This autumn, Nordic youngsters aged 15-19 years entered the REClimate film competition in the run-up to the COP15 summit in Copenhagen.

Animations, documentaries, feature films - 125 entries poured in, and the winners were decided by a combination of audience vote and jury deliberations.

Seond prize went to SOS by Tiia Pääsky, Ruut Similä et al (Finland), third prize to Hope by Pétur Már Péturson (Iceland). Honorary prizes were awarded to Kids on Climate (Denmark) and Be Brave (Sweden).

A film with a strong message

Both the audiences and the jury were impressed by the Faroese film.

Jury comments:

"Beautiful visual execution, combined with a strong message and deep insight. Visually the films brings to life a story that transcends generations and leaves an impression long after the end of the film. It shows that climate change is happening because of us and our ancestors and that the burden will be passed to future generations if we fail to act now."

Climate-friendly online gala and award ceremony

The winners of the competition were announced at an environmentally-friendly online gala.

Seen around the world, it was held at the Nordic Council of Ministers' stand at COP15 by the team behind REClimate. The films can be seen on REClimate's website.

The ceremony was held on 8 December at 20:30  on Klimaforum09 .

The Danish actor Cyron Melville and Bertel Haarder, the Danish Minister of Education who doubles as Minister for Nordic Co-operation, awarded the prizes.

Initiative by Björk

The Icelandic artist Björk was one of those who came up with the idea of a climate film competition. It came to her during a Náttura concert in Reykjavík in 2008.

"I want to show my support to the competition because I am curious to see what hopes young people have for a sustainable future, and I want to see them communicate those hopes in a creative way. The future belongs to them after all!" she said.

See all the winning films and jury comments on www.reclimate.net.

For further information and interviews, contact the project co-ordinator for REClimat:e Josefin Lindberg on 0739 232725 or josefin@reclimate.net.

REClimate is a Nordic film competition for young people about the climate. It is funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers, the UN Regional Information Centre UNRIC, the Scandinavian Film Institute, the Confederation of Norden Associations, and the Nordic film website dvoted.net.