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Iceland, On the Trail of Democracy

On the Trail of Democracy... in Iceland

The Icelandic revolution, also known as the “Pots and Pans Revolution”, occurred in October 2008 in Iceland. It was rooted in the context of the subprime financial crisis when, in less than a month, the country’s three main banks declared bankruptcy. From this protest emerged an unprecedented process: the drafting of a new Constitution based on participatory democracy, which utilized methods such as random selection, online participation, citizen debates, elections, and more.

It is this citizen initiative that Alix, Ali, and Steve wanted to highlight. To understand the process, they set out to meet the main players of the revolution and the Icelandic citizens at the heart of this approach, who brought an entire country together around a common project, investing themselves to improve their democracy.

Director: Steve Vilhem
Year: 2023
Available with English, French and Spanish subtitles
Disponible sous titré en anglais, français et espagnol
Disponible con subtítulos en inglés, francés y español

  • Steve Vilhem
    Director
  • Steve Vilhem
    Writer
  • Ali Romdhani
    Writer
  • Steve Vilhem
    Producer
  • Alix Stratis
    Producer
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Sur les traces de la Démocratie - L'Islande
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Student
  • Runtime:
    57 minutes 46 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 22, 2024
  • Production Budget:
    50,000 EUR
  • Country of Origin:
    France
  • Country of Filming:
    Iceland
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Vidéo stéréo, numérique, DCP
  • Aspect Ratio:
    1.85
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    Yes - Université de Bordeaux
  • Digital Cinema Package:
    Unavailable
  • The Accolade Global Film Competition
    California
    United States
    March 1, 2024
    Award of Merit: Liberation / Social Justice / Protest (Student) Award of Merit: Contemporary Issues / Awareness Raising (Student)
  • Wildsound Documentary Feedback Festival Video
    California
    United States
    April 1, 2024
    Category Documentary Feature Film : Winner best nature film
  • Documentaries Without Borders International Film Festival
    Delaware
    United States
    April 1, 2024
    Revolution and Reform: Winner Outstanding excellence
  • Vegas Independent Film
    Nevada
    United States
    April 1, 2024
    Best Human rights Award Winner
  • IndieFest
    California
    United States
    April 1, 2024
    Award of Excellence Special Mention
  • Berlin Art Film Festival
    Berlin
    Germany
    May 1, 2024
    Official selection
  • Toronto Documentary Feature & Short Film Festival
    Toronto
    Canada
    May 1, 2024
    Category Documentary Feature Film: Winner best nature film
Director Biography - Steve Vilhem

Steve Vilhem is an author and director, currently based in Lausanne, Switzerland. He made his first short films starting in 2012 with the Kino Session association in Bordeaux. An anthropologist and medical doctor by training, commitment is at the heart of his profession, his research, and his audio-visual productions. This political documentary is his first feature film.

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Director Statement

This documentary is multilingual (French, English, Icelandic). You will find a version of the documentary with English subtitles.

Also, I wanted to share a few words about the genesis of this self-produced documentary. It represents the culmination of a civic engagement that began in 2015, following the Charlie Hebdo attacks. After this event, medical, pharmacy, anthropology, and sociology students, without any political affiliation, proposed to commit themselves and to reinvest in major societal issues. This commitment was realized through the organization of 14 themed debates, from February 2015 to April 2016, in the city of Bordeaux. At the initiative of these debates was a small group of students, including Alix, Ali, and myself.

Following the success of these various debates, we wanted to go further by proposing a reflection on democracy. This is how we went to Iceland to make this documentary on the “Pots and Pans Revolution” and the participatory constitutional process that emerged in its wake.

This documentary, which has just been completed, has never been screened before.