Føroyar

Directed by: Sara Mignogna, Produced by: Sara Mignogna, Italy, Language: English/Italian 60′, 2018, Rights: World

The Faroe Islands are 18 islands in the North Atlantic somewhere between Scotland and Iceland. A quiet and uncontaminated place, which is mostly only mentioned for their old custom of Grindadráp, better known as whale hunting that has been practised in the Faroe Islands since about the time of the first Norsemen settled there around the 9th Century. Why does it still happen? What do the inhabitants think? Who are they? News on the internet didn’t satisfy Sara Mignogna so the director decided to go there herself. In this documentary, they lost themselves in the discovery of the territory, by hitchhiking and sleeping at the home of the locals

Director Statement

It started with me being curious about the Faroe Islands as they are so remote and beautiful and their habits are so cruel. If you search on the internet you’ll find amazing pictures, but also a lot of newspapers articles that accuse them of horrific treatment of whales. The Faroes people hunt whales for centuries, and I asked myself why is a modern society still doing this? Does anyone ever ask why? In the days spent there, I learned many things, that no newspaper reports. The inhabitant doesn’t realize how special they are. I tried to give voice to the inhabitants of this remote island. Living with them was the only way to truly understand their lifestyle. On this journey we had the opportunity to live beside the locals, to understand their challenges and we saw their very human side.

 

Cast and Crew details

Produced, direct and edited: Sara Mignogna
Sound Edit: Alice Tamburrino
Aerials: Arvid Axelsson, Quentin Ojeda
Featuring Chiara Egle Trento, Magnus Matras, Arni Mouritsen, Danjal Hanriksen