Long Way North is a beautifully animated historical fantasy about a 19th-century Russian girl who embarks on a hazardous adventure to the North Pole to find her grandfather’s ship and save her family’s honour.
Screened as part of NZIFF 2016
Long Way North 2015
Tout en haut du monde
Recommended For Ages 9+
Long Way North is a beautifully told, visually stunning action-adventure featuring teenage Sasha, a young aristocrat growing up in Russia at the end of the 19th century. Sasha dreams of the Great North and anguishes over the fate of her grandfather, a renowned scientist and Arctic explorer who has yet to return from his latest expedition to the North Pole. In order to find her grandfather’s ship and save her family’s honour, 15-year-old Sasha defies her parents’ expectations of her to act like a proper young woman of nobility, and embarks on a treacherous voyage.
Director Rémi Chayé, who previously worked on acclaimed animated films The Secret of Kells (NZIFF09) and Le Tableau (NZIFF12), has made a powerful impression with his daringly stylised, hand-drawn debut feature – Long Way North received the Audience Award for Feature Film at the Annecy International Animation Festival in 2015. — NM
“This French-Danish work offers all you’d want in a young adventure – action, danger, a journey, a coming-of-age, heartwarming and heartbreaking moments, handsome animation and a strong statement of girl power.” — Mike Hale, NY Times