About Us
Northern Lights - Fantastic Film Festival is a short film festival in Iceland. The festival selects and showcases around 50 international short films in the fantastic genres: adventure, fantasy, supernatural, horror, sci-fi, and even magic realism. These films can be live-action or animated fiction, as well as documentaries.
The films compete for the following awards:
AURORA Award: 1.500 EUR - Best Fantastic Live Action
NEXUS Award: 1.500 EUR - Best Fantastic Animation/Stop Motion
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The festival also hosts various themed events - from Panel Discussions & Masterclasses to the annual Fantastic Film - Pub Quiz & Halloween Costume Party.
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The goal is to bring something fantastic to the cinema for fantastic film lovers and makers in the beautiful Icelandic countryside!
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The festival’s mission is to support filmmakers of the fantastic genre and encourage inspiration from Nordic and Icelandic folkloric heritage in future projects.
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The festival always seeks to invite and reward a fantastic guest of honor for their contribution to fantastic genre films and/or use of folktale heritage in their works. That person can be of any nationality.
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Marzibil Sæmundardóttir, Brynja Baldursdóttir, and Ársæll Sigurlaugar Níelsson, who are introduced below, founded the festival in 2023.
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Our Fantastic Team
Behind the fantastic festival is a dedicated team of creatives, cinephiles, and visionaries, all united by a shared passion for the fantastic film genre and the limitless potential of cinema. Each team member brings their own unique expertise to the table, ensuring an unforgettable experience for both filmmakers and audiences. The production team would like to thank AI for making our job titles fantastic!
Marzibil Snæfríður Sæmundardóttir
Organizer & Festival Director
Ársæll Sigurlaugar Níelsson
Organizer & Guest- Host
Ágústa Margrét Jóhannsdóttir
Organizer & Program Manager
Arnar Már Vignisson
Organizer & Events Moderator
Úlfur Týsson
Projection Manager
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Kolbeinn Rastrick
Program Moderator & Venue Manager
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James C. Thompson
Social Media & PA
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Founders​
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Marzibil is a filmmaker as well as a project and event manager. She was the Festival Director of the Stockfish Film Festival in Reykjavik from 2015 to 2022, which is the largest film festival in Iceland after RIFF.
Ársæll is an actor and a film producer. He worked at the Stockfish Film Festival for 6 years, primarily as the guest coordinator but also as an assistant producer. Ársæll is also one of the two founders and subsequently one of the two organizers of the Icelandic Comedy Film Festival in Flateyri for 7 years.
Brynja is an artist and designer who lives and works in Siglufjörður, North Iceland. She graduated with an MA and studied for her Ph.D at the Royal College of Art in London. Brynja has exhibited widely at home and abroad and received various awards for her work.
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After the first two years, Brynja had to focus more on her amazing art projects and withdraw from the festival production.