Mike Leigh at Stockholm International Film Festival in Nov 2014

The Stockholm International Film Festival ( sv, Stockholms filmfestival, italic=no) is an annual film festival held in

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

. It was launched in 1990 and has been held every year since then during the second half of November. The winning film in the international competition section is awarded the Bronze Horse (Bronshästen). At 7,3kg (16 lb) the Bronze Horse is the heaviest film award in the world. It is also a paraphrase on a national design icon, the Swedish

Dala horse A Dalecarlian horse or Dala horse (; Swedish: ''Dalahäst'') is a traditional carved, painted wooden statue of a horse originating in the Swedish province of Dalarna (Dalecarlia). In the old days the Dalecarlian horse was mostly used as a t ...

, and was created by artist Fredrik Swärd. Since its start the Stockholm International Film Festival has focused on supporting new talents through competitions and scholarships. As many as a third of the films selected for the competition are made by a debuting director and by directors who have made fewer than three films. In 2011 "The Stockholm Film Festival Feature Film Award" was inaugurated which funds a feature film for an unestablished female director. The aim for Stockholm International Film Festival is to broaden the selection of films in Sweden with creative new films of high quality and offer the visitor an orientation within modern film. With seminars, gala screenings, opportunities to meet actors and filmmakers during the festival, the festival strives to be central meeting point for filmmakers and film audiences in Sweden. The festival is visited by hundreds of filmmakers and since its inception such celebrities as Dennis Hopper, Lauren Bacall,

Gena Rowlands Virginia Cathryn "Gena" Rowlands (born June 19, 1930) is an American retired actress, whose career in film, stage, and television has spanned seven decades. A four-time Emmy and two-time Golden Globe winner, she is known for her collaborations w ...

Charlotte Rampling Tessa Charlotte Rampling (born 5 February 1946) is an English actress, known for her work in European arthouse films in English, French, and Italian. An icon of the Swinging Sixties, she began her career as a model. She was cast in the role ...

Susan Sarandon Susan Abigail Sarandon (; née Tomalin; born October 4, 1946) is an American actorMcCabe, Bruce"Susan Sarandon, the 'actor'" ''Boston Globe''. April 17, 1981. Retrieved January 21, 2021. and activist. She is the recipient of various accolades, ...

Ang Lee Ang Lee (; born October 23, 1954) is a Taiwanese filmmaker. Born in Pingtung County of southern Taiwan, Lee was educated in Taiwan and later in the United States. During his filmmaking career, he has received international critical and popula ...

Andrea Arnold Andrea Arnold, OBE (born 5 April 1961) is an English filmmaker and former actor. She won an Academy Award for her short film ''Wasp'' in 2005. Her feature films include ''Red Road'' (2006), ''Fish Tank'' (2009), and ''American Honey'' (2016), ...

David Cronenberg David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation ...

Roman Polanski Raymond Roman Thierry Polański , group=lower-alpha, name=note_a (né Liebling; 18 August 1933) is a French-Polish film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. He is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, two ...

Terry Gilliam Terrence Vance Gilliam (; born 22 November 1940) is an American-born British filmmaker, comedian, animator, actor and former member of the Monty Python comedy troupe. Gilliam has directed 13 feature films, including ''Time Bandits'' (1981), ''B ...

David Lynch David Keith Lynch (born January 20, 1946) is an American filmmaker, visual artist and actor. A recipient of an Academy Honorary Award in 2019, Lynch has received three Academy Award nominations for Best Director, and the César Award for Be ...

Claire Denis Claire Denis (; born 21 April 1946) is a French film director and screenwriter. Her feature film ''Beau Travail'' (1999) has been called one of the greatest films of the 1990s, as well as of all time. Other acclaimed works include '' Trouble Ev ...

Elia Kazan Elia Kazan (; born Elias Kazantzoglou ( el, Ηλίας Καζαντζόγλου); September 7, 1909 – September 28, 2003) was an American film and theatre director, producer, screenwriter and actor, described by ''The New York Times'' as "one o ...

Céline Sciamma Céline Sciamma (; born 12 November 1978) is a French screenwriter and film director. She is especially known for her films ''Girlhood'' (2014), '' My Life as a Courgette'' (2016), and '' Portrait of a Lady on Fire'' (2019), winning many nomina ...

