As one of the most stunningly photographed films I saw last year, I'm pleased to report that Pirjo Honkasalo's " has been nominated for the American Society of Cinematographers Spotlight Award, alongside "The Immigrant" and "Under the Skin". Be sure to check out my interview with Honkasalo, where we went into detail about the shooting of the film.
NEW YORK - The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) has nominated Peter Flinckenberg FSC, the DoP of Finland's Oscar entry CONCRETE NIGHT for their annual Spotlight Award. The award recognizes features and docs screened at festivals, released internationally or shown in limited theatrical release. Last year's inaugural Spotlight Award went to the cinematographers of the Polish feature film IDA. The winner of the Spotlight Award will be announced on Feb 15 at the 26th annual ASC Awards ceremony.
Other nominees are Darius Khondji, ASC, AFC, for The Immigrant; and Daniel Landin, BSC, for Under the Skin. “These nominees have created some of the more inspiring and imaginative visuals our members have seen recently,” said ASC Awards Chairman Lowell Peterson. “We’re proud to recognize their innovative work, and we hope at the same time to raise the profile of these films, so more audiences have a chance to see them.”
CONCRETE NIGHT marks Finnish director Pirjo Honkasalo’s return to fiction, following years of internationally acclaimed documentaries. This boldly shot drama about the fateful misinterpretation of brotherly advise continues Honkasalo’s equally strong hand in fiction. The film clearly builds on her earlier features that premiered in Cannes, Venice and Locarno, which landed Honkasalo a spot inTIFF’s prestigious Master Series in 2013, which in previous years included Bernardo Bertolucci, Abbas Kiarostami and Michael Haneke.
Based on a 1981 novel by leading author and Pirjo's life partner Pirkko Saisio, CONCRETE NIGHT charts the last day and night of two young brothers as they roam around dreary high-rises and a hot, unforgiving Helsinki. Honkasalo envelops their dynamic in a dream-like noir tension, which leads Simo, the younger brother to emulate his brother Ilkka, who is due to start his prison sentence the next day. A boundless admiration for Ilkka, his only available role model, leads Simo to look for his identity in all the wrong places.
CONCRETE NIGHT is produced by Bufo. Founded in 2007 by producers Misha Jaari, Mark Lwoff and screenwriter Vesa Virtanen, Bufo has produced a number of fiction films of which many have received international recognition. World sales of CONCRETE NIGHT are handled by Xavier Rashid's Film Republic.
