Anita Killi

Animator, Director, Screenwriter, CEO

From 1988 to 1990, she studied illustration and graphic design at the Norwegian National College of Art and Design, then pursued animation and documentary filmmaking at Volda University College. In 1996, she graduated from the Oslo National Academy of the Arts with a degree equivalent to a master’s, specializing in animation (multiplane technique).

She founded and runs her own animation studio, Trollfilm, in Dovre, Norway. She is known for directing and writing several award-winning short films, including The Hedge of Thorns (2001) and Angry Man (2009), the latter being the most awarded film in the world in 2010. In May 2020, she completed a new short film, Mother Didn’t Know, which has been making its way through the festival circuit.

Passionate about bringing difficult themes to the screen for young audiences, she has tackled topics such as children affected by war, depression, and domestic violence. Through animation, she aims to inspire and move audiences. As an idealistic filmmaker, she writes, directs, animates, and produces her films under her own company, Trollfilm. After undergoing chemotherapy for cancer, she is now focusing more on screenwriting and directing.

“I believe that films can and should be more than just entertainment. It is exciting to strive for deeper layers in projects so that we all learn something new. It is reassuring to know that artistic films can also address important issues. Problems should not just be sad or heavy. However, if the audience is moved, it can spark meaningful conversations, create awareness, or lead to new experiences.”

She believes that while many well-crafted animations exist, too often, their content feels trivial. She is particularly excited by grand, lyrical films that progress slowly yet beautifully, allowing the audience space to think. While she has primarily worked on films for children, her works have also deeply impacted adults.

Children are vulnerable and impressionable, so filmmakers have a great responsibility as communicators, messengers, and educators. Unfortunately, high-quality children’s films are often deprioritized compared to the abundance of artistic films made for adults.

Filmography
Mother Didn’t Know (Jeg vil vite mer) – 2020, 11 min, multiplane cutout.

Director & Screenwriter: Anita Killi
Pilot for the Feature Film Christmas Survivors (Jula på Dovre) – 2014, 1 min, multiplane cutout/puppet.

Director & Screenwriter: Anita Killi
Angry Man (Sinna Mann) – 2009, 20 min, multiplane cutout. Based on the book by Gro Dahle.

Director & Screenwriter: Anita Killi
The Hedge of Thorns (Tornehekken) – 2001, 13 min, multiplane cutout. Based on a book by Elzbieta.

Director & Screenwriter: Anita Killi
The King Who Wanted More Than a Crown (Kongen som ville ha mer enn en krone) – 1999, 28 min, animation.

Directors: Anita Killi, Randall Meyers
Screenplay: Lars Saabye Christensen
Far, Far Away (Langt langt borte) – 1997, 4 min, multiplane cutout.

Directors: Natasha Nikitina, Anita Killi
Daughter of the Sun (Lavluashid Aigi) – 1996, 12 min, multiplane cutout. Based on a book by Mari Ailu W. Somby.

Director & Screenwriter: Anita Killi
The Circle (Sirkelen) – 1994, 5 min, painted on paper.

Director & Editor: Laila Løkken
Animator: Anita Killi
The Glass Pearl (Glassperlen) – 1992, 3 min, cutout animation.

Directors & Screenwriters: Anita Killi, Hege Krogvig Bergstrand

Johan Kaos Nåden Dyrstad

Johan Kaos Nåden Dyrstad（Johan Kaos is a director and screenwriter, and he also juggles work as a writer for commercials, theater and short films. It was through the latter that the idea for his first children’s book emerged. Kaos believes that “creativity breeds creativity”, and that the projects have grown alongside each other.

– It was never really the plan to write a children’s book. My day job is writing and directing films, and one day I got a picture in my head of a living planet in a garage. For me, it was an obvious short film idea, so I wrote it out as a short film script. But I quickly realized that this idea would be both expensive and difficult to implement in practice, so for fear of losing the project in an eternal development phase, I realized that the story could also be a good picture book. It was so visually clear from the start.

– The story is specifically about a girl who finds a real planet floating for herself, and who, with varying degrees of success, tries to take care of it in her garage. But I had a strong desire to build layers of different themes into the story, which the reader can dive into and explore if he or she wants. The text hardly mentions it, but Bård’s illustrations therefore tell the backdrop for Robin’s need for a friend and a project in the garage: Her parents are about to divorce, and it’s simply not very nice at home. In addition, The Planet is an exciting introduction to conversations about climate, the environment and life views. I therefore hope that we have managed to create a picture book that is nice and touching and exciting for the little ones, but that also engages older readers (not least the important adult readers).

Filmography (selection)
Directing
2015 – What if?
2013 – Porno wallet
Producer
2013 – Porno wallet
2011 – The Bambi Effect
Script
2013 – Porno wallet

Johan Kaos Nåden Dyrstad (født 2. desember 1986 i Stavanger) er en norsk filmregissør, manusforfatter og filmprodusent med mastergrad i film- og fjernsynsvitenskap fra Høgskolen i Lillehammer og bachelorgrad i medievitenskap fra Universitetet i Oslo.

I 2007 startet han filmproduksjonsselskapet Feil Film AS i Oslo, hvor han satt som styreleder og drev selskapet sammen med Ravn Wikhaug til det ble lagt ned i 2015.

I 2011 produserte han spillefilmen Bambieffekten sammen med Wikhaug, regissert av Øystein Stene. Filmen hadde premiere på kino 29. juli 2011. Kaos var på det tidspunktet 24 år gammel, og ble dermed tidenes yngste norske spillefilmprodusent med film i nasjonal kinodistribusjon.

Sommeren 2013 debuterte han som regissør og manusforfatter med spillefilmen Pornopung, basert på Mads Larsens roman Pornopung, som ble utgitt i 2003. Han var også produsent på denne filmen sammen med Wikhaug. Filmen hadde norsk kinopremiere 19. juli 2013, og solgte 64 827 kinobilletter. Filmen ble kåret til den beste norske filmen i 2013 av gratisavisen NATT&DAG. I tillegg vant den både Kanonprisen for beste birolle under Kosmorama Internasjonale Filmfestival 2014 og Amandaprisen for beste mannlige birolle under Den Norske Filmfestivalen i Haugesund 2014 for Herbert Nordrums tolkning av Karl.

I slutten av 2015 og begynnelsen av 2016 gikk Johan Kaos’ video «My Girlfriend Took Me Backpacking» viralt, og fikk over 26 millioner visninger på Facebook og 2,5 millioner visninger på YouTube.[7][8] Den fikk oppmerksomhet både nasjonalt og internasjonalt, og ble frontet blant annet på VGTV og The Daily Mail.

I 2014 og 2015 jobbet Kaos også som spillanmelder i Level Up for VGTV.

I 2016 vant han Filmwebs Pitchekonkurranse sammen med Harald Mæle Jr. for prosjektet «Gründer».

Sources:　https://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johan_Kaos

https://bok365.no/artikkel/planeten-i-garasjen/

Marianne Olsen Ulrichsen

Film director, actor, and writer. Born in 1968. Educated in London and has produced several short films. Originally from Kabelvåg in the Lofoten Islands.

She studied at the National Film and Television School in London, Nordland School of Art and Film, and the Oslo Academy of Theatre. She worked as an assistant director on the feature film *Insomnia* (1995).

Some of her films are aimed at young audiences. Her directorial debut was the short film *Kom* (1995).

Her short film *Som min søster* (2003) won the Best Screenplay Award at the Grimstad Short Film Festival, while *Amasone* (2014) received the Tromsø Palm Award at the Tromsø International Film Festival. It also won the Amanda Award for Best Short Film.

*Amasone* was one of five short films screened in seven cities across Russia under the “Into the Wild” section, sponsored by the *Film fra Nord* program at the Tromsø International Film Festival.

In 2024, she wrote and directed the short film *Pain Threshold*, produced by Mona J. Hoel.

The film was screened at several film festivals in Norway and the Nordic region and won the Young Nordic Award at Nordisk Panorama, an award given by the youngest festival audiences.

Martin Parker (2017, updated in 2024)

Basic Information
– Main Profession: Director
– Date of Birth: 1968
– Active Years: 1995–Present

Filmography
-Director:
Pain Threshold (2024)
Everything Burns (2017)
Amazon (2014)
Meetings Without Love (2002)
Sisters (1999; パイロット版)
Come (1995)

Screenwriter:
Pain Threshold (2024)
Everything Burns (2017)
Amazon (2014)
Like My Sister (2003)
Meetings Without Love (2002)
Come (1995)

Clip:
– Kom (1995)

Assistant Director:
– Loveless Meetings (2002)
– Insomnia (1997)
– Silverin (1992)

Actor:
– Most People Live in China (2001; part of Little Company)
– Insomnia (1997)
– Tracks (1996)

Awards
– Won the Young Nordic Award at Nordisk Panorama 2024 for Pain Threshold.
– Won the Tromsø Palm Award at the Tromsø International Film Festival 2014 for Amasone.
– Won the Amanda Award for Best Short Film in 2014 for Amasone.
– Received the Special Youth Jury Award at the Oberhausen Short Film Festival 2005 for Som min søster.
– Won the Norwegian Playwrights’ Association Manuscript Award at the Grimstad Short Film Festival 2003 for Som min søster.
– Won the Best Debut Award in 2003 for Som min søster and Kom!.
– Won the Best Short Film Award** at Cinema delle Donne in Turin in 1996 for Kom!.