In cinemas now
Paradise is Burning
Denmark, Italy, Finland, Sweden 2023
Dir: Mika Gustafson
Cast: Bianca Delbravo, Dilvin Asaad, Safira Mossberg, Ida Engvoll
Swedish / 108m
Release date: 30 August 2024
In a working-class area of Sweden, sisters Laura (16), Mira (12) and Steffi (7), get by on their own, left to their own devices by their absent mother. With summer on the way and no parents around, life is wild and carefree, vivacious and anarchic. But when social services call a meeting, Laura has to find someone to impersonate their mother, or the girls will be taken into foster care and separated. Laura keeps the threat a secret, so as not to worry her younger sisters. But as the moment of truth draws closer, new tensions arise, forcing the three sisters to negotiate the fine line between the euphoria of total freedom and the harsh realities of growing up.
Winner: Orizzonti Award - Best Director, Venice Film Festival 2023
Winner: Best Screenwriting, Authors Under 40 Award, Venice Film Festival 2023
Winner: Sutherland Award, BFI London Film Festival 2023
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Alnwick Alnwick Playhouse - from 13 September
Birmingham MAC - from 13 September
Bracknell South Hill Park Cinema - 29 October
Buxton Buxton Film - 30 September
Chichester Chichester Fillm Festival - 18 August
Keswick Alhambra Cinema (Keswick Film Club) - from 20 October
Lerwick Mareel Arts Centre - from 22 September
Oxford The Ultimate Picture Palace - from 20 September
Plymouth Plymouth Arts Centre - from 13 September
Tiree Sea Change Film Festival - 20-22 September
Totnes Totnes Cinema - from 15 October
Wallingford Corn Exchange - 27 & 28 September
Woodbridge The Riverside - 21 October
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Birmingham The Mockingbird Cinema - from 30 August
Bradford Pictureville - from 30 August
Cardiff Chapter Arts - from 30 August
Chester Storyhouse - from 30 August
Dublin Lighthouse Cinema - from 1 September
Dundee DCA - from 6 September
Galway Galway Film Festival - 10-17 July
London ICA - from 30 August
London London Film Festival - 13-20 October
London The Garden Cinema - from 30 August
Manchester HOME - from 6 September
“Canny production design and Gustafson's watchful direction make the drama authentic and affecting, and the movie was a deserving winner of the Best First Feature prize at the 67th London Film Festival”
— ★★★★ Radio Times
“A film of quiet power… Paradise Is Burning is a cinema verite-style exploration of the adolescent female experience, with Gustafson coaxing strong performances from her central trio and underpinning their work with sensitive directorial choices.”
— Screen International
“Full of personality and heart without sacrificing its inherent seriousness, Gustafson’s film is a sure portrait of adolescence that packs a punch.”
— A Good Movie To Watch