| Amanda Award | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Awarded for | Excellence inNorwegian film. |
| Country | Norway |
| Presented by | Norwegian International Film Festival |
| First award | 1985 |
| Website | Official website |
TheAmanda Award (Norwegian:Amandaprisen) is an award given annually at theNorwegian International Film Festival inHaugesund,Norway, to promote and improveNorwegian film. The award originated in 1985, and has since 2005 been exclusively a film award (nottelevision). Winners are awarded a trophy by the NorwegiansculptorKristian Kvakland, and the name—and theme—of the sculpture comes from a legendary local woman from the 1920s. The award ceremony is marked every year by a major, nationally televised event.
The Amanda Award was instituted in 1985 as part of theNorwegian International Film Festival "to increase the quality of and further the interest for Norwegian films".[1] The year 1993 marked an exception to the norm, when the so-called "Nordic Amanda" included contribution from all the Nordic countries.[2][3] From 2005 onwards,TV-drama was no longer included among the categories honoured, as the TV-specific award "Gullruten" had taken over this function. Instead the award became exclusively for films.[4] Around the same time another change occurred also. Since the beginning, the award ceremony had been produced in cooperation with the Norwegian state broadcasting corporationNorsk rikskringkasting (NRK). In 2006, however, NRK ended the partnership, and the show has since that time been the responsibility of the private broadcasting companyTV 2.[5][6]
In the year 2007, a "People's Amanda" ("Folkets Amanda") was awarded for the first time, where the winner was arrived at by popular vote.[7] The first winner of the award was the horror movieFritt Vilt, directed byRoar Uthaug.[8]
The name "Amanda" is derived from a song, orsea shanty, titled "Amanda fra [from]Haugesund".[9] Supposedly the song in turn refers to a real woman from the 1920s – a single mother who made a living from selling liquor to sailors during theprohibition period.[2]
The figurine that is awarded to prize winners originated from a competition held by the local newspaperHaugesunds Avis in 1985, to create a sculpture of the legendary Amanda. The competition was won byKristian Kvakland fromNesodden inAkershus. The full-size sculpture now stands outside the newspaper's office, but a miniature version was adopted as a trophy for the Amanda Award. The figurine is 30 cm (11.81 in) tall, with a skirt measuring 14 cm (5.51 in) in diameter. While the current sculpture is hollow and weighs 2.5 kg (5.51 lbs), for the first few years it was made of solid metal. Weighing in at 4.5 kg (9.92 lbs) it was difficult to hoist for many winners.[2]
It was one of these prizes that, in the year 1986, was won by directorAnja Breien, who decided to sell it through a newspaper advert, as a protest against that year's budget cuts for Norwegian film. TheSwedish Film Institute, which had experienced similar cuts and sympathized, bought the sculpture. In 2005, as Breien was presented with an honorary award, she was also given back the original sculpture by formerMinister of Culture and director of the Swedish Film Institute,Åse Kleveland.[10]
The award show has long been a central point of the film festival, as well as a major television event for the whole of Norway. Particularly in earlier years, international stars were sometimes brought in to enhance the prestige of the event. Examples of this areRoger Moore, who was a special guest at the first ceremony in 1985,[2] andDiana Ross in 1987, then married to Norwegian entrepreneurArne Næss, Jr.[11] Other international names appearing in the show as presenters have includedNed Beatty,Lauren Bacall,Jon Voight,Brian Cox,Jeremy Irons,Ben Kingsley andPierce Brosnan.
The show has in recent years been hosted by prominent Norwegian comedians.Jon Almaas, known from the TV-showNytt på nytt, played host for several years in the early 2000s.[12]Thomas Giertsen, known as astand-up comedian and from several TV-shows, has hosted the show in recent years.[6] An episode that received some media attention in 2005 was when hostMarit Åslein andMinister of Culture and Church Affairs from the Christian conservative partyKrF,Valgerd Svarstad Haugland, kissed on stage as part of a humorous routine.[13]
The only actor ever to have won four Amanda Awards isBjørn Sundquist. These were awarded for the moviesOver grensen (1987),Søndagsengler (1996) andSejer - se deg ikke tilbake (2000), as well as an Honorary Award in 2000.Ane Dahl Torp has won three awards for specific acting roles: she won Best Actress for her roles inSvarte penger - hvite løgner (2004) andGymnaslærer Pedersen (2006), and was the first ever to receive the newly created award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her effort inLønsj in 2008.Sverre Anker Ousdal has also been named Best Actor twice, forKreditorene in 1990 andBlodsbånd in 1998, and won the Honorary Award in 2009.Nils Ole Oftebro,Espen Skjønberg andAnneke von der Lippe have all been honoured twice each – Oftebro and Skjønberg once as lead actors and once as supporting actors. Among the directors,Ola Solum,Nils Gaup,Berit Nesheim andBent Hamer have each received two awards.[14] Erik Gustavson has the rare distinction of having won in three different categories: for best film and best documentary, in addition to winning the special "Nordic Amanda" in 1993. This is an accomplishmentKjersti Holmen can also claim, for winning the Best Actress award in 2000, Best Supporting Role in 1993, and the Honorary Award in 2009. The only film to have won the three main awards – best film, best actor and best actress – isBudbringeren in 1997.[15]
As of 2010, the categories awarded are: