Qaamarngup uummataa (1998)

Director:

Jacob Grønlykke

Writers:

Jacob Grønlykke (writer)
Hans Anthon Lynge (writer)

Release Date:

25 January 1998 (Greenland)

Genre:

Drama

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Suicide | Greenland | Death Of Son

Awards:

3 wins

Cast

Rasmus Lyberth	...	Rasmus
Vivi Nielsen	...	Marie
Niels Platow	...	Mikael Berthelsen
Kenneth Rasmussen	...	Simon
Knud Petersen
Laila Rasmussen	...	Karina
Agga Olsen	...	Magdalene
Nukâka	...	Trommedanser (as Nukâka Motzfeldt)
Jens Davidsen	...	Præst
Henrik Larsen	...	VVS Mand
Søren Hauch-Fausbøll	...	Værtshusgæst
Asger Reher	...	Politichef
Karina Skands	...	Pige i Telt
Julie Carlsen	...	Pige i Telt
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Anda Kristensen

Directed by
Jacob Grønlykke

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Jacob Grønlykke		writer
Hans Anthon Lynge		writer

Produced by
Henrik Møller-Sørensen	....	producer

Original Music by
Joachim Holbek

Cinematography by
Dan Laustsen

Film Editing by
Wadt Thomsen

Production Design by
Anders Engelbrecht

Costume Design by
Manon Rasmussen

Makeup Department
Naja Jensen	....	makeup artist

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Mette Hesthaven	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Simon Bang	....	storyboard artist
Jesper Lorents	....	property master

Sound Department
Per Streit	....	sound

Editorial Department
Michael Frank Nielsen	....	color timer

Production Companies

• ASA Film Produktion ApS

Distributors

• Phaedra Cinema (USA)

Also Known As:

Heart of Light (USA)
Lysets hjerte (Denmark)

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

Greenland | Denmark | Norway | Sweden

Language:

Danish | Greenlandic

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Filming Locations:

Greenland

Company:

ASA Film Produktion ApS

Quotes:

[subtitled version]
Marie: [Rasmus is preparing to leave town] Did you talk to your son?
Rasmus: I went there. I can see why he despises me.
Marie: You can't go till you've made up with your son.
Rasmus: I can only make up with him if I go. My soul is so sick that I can be nobody's father.

A moving film about culture and identity in Greenland.

Rasmus, an Inuit-speaking Greenlander, is regarded by most people as a drunken failure. When his son goes on a suicidal shooting spree, he has to cope with the shame this brings on his family. He goes on a journey into the depths of Greenland and finds out a lot about himself and his past. I was afraid this was going to be a pretentious film, but with strong performances, a fine score, and some excellent footage of the starkly beautiful landscapes of Greenland, I found it a moving experience. Not everyone will like its mixture of realistic drama and fantasy, nor the neatly-contrived screenplay, but for anyone who can relate to its central theme - the difficulty of maintaining one's own cultural identity in the face of another dominant culture and the technology of the modern world, it is a thought-provoking and ultimately uplifting film.