Friday One Sheet: Scandinavian Film Festival

Every now and again, the poster for a film festival overshadows that of the films screening. Such is the case for the 9th annual Scandinavian Film Festival, which takes place in Australia, and screens contemporary films from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.

Design house This Time Tomorrow (or simply Time Tomorrow) delivered this vertical, fecund portrait of being lost in, or possibly overwhelmed by, endless forest. While the festival does not appear, judging by its website, to specialize in horror or speculative fiction, there are definitely Stalker vibes here in the key art, with strange mossy mounds, and implacable, vague formations of trees and wilderness dominating the background. The woman, in tack-sharp focus, appears to be in a state of fear or awe -- perhaps from some kind of 'unknown' against the fuzzy-ethereal surroundings. I believe that the still is inspired by, or taken from, one of the films being screened, Karoline Lyngbye's Superposition.

The typesetting further indicates a science fiction bent, with its skinny sans serif, and minimalist-stylized "A" being a slash, evoking a windblown tree or lean-to shelter for the night. The nickname for the festival, "Scandi" (Aussies have a cultural obsession with shortening things and ending on the letter "i") is featured in a large translucent text, while the full name is centered in bold white. At the bottom is the usual mix of sponsors and socials.

As film festivals go, this poster would certainly get me in the door.