Official Selection Competition Best Script

To make a film that contains incisive satire aimed at politicians requires the author to have a strong social nerve and civic courage. The director has said that the majority of the film is speculation: “Sometimes people go into a room, stay in there for a while, then come back out and say something. But we don’t know what they’ve done in that room.” This film is the director’s comedy-like fantasy – what may happen behind closed doors.

Prime Minister Alma Solvik gets caught up in a scandal before elections. During Alma’s term in power, her husband Sondre has done transactions on the stock exchange apparently using the government’s inside information. Alma puts together a crisis communication HQ that formulates the tactics for communicating with the public. The Prime Minister is also a prime minister at home and therefore they launch the campaign “Sondre is the culprit” – the elections must be won, after all.

Some Norwegian critics have said that the film should have been even harsher. In Norway, everyone knows which political scandal the plot is based on. In other parts of the world, however, the film might be much more understandable, just as it is. Viewers will surely be able to draw parallels with scandals involving the politicians of their home country. For Estonian viewers, there is definitely plenty to recognise.

Mihkel Möölman