HALFDAN ULLMANN TØNDEL

HALFDAN ULLMANN TØNDEL

President of the jury
3rd edition of Biarritz Film Festival - NOUVELLES VAGUES
The Biarritz Film Festival – NOUVELLES VAGUES is honored to welcome Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel as this year’s Jury President. Norwegian director and screenwriter born in 1990, he embodies a new generation of European filmmakers whose sensitivity and narrative mastery are revitalizing the landscape of auteur cinema.

Coming from a legendary cinematic lineage — grandson of Liv Ullmann and Ingmar Bergman — Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel has carved out his own artistic path, far from the shadows of his illustrious predecessors. His work, characterized by a subtle exploration of human relationships, unspoken tensions, and social dynamics, resonates strongly in Armand (2024), his debut feature film which was awarded the Caméra d’Or at Cannes (prize for the best first feature across all sections) as well as the FIPRESCI Prize at the European Film Awards. Centered on an incident between two children in a school, the film delicately probes the adult world through the lens of childhood — a theme that aligns closely with the spirit of the festival.

Through both his short and feature films, he explores youth with a gaze that is both critical and empathetic, capturing its flaws, raw emotions, and search for identity that define this pivotal stage of life. His cinematic approach — at the crossroads of the personal and the political — makes him an ideal jury president for a festival devoted to youth: their dreams, their anger, their contradictions, and their transformative power.

Under his leadership, the jury will strive to honor bold works that carry a strong and sincere vision of contemporary youth. His presence promises a thoughtful and discerning perspective on emerging voices in cinema, in harmony with the festival’s core values of attentiveness, innovation, and the transmission of stories.

Halfdan Ullmann Tøndel, born in 1990, is a Norwegian director and screenwriter, based in Oslo. He studied directing at Westerdals School of arts. His debut feature Armand (2024), starring Renate Reinsve, won the Camera d’or at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival and the European Discovery - Prix FIPRESCI at the 37th European Film awards. In 2025, he earned a nomination for Outstanding Directorial Achievement for a First feature at the 77th Directors Guild of America Awards.