Canadian Premiere
Signe (Kristine Kujath Thorp) and Thomas’ (Eirik Sæther) relationship is so toxic that they should probably don hazmat suits. (Sorry, Joachim Trier: these are the worst people in the world.) And when he becomes a cause célèbre in conceptual art circles thanks to his inane installations of stolen chairs, Signe is suddenly starved for attention. What’s a self-aggrandizing narcissist to do but order black market meds from Russia that have been banned for hideous side effects that would leave Cronenberg averting his eyes? As her skin becomes a science experiment gone wrong and she starts coming apart at the seams, social media sympathy is fast to follow.
Taking cues from Tom Waits’ adage, “I like beautiful melodies telling me terrible things,” Kristoffer Borgli helms an immaculately shot and utterly merciless takedown of fame culture. As Signe gorges her pathological need for validation, Borgli’s transgressive satire serves as a wickedly comic reminder of how cringe-inducing the concept of “going viral” should be.
Media Partner
Community Partner
Kristine Kujath Thorp, Eirik Sæther, Fanny Vaager, Fredrik Stenberg Ditlev-Simonsen, Sarah Francesca Brænne, Ingrid Vollan
Norway
2022
In Norwegian with English subtitles
At VIFF Centre — Vancity Theatre
At The Rio
Book Tickets
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
No Other Land
Deemed by many critics one of the essential films of 2024, a multiple festival award winner and Academy Award winner for Best Documentary, No Other Land is a reminder that mass expulsion is by no means a new reality for Palestinians.
Misericordia
Edgy, eccentric, and unapologetically queer, this film goes from drama to comedy without putting a foot wrong. Sex and murder are the subjects, and writer-director Alain Guiraudie (Stranger by the Lake) mines them for suspense and outrageous laughs.
There's Still Tomorrow
A critical and box office sensation in Italy, Paola Cortellesi's triumphant directorial debut is the tale of a Roman housewife in 1946, who stands up against the routine sexist abuse she suffers. Funny, heartbreaking and inspiring.
The Way, My Way
All manner of pilgrims flock to France and Spain to walk the 800 km Camino de Santiago. One such is Bill, a stroppy sexagenarian Australian filmmaker who's determined to do the Camino with minimal prep, a dickey leg, and no firm idea why.
The Stand
This rousing doc explores a 1985 dispute over logging in the Haida Gwaii. Taking us from canny retrospective commentary to the thick of the action, director Chris Auchter employs animation and a wealth of archival footage to riveting effect.
Resident Orca
Captured in Puget Sound in 1970, killer whale Lolita spent the next half century in a cramped tank in Seaquarium, Miami. The film follows a coalition of Lummi elders, animal lovers and philanthropists on a rescue mission to return her to the ocean.
Credits
Producer
Andrea Berentsen Ottmar, Dyveke Bjørkly Graver
Screenwriter
Kristoffer Borgli
Cinematography
Benjamin Loeb
Production Design
Henrik Svensson
Original Music
Turns
Art Director
Mette Haukeland
Director
Photo by Bjarne Bare
Kristoffer Borgli
Kristoffer Borgli is a Los Angeles-based Norwegian writer and director. His numerous works of short and long format films have screened at festivals like Sundance and SXSW.
Filmography: Drib (2017)