Norwegian movie, “Hør her’a!”, or“Listen Up!” in English, took home two awards at this year’s Cinekid, one of the world’s largest film and TV festivals for children and youth.
On 3 November 2024, director Kaveh Tehrani and producer Motlys were awarded both Best Children’s Film and the Youth Jury Prize at Cinekid in Amsterdam. The award ceremony took place during Cinekid Professional, a major industry gathering held at the end of the festival.
In the Best Children’s Film category, Listen Up! competed against 12 films from various countries. Norway was represented by three films: Victoria Must Die (directed by Gunnbjörg Gunnarsdottir), Listen Up! (directed by Kaveh Tehrani), and Lars is LOL (directed by Eirik Sæter Stordahl).
Listen Up! is Tehrani’s first feature film as director. The screenplay, written by Erlend Loe and Nora Landsrød, is based on Gulraiz Sharif’s 2020 novel of the same name. Mohammed Ahmed stars as 13-year-old Mahmoud, who spends the summer showing his uncle from Pakistan around Norway.
The film is a comedy that mixes broad humor with serious, complex undertones. “Anyone expecting another Norwegian film where minorities meet our expectations will find many surprises,” we noted at its premiere. The story reflects universal experiences of both bullying and being bullied.
The Cinekid Festival in Amsterdam is the world’s largest international film, TV, and media festival for children aged 4 to 14. Originally a small children’s film festival, it has grown into a significant organization that promotes film, TV, and new media activities for children throughout the year. Each year, over 50,000 children, parents, and international guests attend the festival, which also serves as a vital networking hub for the film industry.
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