The invitation to San Sebastián comes shortly after it was announced that the film will have its World Premiere in the Special Presentations programme at the Toronto International Film Festival. Together, the two festival selections give Growth of the Soil a prominent position on the international festival circuit this autumn.
“The selection of Growth of the Soil for the main competition in San Sebastián is a major recognition of Hans Petter Moland’s artistry and of everyone who has contributed to making the film. With its World Premiere in Toronto and its European Premiere in the main competition in San Sebastián, the film is exceptionally well positioned internationally. The two festivals give Growth of the Soil the opportunity to meet audiences, the press and the industry at some of the world’s most important platforms for international cinema,” says Kjersti Mo, Director of the Norwegian Film Institute.
The San Sebastián International Film Festival takes place from 18–26 September 2026.
The San Sebastián International Film Festival is one of the world’s leading international film festivals and the most important film festival in the Spanish-speaking world. The festival serves as a key meeting place for the international press, film industry professionals and audiences.
The festival’s main competition, the Official Selection, presents new films by internationally acclaimed filmmakers. The films compete for the Golden Shell and the festival’s other official jury awards.
Hans Petter Moland has a long history with the San Sebastián Film Festival. His second feature film, Zero Kelvin, was screened in the main competition in 1995 and received the Special Jury Prize.
In 2007, Zero Kelvin returned to the festival as part of the thematic retrospective Cold Fever – New Nordic Cinema, which showcased key works from recent Nordic film history.
In 2010, Moland returned to the festival as President of the New Directors Award jury.
“It is a great honour, but also a tremendous joy, to return to San Sebastián, this time with Growth of the Soil in the main competition. The festival has held a special place in my heart ever since Zero Kelvin screened there in 1995. In many ways, it was a formative experience, both because of the festival’s wonderful audience and because it was the first time I received a major international award for a feature film. The fact that the film was later included in the festival’s retrospective of contemporary Nordic cinema, and that I was invited back as jury president, has only strengthened my relationship to San Sebastián. I am truly looking forward to presenting Growth of the Soil to the festival’s engaged audience,” says writer-director Hans Petter Moland.
“We are incredibly proud of the international reception the film has already received. The world premiere in Toronto and the European premiere in the main competition in San Sebastián give Growth of the Soil the strongest festival launch we could have hoped for. It is the result of an enormous collective effort by everyone who has contributed to the film,” says Håkon Øverås, producer at 4½ Fiction.
In the Norwegian mountains, Isak and Inger create a home from the land and from each other. But as the years pass and the outside world draws closer, they are changed by time, hardship and longing. One question remains: Does love last forever?
Based on Knut Hamsun’s Nobel Prize-winning novel, Growth of the Soil is an epic love story set against the harsh and magnificent landscape of the Norwegian mountains.
Herbert Nordrum stars as Isak, while Asta Kamma August plays Inger. The cast also includes Gard B. Eidsvold, Anders Baasmo, Oddgeir Thune and Sjur Vatne Brean.
Hans Petter Moland co-wrote the screenplay with Gard B. Eidsvold.
Growth of the Soil is produced by Håkon Øverås for 4½ Fiction AS, in co-production with Scanbox Productions.
The film was shot on location in Norway from June to December 2025. Cinematography is by Oscar Dahlsbakken, editing by Linda Man, production design by Thomas Øyjordsbakken Odland, and costume design by Anne Pedersen. The original score is composed by Kaspar Kaae.
Beta Cinema handles international sales. The Norwegian distributor is Ymer Media/Scanbox.
The film will be released in Norwegian cinemas on 30 October 2026.
Growth of the Soil received NOK 17.5 million in production funding from the Norwegian Film Institute.
Hans Petter Moland is one of Norway’s most experienced and internationally acclaimed directors. Growth of the Soil is his fourteenth theatrical feature film.
He made his feature debut with The Last Lieutenant in 1993 and has since directed films including Zero Kelvin, Aberdeen, A Somewhat Gentle Man, In Order of Disappearance and Out Stealing Horses.
His feature films The Beautiful Country, A Somewhat Gentle Man, In Order of Disappearance and Out Stealing Horses were all selected for the main competition at the Berlin International Film Festival.
Moland received the Norwegian Amanda Honorary Award in 2025.
Manager International Relations, Feature Films
