Swedish Film Institute

Filmhuset ("House of Film") building in Stockholm, home of the Swedish Film Institute

The Swedish Film Institute (Swedish: Svenska Filminstitutet) (SFI) is a statutory body located in Stockholm, Sweden that supports the Swedish film industry. Founded in 1963, the institute is responsible for administering the annual Guldbagge Awards, and for managing the Swedish Film Database.

History

The Swedish Film Institute (Svenska Filminstitutet, or SFI), like the Swedish Film Academy, has its origins in the Swedish Film Society (Svenska Filmsamfundet), which was established in October 1933. The society created a film museum, which would contain archival material of all kinds. In 1938 the film archives were given a home at the National Museum of Science and Technology in Stockholm.

In 1940, the society's collections gained independent status, and were renamed the Film Historic Collections (Filmhistoriska samlingarna), but continued to be held at the museum, and became a member of the International Federation of Film Archives in 1946.

The Swedish Film Institute was founded in 1963 to support and develop the Swedish film industry, founded by film critic and businessman Harry Schein (1924-2006), who also became its first CEO. On 16 March 1964, the Film Historic Collections were donated institute.

From the beginning, the activities and funding of the institute were regulated by the Film Agreement with the Government of Sweden. This was renegotiated at approximately 5-year intervals until 2016. In 1973 the government gave direct grants to the institute. In 1982 the video industry joined the agreement, followed by Sveriges Television and Nordisk Television (now TV4) in 1992. In 1998, the video industry left the agreement; in 2006 the remaining Swedish television companies joined. From 1 January 2017 the Swedish Film Institute has been solely financed by state funding.

From the late 1960s until 1993, the institute produced films, and there was a film school run by the institute. In 1970, the film school became an independent body, the University College of Film, Radio, Television and Theatre (Dramatiska institutet).

Description

The institute is a statutory body governed by the Film Bill, and fully funded by the Swedish Government through the Ministry of Culture.

Filmhuset

The institute is housed in the Filmhuset ("House of Film"), located in Gärdet, Östermalm, in Stockholm. The building, completed in 1970, was designed in Brutalist style by architect Peter Celsing, and built between 1968 and 1971. It was designed to resemble a camera, with an exposed concrete façade resembling filmstrips. It underwent a major renovation in 2008, creating open-plan offices. The building is listed as "code blue", the highest ranking in terms of cultural and historical value of buildings by the Stockholm City Museum (Stadsmuseet Stockholm).

Filmhuset houses a large archive, containing books and magazines on film.

It also contains two theatres, Bio Victor and Bio Mauritz, named after Victor Sjöström and Mauritz Stiller, which are available for hire. The movie club Cinemateket uses the theatres to screen a wide program of masterpieces, cult rarities, world cinema, and classics of cinema.

Filmhuset is also is the main venue for the Stockholm Industry Days of the annual Stockholm International Film Festival. Here, works-in-progress are presented, and master classes and seminars are held.

Functions

The Swedish Film Institute supports Swedish filmmaking, and allocates grants for production, distribution, and screening of Swedish films in Sweden. It also promotes Swedish cinema internationally, and preserve's Sweden's film heritage.

The Institute has organised the annual Guldbagge Awards since 1964, and publishes the Swedish Film Database, an Internet database about Swedish films and filmmakers.

Governance

The institute is a statutory body governed by the Film Bill. It is managed by a nine-member board appointed by the government, which appoints the CEO. The CEO is responsible for day-to-day operations and management of the institute.

There are five departments within the Swedish Film Institute: Film Funding, Film and Society, Film Heritage, Communications & PR, and Administration.

CEOs

Past and present managing directors/CEOs include:

• 1963–1970 Harry Schein
• 1970–1972 Bo Jonsson
• 1972–1978 Harry Schein
• 1978–1982 Jörn Donner
• 1982–1989 Klas Olofsson
• 1989–1994 Ingrid Edström
• 1994–1998 Lars Engqvist
• 1998–1999 Hans Ottosson
• 1999–2006 Åse Kleveland
• 2006–2010 Cissi Elwin Frenkel
• 2010–2011 Bengt Toll
• 2011–2021 Anna Serner
• 2021 Mathias Rosengren (acting CEO)
• April 2022 Anette Novak
• September 2023 Åsa Sjöberg (acting CEO)
• February 2024 Anna Croneman

Chairs

Chairpersons have included:

• 1963–1967 Krister Wickman (1924–93)
• 1967–1970 Roland Pålsson
• 1970–1978 Harry Schein (1924–2006)
• 1978–1981 Per Ahlmark (b. 1939)
• 1981–1984 Bert Levin
• 1984–1992 Hans Löwbeer (1923–2004)
• 1992–1999 Åke Ahrsjö (b. 1929)
• 1999–2005 Lisa Söderberg
• 2005–2011 Håkan Tidlund
• 2012–2014 Göran K Johansson
• 2015–present Claes Ånstrand

Films

Films supported by SFI include:

• The Girl with the Needle (2024)
• The Promised Land (2023)
• Triangle of Sadness (2022)
• I Am Zlatan (2021)
• Margrete: Queen of the North (2021)
• When Darkness Falls (2006)
• The Color of Milk (2004)

See also

• Trollywood
• Finnish Film Foundation
• American Film Institute
• Association of European Film Archives and Cinematheques

External links

• Official website