"Dancing Queen in Hollywood" won this year´s Audience Award. Director Aurora Gossé and producer Thomas Robsahm accepted the Golden Egg. FOTO: Eline Brattli/South Coast Creative
After screening at over 70 festivals around the world with the first film, director Aurora Gossé and the rest of the team were able to launch the sequel, Dancing Queen in Hollywood, at the 28th edition of the Kristiansand International Children’s Film Festival. And it was clear that the audience was ready for a follow-up.
The film picks up where the first movie, Dancing Queen (2023), left off, with Mina and Markus heading to Los Angeles to appear in a music video. At the festival’s opening, audiences lined up to meet the young actors from the film, and ultimately, the film took home the coveted Audience Award. Dancing Queen in Hollywood is full of dance, humor, friendship, beautiful music by Anna of the North, and challenges to be overcome. The film will premiere in cinemas across the country on September 26. The screenplay was written by Silje Holtet, and Thomas Robsahm produced the film for Amarcord.
This year’s Best Norwegian Short Film, Maybe There Were Elephants, is based on director Torill Kove’s personal story. It follows her family’s journey to Nairobi when she was a child—featuring three rebellious teenage daughters, a restless mother, and a father struggling with potatoes—suddenly finding themselves in bustling 1970s Nairobi. It’s a playful and heartfelt autobiographical tribute to family, adolescence, and the therapeutic power of memories, however unreliable they may be. The Norwegian producers are Lise Fearnley and Tonje Skar Reiersen of Mikrofilm. The latter accepted the award on behalf of the director.
The 28th edition of the Kristiansand International Children’s Film Festival handed out a total of 10 film awards this year. Here are all the winners:
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Best International Feature Film: BOONG by Lakshmipriya Devi
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Best Norwegian Short Film: Maybe There Were Elephants (Kanskje det var Elefanter) by Torill Kove — Producers: Tonje Skar Reiersen, Lise Fearnley (Mikrofilm)
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Audience Award: Dancing Queen in Hollywood by Aurora Gossé — Producer: Thomas Robsahm (Amarcord)
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Pitch Competition Winner: Next Gen Superstars by Julie Macus
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UNG Award for Best Feature Film: Memoir of a Snail by Adam Elliot
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UNG Award for Best Short Film: Wish You Were Ear by Mirjana Balogh
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Children’s Jury Award for Best Feature Film: Honey by Natasha Arthy
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Children’s Jury Award for Best Short Film: Fantas by Halima Elkhatabi
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ECFA Award for Best European Children’s Film: I Accidentally Wrote a Book by Nora Lakos
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ECFA Award for Best European Short Film: Mushroom’s Life (Sēnes Dzīve)