Six Films to See at Stockholm International Film Festival 2020

Even in this strange year, Stockholm International Film Festival has found a way to bring the most exciting and original film premiers to you in its celebration of the medium.

Launch in 1990, it’s one of the leading film festivals in Europe. Over a period of 12 days, 150 films from over 60 countries are shown, and in 2020 many of these will be available via the festival’s digital platform.

The festival takes place from 11th – 22nd November and will feature everything from documentaries to narrative films, feature-length to shorts, and both international and domestic production.

Here are our recommendations for films to see during the Stockholm International Film Festival:

Apples – Christos Nikou

What if a pandemic was irreversible? How exactly would society adjust? That’s what Greek director Christos Nikou explores, albeit in a quietly absurd way, with his latest film Apples. The premise centers on a fairly analogous world where people suffer from sudden memory loss. Neither doctors nor researchers can quickly determine the cause.

Nikou has previously worked with Dogtooth and The Favourite director, Yorgos Lanthimos, whose style has clearly left a mark on his work. Other influences include Charlie Kaufman and Richard Linklater, though Nikou’s own unique voice can clearly be felt.

The film is an existential reflection on society, at once bleak and uncomfortable yet tragically comical.

Bad Hair – Justin Simien

A Jordan Peele-esq social horror from the creator of Dear White People that uses hair to explore themes of cultural appropriation, oppression, and assimilation. In this dark comedy and psychological thriller, Simien imagines a blood-thirsty weave, sourced through exploitation and forced on its wearer by white beauty standards, that seeks revenge.

Sure, it shares a plotline similar to one seen in a Simpsons’ Treehouse of Horror episode, but this is a sharp and satirical reinterpretation of the frustrations of racism and intolerance.

Ghosts – Azra Deniz Okyay

Winner of the International Critics’ Week Award at the Venice Film Festival, Ghosts is set in a near future – 26th October 2020 – and posits a series of events that are seemingly inescapable for the Turkish people living now.

The film follows the lives of four individuals attempting to navigate daily life in the middle of rioting following a national power shortage. Through this microcosm, Okyay shows universal concerns of intolerance, displacement, and the rise of the right in this impressive debut feature.

Nine Days – by Edson Oda

Nine Days sees 5 unborn souls audition for life in the “pre-gatory” – that is, a limbo-like state where their interviewer will decide whether to grant them life on Earth. The debut from Edson Oda imagines just how hard it is for a soul to be born, and why the living should never take that gift for granted. It’s a refreshing take on the “meaning of life” motif.

Stray – Elizabeth Lo

A visually stunning documentary that gives us an insight into the life of everyone who calls the street their home, through the eyes of Zeytin, a street dog.

Director Lo inspects the periphery of Turkish society, examines humanistic issues, and calls for humanity of people and animals who are often invisible. The film has moments of humor woven through it in its capturing of spontaneous moments, complete with quotes from the dog-loving Greek philosopher Diogenes.

If you enjoyed Kedi, a documentary about the cats in Istanbul and the people who care for them, you’ll definitely enjoy Stray.

No Hard Feelings – Faraz Shariat

In his directorial debut, director Faraz Shariat has created a beautiful and vibrant LGBTQ+ film that explores many different corners with a common message. It gives us an insight into migrants’ everyday lives, as we follow their constant search for a place and context to feel safe. Together, it becomes a bubbling love story of friendship and sacrifice that enchants right up to the end.
No Hard Feelings made its debut at the Berlin Film Festival and won a Teddy Award for Best Queer Film. The film

A talk will be shown along with the screening on the 22nd of November with the director of the film.

See the full 2020 program here.