Francis Ford Coppola Francis Ford Coppola (; ; born April 7, 1939) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is considered one of the major figures of the New Hollywood filmmaking movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Coppola is the recipient of five A ...

Wong Kar-Wai Wong Kar-wai (born 17 July 1958) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter, and producer. His films are characterised by nonlinear narratives, atmospheric music, and vivid cinematography involving bold, saturated colours. A pivotal figure ...

and

Uma Thurman Uma Karuna Thurman (born April 29, 1970) is an American actress and former model. She has performed in a variety of films, from romantic comedies and dramas to science fiction and action films. Following her appearances on the December 1985 an ...

have visited the festival and met the audience at the cinemas. The festival also organizes mobile film workshops for children and teenagers, screenings for festival members throughout the year as well as the Stockholm Film Festival Junior, an annual film festival for children and youth during the spring. The main goal of Stockholm Film Festival Junior is to provide access to quality film from every corner of the world for young audiences – films that otherwise would not reach the mainstream film repertoire. All screenings are free of charge for everyone between 6 and 19 years old. Since 1990 the Stockholms International Film Festival is also the host of Summer Cinema, an outdoor cinema open to the public during August in Stockholm. Summer Cinema has taken place in different venues in the Swedish capital, for example Stockholm Olympic Stadium, Berzelii park and Rålambshovsparken.

History

Stockholm Film Festival was founded in 1990 by the three film enthusiasts Git Scheynius, Kim Klein and Ignas Shceynius. The first festival took place over four days and the opening film is " Wild at Heart" by

. In 1994 the Stockholm Film Festival takes the step into the digital age as the first film festival in the world with its own website. Stockholm Film Festival celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2009 by screening films on a specially made ice screen in Kungsträdgården. Susan Sarandon who attended the festival to receive the Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award helped to unveil the canvas before the screening of "

The Rocky Horror Picture Show ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' is a 1975 musical comedy horror film by 20th Century Fox, produced by Lou Adler and Michael White and directed by Jim Sharman. The screenplay was written by Sharman and actor Richard O'Brien, who is also ...

". At the festival's 30th anniversary celebration in 2019, several tons of ice was yet again transported from Torneälven, 1227 km to the capital to recreate the ice canvas in Kungsträdgården. David Lynch visits the festival for the first time in 2003 to receive the Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award, 13 years after "Wild at Heart" inaugurated the very first edition of the Stockholm Film Festival. According to reports, the director drinks huge amounts of coffee in the lobby of the old Lydmar Hotel and is more than happy to talk to his fans in town. When director and actor Peter Fonda arrives at the festival as chairman of the jury in 2012, he makes his entrance in style, escorted to the Skandia cinema by an entire motorcycle gang. The Chinese artist and activist

Ai Weiwei Ai Weiwei (, ; born 28 August 1957) is a Chinese contemporary artist, documentarian, and activist. Ai grew up in the far northwest of China, where he lived under harsh conditions due to his father's exile. As an activist, he has been openly c ...

is part of the festival jury in 2013 but cannot be present as he is under house arrest in his home country. He creates the work of art "The Chair of Nonattendance" which is sent to Stockholm; an empty chair that is impossible to sit in. The collaboration inspires the establishment of the Stockholm Impact Award; one of the world's largest film prizes, which is awarded for the first time in 2015 in collaboration with the City of Stockholm. The prize is awarded to filmmakers who raise important societal issues.

Awards

Bronze horse: Best film

The following films have received the top honour at the festival, the 7.3 kg Bronze Horse statute for best film.

Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award

Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award is given as an honour for a lifework within cinema. * 1990 –

Roger Corman Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926) is an American film director, producer, and actor. He has been called "The Pope of Pop Cinema" and is known as a trailblazer in the world of independent film. Many of Corman's films are based on works t ...

* 1991 – Dennis Hopper * 1992 –

Viveca Lindfors Elsa Viveca Torstensdotter Lindfors (December 29, 1920 – October 25, 1995) was a Swedish stage, film, and television actress. She won an Emmy Award and a Silver Bear for Best Actress. Biography Lindfors was born in Uppsala, Sweden, the da ...

* 1994 –

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...

