The Amanda Committee has met in recent weeks to discuss what has been a major debate in the Norwegian film industry since August: Whether films that are primarily shown on streaming services can also win the biggest film prize in Norway, the Amanda Prize. Now it’s decided: From next year, streaming films can win Amanda. The category that used to be called “Best Norwegian cinema”, will now be named “Best Norwegian film”. Director Uthaug: – Much more relevant Film director Roar Uthaug, who, among other things, is behind the million-dollar film Troll on Netflix, tells news that the change is a “pleasant surprise”. – I think it will make the award feel much more relevant both to the public and to the industry. Film director Roar Uthaug tells news that it is good news that the price is now changing. Photo: Ksenia Novikova / news He also says that it makes him happy on behalf of everyone who works in front of and behind the camera on the streaming films. – This means that they are recognized on an equal footing with those who do the same job for films in cinemas. This is the Amandapris debate: Films that have been released directly onto streaming services without having gone to the cinema first, such as the Netflix film “Troll” and the Viaplay film “Gulltransporten”, have been excluded from the award as the regulations have been until now . After this year’s Amanda award ceremony in August, there was a debate about whether the award should include all films, regardless of platform. The Norwegian Film Institute, NFI, withdrew from the Amanda committee because they thought streaming films should be included in the award. The Amanda committee, for its part, wants to protect the cinema: – Amanda will promote the film that goes on the big screen. If you allow films from streaming services, you may also have to consider films from Facebook and YouTube, said committee leader Tonje Hardersen in August. After NFI withdrew, the Amanda committee tried to find a solution to what they saw as a dilemma: Should they protect the cinema by demanding that films must be screened there? Or should they include the streaming films that are produced in Norway for the same price? The film with this troll could never get an Amanda as the rules have been until now. Photo: Netflix Oscar to tighten regulations The fact that the price changes here at home makes it more inclusive than in several other countries. In Sweden, the regulations now say that a film can be nominated for the country’s biggest film prize, the Guldbaggen, if the film has been in cinemas for at least seven days. This is to avoid streaming films being shown for a single cinema screening, and thus technically would have been within the regulations to be nominated, while other films have been shown in cinemas for months. These rules will also be tightened in the future for the world’s biggest film award, the Oscar. In a press release this summer, they announced that the requirement to be nominated means having cinema screenings for at least one week to two weeks from 2024. Norway will thus now be one of the first countries to include streaming films in the category for cinema films. The rule applies to films that have been published on an editor-controlled online service. It must qualify as Norwegian, and the producer must own the rights to the film work. The American blockbuster “Killers of the Flower Moon” is in cinemas these days, but not for long. In a few weeks, the film will be available for streaming. But since the film runs over a week in cinemas, the film is within the rules for a possible Oscar nomination. Photo: Apple Studios / Courtesy of Apple No longer “female” or “male” The Amanda committee has also, “after thorough discussions”, adopted new regulations for the category that applies to best actress and best supporting actor. The categories will now be gender-neutral and five shoe players will be nominated against the previous three in each category. Now the categories will be called “Best actress in a leading role” and “Best actress in a supporting role”.
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Includes streaming films in the film award – news Culture and Entertainment
