You won't want to miss these films!

Need some inspiration on which films to see at the Tromsø International Film Festival 13-19 January?

Publisert 10.01.2025 — TIFF

This year we have over 100 films on the program, and it can be difficult to know where you should start planning your festival week! 

Our Festival and Program Director, Assistant Program Director, Program Editor, and Program Director for Films from the North shares their favorite films from the program to help you on your way.

From the Program Presentation with iTromsø TIFF 2025. From the left: iTromsø Editor Marianne Lein Moe, Program Editor Kjetil Almås, Festival Director Lisa Hoen, Program Director for Films from the North Astrid Aure. Photo: Jamie Michael Bivard.


Favorites from the program

The Assessment

In this stylish sci-fi thriller by director Fleur Fortune, we meet a scientist couple who have everything they want—except for a child. The story takes off with action, drama, and manipulation when their 'sensor,' Mia (Alicia Wikander), is sent by the authorities to test their suitability as parents.

-Raw, surprising, funny, and uncomfortable all at once—with climate and authoritarian regimes as an underlying theme, says festival director Lisa Hoen.

The Assessment by Fleur Fortune.

Black Dog

From director Hu Guan comes Black Dog, a poetic blend of western and social drama, presented as a classic tale of honor and loyalty.

As China prepares for the Beijing Olympics, people are relocated from a village near the Gobi Desert. They leave behind dogs that must be driven away before the area is demolished and replaced with a new modern city. Recently released from prison, Lang joins the patrol tasked with capturing the stray dogs, but forms a special bond with a gaunt and highly cunning black dog.

-Three lonely souls meet in this grand film from China: A man, a woman, and a dog. Visually striking yet surprisingly funny and warm, says Assistant Program Director Henning Rosenlund.


Black Dog by Hu Guan.

Nickel Boys

RaMell Ross delivers one of the year's most poetic films, drawing us deep into the racist past of the United States. Nickel Boys is a cinematic experience that demands to be remembered.

-A film that is political, yet also innovative and full of deep emotions, says Editor Kjetil Almås.

We follow a young Black boy, Elwood Curtis, who experiences a political awakening during the era of the civil rights movement and is sent to the Nickel reform school. There, he faces a system marked by racism and abuse, but he also finds friendship in Turner, a young man who shares Elwood's determined will and need to survive.

Nickel Boys by RaMell Ross

Films from the North Shorts

The short film programs in the Film from the North sidebar are perfect for anyone looking to watch as many films as possible in a shorter time. Here, the festival showcases the best in short fiction and documentary films from Sápmi, the northern parts of Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia, and Canada, as well as Alaska, Iceland, and Greenland.

This year, you can look forward to several local stories from Northern Norwegian filmmakers! Be sure to check out the Shorts 1, Shorts 3, and Shorts 5 programs.

-In Young Directors/Student Films, no fewer than three highly talented young directors from Tromsø are represented, says Film from the North Program Director Astrid Aure.

Filther by Simen Nyland - Shorts 3 FFN

Spectacular screenings at Alfheim Swimming Pool

If you want to catch the most spectacular screenings, make sure to check out one of the films in our new venue this year, Alfheim Swimming Pool.

The festival has repurposed used cinema seats from the cinema in Steinkjer to create a venue that is both comfortable and iconic! Featuring one of the top three largest screens at the festival, we recommend checking out these films:

Afternoons of Solitude

Afternoons of Solitude by Albert Serra is among the films featured in this year's competition program. Here, we follow the young Peruvian bullfighter Andrés Roca Rey both in and outside the ring.

Afternoons of Solitude by Albert Serra.

- A relentless and fascinating documentary about bullfighting. Observant and honest, beautiful and brutal. Highly recommended! says Rosenlund.

The film succeeds in conveying the fine line between life and death, both for Roca Rey and the bull. This film is for those seeking a deeper understanding and reflection on this strange and brutal tradition.

#Hvaldimir, Conversations with a Spy Whale

The social media sensation Hvaldimir is featured in this documentary from this year's sidebar Film from the North - Features, and tells the story of the beluga whale, who possibly escaped from a Russian military base.

- An incredibly fascinating story about the "spy whale" Hvaldimir, who became world-famous right here in our northern waters. The perfect venue for the grand nature scenes in this film has to be Alfheim, with its view of the fjord, says Aure.

#Hvaldimir: Conversations With a Spy Whale by Jérôme Delafosse and Fabrice Schnoller

Youth and Family in Focus

This year's program features several documentaries exploring family relationships and the lives of youth from around the world, each with a unique cultural and historical perspective. From three generations of female filmmakers in Georgia, to a young boy's upbringing in Budapest, and the dreams and challenges of Indigenous youth in Canada.

Mother and Daughter or the Night is Never Complete

95 year old Lana Gogoberidze directed this documentary about her own family, consisting of three generations of female filmmakers in Georgia from the 1920s to the present day.

-The film becomes eerily relevant as Nutsa recounts the treatment her parents, who were intellectuals and free thinkers, received under Stalin's regime. A philosophical, beautiful, and meaningful film that provides us with a broader picture of Eastern Europe through the lens of her family’s history, says Hoen.

Mother and Daughter or the Night is Never Complete by Lana Gogoberidze

KIX

This observational documentary by Dávid Mikulán and Bálint Révész follows Sanyi and his group of friends through ten years of camaraderie and youth through the gritty streets of Budapest.

We get an insight into Sanyi's life, his relationship with his family, sister, school, and social services, as well as his thoughts on life, love, and the future. It is a documentary that shows us how important dreams and hope are, and especially Sanyi's unyielding zest for life in the face of society's expectations.

- A fascinating and unfiltered documentary about a wild upbringing in Budapest, says Almås.

KIX by Dávid Mikulán and Bálint Révész.

Ninan Auassat: We, the Children

A touching, enjoyable, honest, and powerful documentary about what young people from various Indigenous communities in Canada dream of and fight for.

- The acclaimed Indigenous filmmaker Kim O’Bomsawin has uncompromisingly chosen to focus on the youth's perspective, says Aure.

O’Bomsawin spent six years filming the youths, allowing them to speak freely. The documentary shows everything from their sibling bonds to personal ambitions. They cycle, fish, and hope for a future in their communities. With a story that unfolds naturally, the film blends enjoyable moments with honest reflections.

Ninan Auassat: We the Children av Kim O’Bomsawin.

Buy tickets now!

Did any of the films catch your interest?

You can check out the calendar to get an overview of the screening times and venues, browse the catalog for a deeper look at each film, or flip through the program page.

Happy exploring!

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Thank you!