Norwegian Oscar Committee Announces Its Shortlist

On Tuesday, the Norwegian Oscar committee announced a shortlist of three films to represent the country for Best Foreign Language Film at the 90th Academy Awards: Izer Aliu’s Hunting Flies (Fluefangeren), Jorunn Myklebust Syversen’s The Tree Feller (Hoggeren) and Joachim Trier’s Thelma.

The committee will announce its finalist on 6th September, which will then be considered by The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in drawing up its final shortlist of five films on 23rd January. The winner will be announced at the 90th Academy Awards on 4th March 2018 at the Dolby Theater in Hollywood.

HUNTING FLIES
After losing his job on the first day of school, an idealistic teacher attempts to get rehired by locking his students in the classroom and forcing them to resolve a long-standing feud between their villages.

THE TREE FELLER
Anders (Anders Baasmo Christiansen) moves from the city to a small farm that belonged to his deceased parents and spends his days in the forest chopping down trees. His only desire is to be out in nature, and to lose himself in the physical work. But his escape is interrupted by pushy relatives and it soon it becomes clear that he has just traded in one claustrophobic existence for another.

THELMA
Thelma (Eili Harboe) moves away from her religious family in Western Norway to study in Oslo and falls in love with fellow student Anja (Okay Kaya). She begins to notice a connection to the supernatural, which manifests itself in violent attacks, but tries to keep it hidden. Then Anja disappears…