

Budgeted at around €6 million ($7.2 million), the thriller is based on the eponymous best-selling novel by Iceland’s crime master Arnaldur Indriðason, whose earlier novel “Jar City” was successfully filmed by Baltasar Kormákur.

Published locally in 2009 and translated into English in 2011, “Operation Napoleon” was awarded a Crime Dagger by the Crime Writers’ Association.

The story centers on a young Icelandic female lawyer who’s suddenly sucked into the vortex of an international conspiracy after being accused of a murder she didn’t commit. Her only chance of survival lies in uncovering the secret of an old German World War II airplane, recently discovered on Iceland’s largest glacier.

The project is the biggest film commitment in more than a decade for Sagafilm, behind some of Iceland’s top selling-shows in recent years,...

We've got an exclusive look at a new trailer for the animated adventure story Ploey to share with you today, courtesy of DirecTV and Viva Pictures. Originally an Icelandic production from director Árni Ásgeirsson and writer Friðrik Erlingsson for a co-production between GunHil's animation wing and Belgium-based studio Cyborn, Ploey will soon take flight in the U.S. In addition to the new English-language trailer, we also have a new cast listing for the voice actors who will be taking audiences through this kid-friendly, PG-rated adventure. When he gets separated from his …...

‘Green Book.’

Three Academy Awards including best film and for supporting actor Mahershala Ali gave Green Book a sizable bounce in Australian cinemas last weekend while the best actor Oscar for Rami Malek has helped prolong Bohemian Rhapsody’s marathon run.

In other respects it was another bleak trading session as family adventure A Dog’s Way Home had a mediocre opening, well ahead of the other wide new releases, English heist caper King of Thieves and gory thriller Greta.

Flying the Nest, an animated family film which follows a young bird who sets off on a journey through a harsh and unrelenting winter in order to reunite with his true love, had minimal impact as an alternate content release.

Cinemas are marking time until the arrival this Thursday of Disney/Marvel’s Captain Marvel. The top 20 titles collectively generated $9.7 million, 6 per cent down on the previous weekend according to Numero.

"I'm here to warn you: Shadow's planning an attack, man." Signature Entertainment has debuted a new UK trailer for an animated adventure comedy titled Flying the Nest, originally titled Ploey - You Never Fly Alone. This film comes from Iceland, telling the heart-warming tale of how far a little bird will go to be reunited with his true love. The story follows a young plover bird, a wading bird similar to sandpipers. Left behind by his flock, a little plover named Ploey must embark on a journey where he must use his cunning, and rely on the help of newly-found friends to make it through the winter and see his true love again. The voice cast includes Jamie Oram, Harriet Perring, Iain Stuart Robertson, Richard Cotton, Þórunn Erna Clausen, and Thomas Arnold. All the birds in this are super cute, it looks like an entertaining film. Here's the official UK trailer (+ intl.

Iceland’s GunHil signs co-pro agreement with Belgian animation studio.

Icelandic production company GunHil and Belgian-based Cyborn animation studio have signed a co-production agreement on Ploey - You Never Fly Alone.

The film, previously titled Ploe: You Never Fly Alone, will be a joint production between the two companies and is scheduled for release in 2017. Cyborn specialises in 3D animation and CGI.

The animation tells the story of a chick whose family migrates to warmer climates before he has learned to fly. He deals with the harsh winter by making new friends.

Ploey is being sold by Arri Worldsales and has already been sold to more than 20 countries worldwide, including Russia, the Baltics, Finland, Turkey, Poland, Middle East and South Korea.

GunHil has developed the film, which will be directed by Árni Ólafur Ásgeirsson (Brim) and co-directed by Gunnar Karlsson.

The story and screenplay is written by Fridrik Erlingsson (Legends of Valhalla). Producers are Hilmar Sigurdsson and Haukur...