* 1995 –

Jean Paul Gaultier Jean Paul Gaultier (; born 24 April 1952) is a French haute couture and prêt-à-porter fashion designer. He is described as an "enfant terrible" of the fashion industry and is known for his unconventional designs with motifs including corset ...

* 1996 –

Rod Steiger Rodney Stephen Steiger (; April 14, 1925July 9, 2002, aged 77) was an American actor, noted for his portrayal of offbeat, often volatile and crazed characters. Cited as "one of Hollywood's most charismatic and dynamic stars," he is closely assoc ...

* 1997 –

* 1998 –

* 1999 –

* 2000 – Lauren Bacall * 2001 –

Jean-Luc Godard Jean-Luc Godard ( , ; ; 3 December 193013 September 2022) was a French-Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s, alongside such filmmakers as Fran� ...

* 2002 –

Erland Josephson Erland Josephson (; 15 June 1923 – 25 February 2012) was a Swedish actor and author. He was best known by international audiences for his work in films directed by Ingmar Bergman, Andrei Tarkovsky and Theodoros Angelopoulos. Life and career ...

* 2003 –

* 2004 –

Oliver Stone William Oliver Stone (born September 15, 1946) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. Stone won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay as writer of '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and wrote the gangster film remake '' Sc ...

* 2005 –

* 2006 – Lasse Hallström * 2007 –

Paul Schrader Paul Joseph Schrader (; born July 22, 1946) is an American screenwriter, film director, and film critic. He first received widespread recognition through his screenplay for Martin Scorsese's ''Taxi Driver'' (1976). He later continued his collabo ...

* 2008 –

* 2009 –

* 2010 –

Harriet Andersson Harriet Andersson (born 14 February 1932) is a Swedish actress, best known outside Sweden for being part of director Ingmar Bergman's stock company. She often plays impulsive, working class characters. Film actress Harriet Andersson began her ...

* 2011 –

Isabelle Huppert Isabelle Anne Madeleine Huppert (; born 16 March 1953) is a French actress. Described as "one of the best actresses in the world", she is known for her portrayals of cold and disdainful characters devoid of morality. She is the recipient of sev ...

* 2012 –

Jan Troell Jan Gustaf Troell (born 23 July 1931) is a Swedish writer-director, and cinematographer. His realistic films, with a lyrical photography in which nature is prominent, have placed him in the first rank of modern Swedish film directors along with ...

* 2013 –

* 2014 –

Mike Leigh Mike Leigh (born 20 February 1943) is an English film and theatre director, screenwriter and playwright. He studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and further at the Camberwell School of Art, the Central School of Art and Design ...

* 2015 –

Stephen Frears Stephen Arthur Frears (born 20 June 1941) is an English director and producer of film and television often depicting real life stories as well as projects that explore social class through sharply drawn characters. He's received numerous accola ...

* 2016 –

* 2018 –

Mary Harron Mary Harron (born January 12, 1953) is a Canadian filmmaker and screenwriter, and former entertainment critic. She gained recognition for her role in writing and directing several independent films, including ''I Shot Andy Warhol'' (1996), ''Ame ...

* 2019 –

Max von Sydow Max von Sydow ( , ; born Carl Adolf von Sydow; 10 April 1929 – 8 March 2020) was a Swedish-French actor. He had a 70-year career in European and American cinema, television, and theatre, appearing in more than 150 films and several television ...

* 2020 –

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November 17, 1942) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter and actor. Scorsese emerged as one of the major figures of the New Hollywood era. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominatio ...

and

Isabella Rossellini Isabella Fiorella Elettra Giovanna Rossellini (born 18 June 1952) is an Italian-American actress, author, philanthropist, and model. The daughter of the Swedish actress Ingrid Bergman and the Italian film director Roberto Rossellini, she is noted ...

* 2021 –

Jane Campion Dame Elizabeth Jane Campion (born 30 April 1954) is a New Zealand filmmaker. She is best known for writing and directing the critically acclaimed films ''The Piano'' (1993) and '' The Power of the Dog'' (2021), for which she has received a tot ...

* 2022 –

Anthony Hopkins Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins (born 31 December 1937) is a Welsh actor, director, and producer. One of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actors, he is known for his performances on the screen and stage. Hopkins has received many accolad ...

