125 Years of Motion Pictures

This year (2020) marks the 125th anniversary of the first motion picture screening. This pivotal event took place on December 28, 1895, when the brothers Louis and Auguste Lumière had their first public film performance in Paris in the presence of 33 viewers. It is in this context that Posta is now issuing a stamp series featuring the theme of motion pictures. Katrin Ottarsdóttir (b. May 22, 1957) is a Faroese film director, screenwriter and author. 1989 saw the release of her first film, which was also the first movie, made by a Faroese film director, produced on location in the Faroe Islands with Faroese dialogue.

Katrin Ottarsdóttir

When I went to Denmark after my high school graduation, I knew nothing about any film school. But as soon as I heard about one, I knew that this was where I was headed. The idea of people sitting in the darkness of the movie theatre watching what I wanted to tell and show them felt seductive. I have always been passionate about writing but never been adept at the spoken word. Now there was an opportunity to have movies speak on my behalf.

It quickly became clear to me that I had chosen one of the most difficult paths in life for a Faroe Islander - a Faroese woman. But I was stubborn and wanted to prove that I could make my dream of filmmaking become a reality, even though not a single person in the Faroe Islands believed in a 23-year-old woman who needed money to make films. Movies were something people made in other countries. 

I took the liberty of sending an application to a Faroese bank director asking for financial support to make a short film. He reportedly made a number of phone calls to inquire about this strange and unrealistic young woman. I did not get any money from him. Instead, I borrowed some from my grandmother and the short film was made anyway. 

When I think of the movies that I was yearning to make but never able to finance, I sometimes wish that I had not been a filmmaking pioneer in the Faroes. I would have wanted to live in a country where making films was a commonplace activity. During these years, there was no financial support to be found in the Faroe Islands. My driving force through all those years was my persistence and determination along with the support and cooperation of the man in my life. 

In spite of all this and against all odds some movies were actually made. My first movie became a reality because of a Nordic film festival, which was to be held in the Faroe Islands. I thought it would really be too bad to host a film festival in the Faroes without a Faroese movie, considering that the Faroe Islands actually had me, a film director who had graduated from one of the most prestigious film schools in Europe “The National Film School of Denmark”. Fortunately, several Faroese cultural figures and politicians agreed and the movie "Atlantic Rhapsody" (1989) became reality as a uniquely Faroese low-budget film. This film "Atlantic Rhapsody" has travelled the world and won the honorary award at the Nordic Film Festival in Lübeck that same year.

Most of the time this has felt like rowing against a strong current. I have not yet been able to produce my most significant films. Coincidence has often been the determining factor in which films I‘ve had the opportunity to produce. Conditions must improve if I am going to be able to produce what, for me, are truly important films. I have come to realize that I cannot keep rowing so hard anymore. My latest movie, “Ludo” (2014), which I wanted to be as personal as possible, was made with almost no budget. It took all my energy and almost sent me over the edge. But the film has travelled the world and won awards in both Europe and the United States.

My film, "Bye, Bye Blue Bird" (1999), has also travelled the world and won awards, for example the Tiger Award at the International Film Festival in Rotterdam. In addition, this film has been shown in cinemas in Germany, the Netherlands and Japan. The short film, "The Man Who Was Allowed to Go" (1995), has also participated in several film festivals in Europe.

Making movies is not a routine job where you come and go. It is a lifestyle that runs in the blood. You are always prepared. And if you are unable to realize your dreams of moviemaking, you either become even more stubborn, or else you are really pushed over the edge. 

In addition to these films, I have made documentaries about the poet Regin Dahl, the sculptor Hans Pauli Olsen, the versatile artist Tóroddur Poulsen and the author Jóanes Nielsen as well as a children's film, a film installation, some music videos and several television shows.

Bye Bye Blue Bird, 1999

Bye Bye Blue Bird is a road movie about the two young women, Rannvá and Barba, who return to the Faroe Islands after several years abroad. The film contains both pulpy provocation and a reckoning with the past.

Ludo, 2014

Ludo is a psychological drama about an 11-year-old girl who is caught between the mother's unstable mind and the father's well-meaning passivity.