Screen International is profiling all the winners of the third Global Production Awards, which were held tonight (May 19) at the Mademoiselle Gray Barriere in Cannes.
Emerging Location
Winner: Frøya, Norway (Midgard Film Commission, Norway)
Attracting a large number of entries, this category celebrates a film commission that has attracted an increased number of productions and offers competitive incentives, a growing crew base, a wide variety of locations and excellent service.
Winner Frøya, a small Norwegian archipelago that boasts breathtaking scenery and architectural diversity, caught the eye of the judges with its problem-solving approach, creativity, community contribution and promotion of its location to international filmmakers.
They were also impressed with Frøya’s rapid transformation from a region with no production history into a busy filming hub over just four years, facilitated by the work of Midgard Film Commission and the support of the local community. Since 2020, Frøya has hosted three films including Norwegian feature Everybody Hates Johan and Norway-Poland co-production Norwegian Dream, and Netflix series Billionaire Island. A major feature about a historic event that took place on the island is in production. Crucially, Frøya has more than met the challenges of this dramatic increase in film production capabilities.
“As the studios search for interesting locations for consumers devouring content, Frøya is beginning to stand out visually,” noted one judge. “It’s a great example of a region building a destination for the screen sector.” Another judge marvelled at “the amazing set of projects” that have shot there in just four years.
Nominees:
- Broward County, US (Film Lauderdale)
- Canterbury, New Zealand (ChristchurchNZ)
- County Wexford, Ireland (Screen Wexford)
- El Paso, US (El Paso Film & Creative Industries Commission)
- Missouri, US (Missouri Film Office)
- Åland Islands, Finland (Åland Film Commission, Finland)
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