Stockholm Visionary Award

Stockholm Visionary Award was instituted 2004 to note visionaries within modern film. * 2004 –

Todd Solondz Todd Solondz (; born October 15, 1959) is an American filmmaker and playwright known for his style of dark, socially conscious satire. Solondz's work has received critical acclaim for its commentary on the "dark underbelly of middle class America ...

* 2005 –

* 2006 –

Darren Aronofsky Darren Aronofsky (born February 12, 1969) is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. His films are noted for their surrealistic, melodramatic, and sometimes disturbing elements, often in the form of psychological fiction. Arono ...

* 2007 –

Wes Anderson Wesley Wales Anderson (born May 1, 1969) is an American filmmaker. His films are known for their eccentricity and unique visual and narrative styles. They often contain themes of grief, loss of innocence, and dysfunctional families. Cited by so ...

* 2008 –

Wong Kar-wai Wong Kar-wai (born 17 July 1958) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter, and producer. His films are characterised by nonlinear narratives, atmospheric music, and vivid cinematography involving bold, saturated colours. A pivotal figure ...

* 2009 –

Luc Besson Luc Paul Maurice Besson (; born 18 March 1959) is a French film director, screenwriter and producer. He directed or produced the films ''Subway'' (1985), '' The Big Blue'' (1988), and '' La Femme Nikita'' (1990). Besson is associated with the ' ...

* 2010 – Gus Van Sant * 2011 –

Alejandro González Iñárritu Alejandro González Iñárritu (; American Spanish: ; credited since 2016 as Alejandro G. Iñárritu; born 15 August 1963) is a Mexican filmmaker and screenwriter. He is primarily known for making modern psychological drama films about the hum ...

* 2012 –

Jacques Audiard Jacques Audiard (; born 30 April 1952) is a French film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is the son of Michel Audiard, also a film director and screenwriter. He has won both the César Award for Best Film and the BAFTA Award for Best Fi ...

* 2013 –

Peter Greenaway Peter Greenaway, (born 5 April 1942) is a Welsh film director, screenwriter and artist. His films are noted for the distinct influence of Renaissance and Baroque painting, and Flemish painting in particular. Common traits in his films are th ...

* 2014 –

Roy Andersson Roy Arne Lennart Andersson (born 31 March 1943) is a Swedish film director, best known for ''A Swedish Love Story'' (1970), '' About Endlessness'' (2019) and his "Living trilogy," which includes '' Songs from the Second Floor'' (2000), '' You, ...

* 2015 –

Yorgos Lanthimos Georgios "Yorgos" Lanthimos ( el, Γιώργος Λάνθιμος, Giórgos Lánthimos, ; born 23 September 1973) is a Greek film director, film producer, screenwriter, photographer, theatre director and former professional basketball player. Sin ...

* 2016 –

François Ozon François Ozon (; born 15 November 1967) is a French film director and screenwriter. Ozon is considered one of the most important modern French filmmakers. His films are characterized by aesthetic beauty, sharp satirical humor and a free-wheeli ...

* 2018 –

Asghar Farhadi Asghar Farhadi ( fa, اصغر فرهادی, ; born 7 May 1972)Soureh Movie Database

* 2019 –

* 2020 –

Matteo Garrone Matteo Garrone (born 15 October 1968) is an Italian filmmaker. Born in Rome, the son of a theatre critic, Nico Garrone and a photographer, in 1996 Garrone won the ''Sacher d'Oro'', an award sponsored by Nanni Moretti, with the short film ''Silho ...

* 2021 –

Joachim Trier Joachim Trier () (born 1 March 1974) is a Danish-born Norwegian film director, best known for '' Oslo, August 31st'' (2011), ''Louder Than Bombs'' (2015), ''Thelma'' (2017), and '' The Worst Person in the World'' (2021). For the latter film, he ...

* 2022 –

Sam Mendes Sir Samuel Alexander Mendes (born 1 August 1965) is a British film and stage director, producer, and screenwriter. In 2000, Mendes was appointed a CBE for his services to drama, and he was Knight Bachelor, knighted in the 2020 New Year Honour ...

Stockholm Achievement Award

*2012 –

Willem Dafoe Willem James Dafoe (; born July 22, 1955) is an American actor. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Willem Dafoe, various accolades, including the Volpi Cup for Best Actor, in addition to receiving nominations for ...

