DRIVING MUM nominated for the 2023 Nordic Council Film Prize

Driving Mum, by Hilmar Oddsson, is among 6 nominated films nominated for the Nordic Council Film Prize 2023.

The nominees will be presented on Tuesday evening at the opening of the New Nordic Films event during the Norwegian Film Festival in Haugesund, Norway. For the first time in the prize's history, a Greenlandic film has been nominated.The winner will be revealed at an awards ceremony in Oslo on 31 October.

Driving Mum tells the story of Jón, a fifty-year-old single man, who lives with his mother in a secluded village in the Westfjords in Iceland. When his mother dies, Jón must fulfill her last wish sets off on a journey with the dressed-up body in the back seat.

The jury's rationale states that Hilmar Oddsson makes efficient use of the traditional road movie structure to describe the inner journey of Jón

Driving Mum is a dark comedy; surreal at times. Since the basics of the external story are extremely simple and clear, the director is free to be quite playful within that frame without the narrative losing steam and he makes excellent and effortless use of this freedom. The narrative remains light and lively despite the serious theme of a life tragically wasted. The sporadic but carefully placed appearances of the circus troupe represent the joy and happiness which disappeared from Jón's life all those years ago and the music emphatically aids in getting all this across.

A seasoned director, Hilmar Oddsson obviously has excellent knowledge of every aspect of the film narrative and succeeds in telling a story of deep human tragedy with warmth and humour, often without words, making beautiful use of visual storytelling, aided by an especially effective musical score.

The following films are nominated this year:

Denmark – Viften (director: Frederikke Aspökk ; screenwriter: Anna Neye ; producer: Meta Louise Foldager Sørensen).
Iceland– Á ferð með mömmu (screenwriter and director: Hilmar Oddsson ; producer: Hlín Jóhannesdóttir).
Finland – Kupla (screenwriter:Reeta Ruotsalainen ; director and screenwriter: Aleksi Salmenperä ; producer: Minna Haapkylä).
Greenland– Alanngut Killinganni (screenwriter and director: Malik Kleist ; producer: Nina Paninnguaq Skydsbjerg).
Norway – Krigsseileren (screenwriter and director: Gunnar Vikene ; producer: Maria Ekerhovd).
Sweden – Motståndaren (screenwriter and director: Milad Alami ; producer: Annika Rogell).

Visit the Nordic Council's Film Prize website for more information on the nominated films.