Photo: Egil Håskjold, Sant & Usant
The Norwegian documentary Trillion by acclaimed director Victor Kossakovsky has been invited to the Envision Competition at this year’s International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA). In addition, Mohamed Jabaly’s new documentary project My Sister Gaza will be presented at the festival’s co-production and financing market, IDFA Forum.
Trillion will compete in the Envision section, which, according to IDFA, showcases “exceptional, stylistically daring films from visionary filmmakers who seek to create new cinematic expressions.” IDFA is one of the world’s leading documentary film festivals and takes place this year from November 13–23.
"Trillion is a work of high artistic quality, showcasing both the range and the high level of Norwegian documentary filmmaking, also in an international context. The Envision program is dedicated to experimental film expressions, and it is rare for a Norwegian documentary to be included in this section at IDFA. The film will have its world premiere in one of the world’s most beautiful cinemas, the main hall of the iconic Pathé Tuschinski Theatre in Amsterdam — a fitting venue for an art film like this", says Kjersti Mo, Director of the Norwegian Film Institute.
In Trillion, director Victor Kossakovsky offers a cinematic and wordless interpretation of the myth of Sisyphus — the Greek king who tries to defy death but is punished by the gods to endlessly roll a stone up a mountain, only to see it roll down again.
The film is the second installment in Kossakovsky’s “Empathy Trilogy” which began with Gunda (2020), also shown at IDFA. Trillion, a collaboration with the artist K49814, is based on a real event but aims to go beyond documentation, asking existential questions about life’s meaning and purpose in an age where all sentient beings face existential threats.
Trillion is directed by Russian filmmaker Victor Kossakovsky and produced by Anita Rehoff Larsen and Tone Grøttjord-Glenne at Sant & Usant, in addition Joslyn Barnes of the U.S. company Louverture Films, and with Joaquin Phoenix serving as executive producer.
Kossakovsky is known for his award-winning documentaries Architecton (2024), Gunda (2020), and Aquarella (2018). This marks the third collaboration between Sant & Usant and Kossakovsky. Their previous project, Gunda, received numerous international awards and was shortlisted for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2021. As with Gunda, Trillion is also a collaboration with cinematographer Egil Håskjold Larsen.
The film has received NOK 3.6 million in development, marketing, and production funding from the Norwegian Film Institute.
‘We are incredibly proud that Trillion has been selected for the Envision Competition at IDFA – a program known for showcasing films with bold cinematic language and new ways of approaching reality. This is precisely where Victor Kossakovsky’s vision belongs. IDFA has been an important platform for us and our films, and we are truly excited to share the film with the audience there, say producers Anita Rehoff Larsen, Tone Grøttjord-Glenne and Joslyn Barnes.
Photo from My Sister Gaza. Photo by Palarctic Productions AS
Among the 51 projects selected for IDFA Forum, the festival’s co-production and financing market, is Mohamed Jabaly’s new project My Sister Gaza. It will be pitched in the Forum Pitch and Producers Connection section.
As war engulfs Gaza, two siblings, Rima and Ibrahim, document their family's harrowing journey. Through their lens, we witness the human impact of war, the daily struggle for survival, and the eventual forced displacement of their family. Their raw, firsthand experience in Gaza contrasts with that of their older brother, award-winning filmmaker Mohamed Jabaly, who observes the devastation from afar, using filmmaking as a means of communication and comfort during these overwhelming times. This is a story of survival, family, and a reflection on the long journey toward freedom in the Palestinian struggle.
Jabaly, who has lived in Norway since 2014, directs My Sister Gaza together with his siblings Rima and Ibrahim Jabaly in Gaza. The film is produced by Jabaly himself through his company Palarctic Productions AS.
On its website, IDFA highlights Jabaly as one of the most notable filmmakers returning to the festival. In 2023, he received IDFA’s Best Directing Award for his film Al Haya Helwa – Life Is Beautiful. His breakthrough film Ambulance (2016), which also won several awards, was likewise screened at IDFA.
My Sister Gaza has received development funding from the Norwegian Film Institute.
The IDFA Forum takes place in Amsterdam from November 16–19, across the venues Pathé City Cinema, ITA, and @droog.
Manager International Relations, Documentaries