*2014 –

*2015 –

Ellen Burstyn Ellen Burstyn (born Edna Rae Gillooly; December 7, 1932) is an American actress. Known for her portrayals of complicated women in dramas, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a Tony Award, and two Primetime Em ...

*2018 –

Gunnel Lindblom Gunnel Märtha Ingegärd Lindblom (18 December 1931 – 24 January 2021) was a Swedish film actress and director. Career As an actress, Lindblom was particularly associated with the work of Ingmar Bergman, though in 1965 she performed the l ...

*2019 –

Payman Maadi Payman Maadi ( fa, پیمان معادی; born 1972), also known as Peyman Moadi, is an Iranian American actor, screenwriter and director. He is best known for starring in the films ''A Separation'' (2011) and '' About Elly'' (2009) by Iranian ...

*2020 –

Viggo Mortensen Viggo Peter Mortensen Jr. R (; born October 20, 1958) is an American actor, writer, director, producer, musician, and multimedia artist. Born and raised in the State of New York to a Danish father and American mother, he also lived in Argent ...

*2021 –

Kenneth Branagh Sir Kenneth Charles Branagh (; born 10 December 1960) is a British actor and filmmaker. Branagh trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London and has served as its president since 2015. He has won an Academy Award, four BAFTAs (plus ...

and

Robin Wright Robin Gayle Wright (born April 8, 1966) is an American actress. She has won a Golden Globe Award and a Satellite Award, and has received eleven Emmy Award nominations for her work in television. Wright first gained attention for her role in t ...

*2022 –

Fares Fares Fares Fares (; born 29 April 1973) is a Swedish-Lebanese actor of Assyrian descent. Early life Fares was born in Beirut, Lebanon. His younger brother is director Josef Fares, and he has four sisters. In 1987, when Fares was 14 years old, his ...

Audience Award

The peoples choice.

Rising Star

Prize is awarded to an actor who has made distinctive achievements in film and has the ability to become tomorrow's star. The purpose of the award is to highlight an actor early in their career. *2008 –

Malin Crépin Malin Crépin (born 22 August 1978, in Stockholm), is a Swedish actress. She has starred in several movies. She became best known for her role in the Swedish film series ''A Case for Annika Bengtzon''. Life and career Malin Crépin was born ...

*2009 –

Anastasios Soulis Anastasios Soulis (born 8 January 1987) is a Swedish actor. He was born to a Greek father, Georgios Soulis and a Finnish mother, Katariina Nerg. Selected filmography *2000 - '' Den bästa sommaren'' *2001 - '' Hem ljuva hem'' *2001 - '' Grynings ...

*2010 –

Alicia Vikander Alicia Amanda Vikander (, ; born 3 October 1988) is a Swedish actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award and a Critics' Choice Movie Award, as well as receiving nominations for ...

*2011 – Malin Buska *2012 – Nermina Lukac *2013 –

Adam Lundgren Adam Reier Lundgren (born 15 February 1986 in Gothenburg) is a Swedish actor. He is best known internationally for starring in the television series ''Torka aldrig tårar utan handskar'' ('' Don't Ever Wipe Tears Without Gloves'') in 2012, '' Bl ...

*2014 – Julia Ragnarsson *2015 – Aliette Opheim *2016 – Filip Berg *2017 –

Gustav Lindh Gustav Lindh, (born 4 June 1995) is a Swedish actor. He is best known for his roles as Aron in '' Älska mig'' and Jörgen Olsson in ''Jordskott''. He is internationally best known for his role in ''Queen of Hearts''. In 2020, he plays a role in ...

*2021 –

Edvin Ryding Lars Edvin Folke Ryding (born 4 February 2003) is a Swedish actor. He debuted in the TV series ''Mannen under trappan'' in 2009 at the age of 6 years. Since then Ryding has acted in several other productions like ''Fröken Frimans krig'', '' The ...

*2022 – Sara Shirpey

References

External links

Stockholm International Film Festival
{{Coord missing, Sweden * Tourist attractions in Stockholm Annual events in Sweden 1990 establishments in Sweden Film festivals established in 1990 Autumn events in Sweden