Two years afterawarding a film prize for the first time at its 50th anniversary gala, theNordic Council has decided to make the Nordic Film Prize an annual event.

The $61,000(DKK350,000) prize will be awarded to a film which is 'embedded in Nordic culture,and stands out artistically as a single rounded work', and the cash award is tobe shared by the film's director, scriptwriter and producer. Finnish filmmakingveteran Aki Kaurismäki won the prize in 2002 for The Man Without A Past.

The practical sideof the award will be handled by the Nordic Film & TV Fund in Oslo and anylocally released feature made in the Nordic region with a local producer iseligible for nomination.

National juries oftwo members, appointed by the Nordic Council of Ministers (and proposed by filminstitutes/culture ministries in Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden),may propose a maximum of two candidates for the prize, and will later decidethe winner.

The NordicCouncil hands out similar prizes for literature and music, dating backfrom 1962 and 1965 respectively, as well as a Nature and Environment Prize.