Synopsis
Now an adult, Roy is still haunted by the year he spent as a teenager with his father, Tom, on a remote island in the far north, where the two had hoped to reconnect. Isolation and harsh conditions pushed their relationship to breaking point. Ten years later, Roy returns to the island to see the cabin one last time before it is torn down, and to try to understand what happened there.
Trailer
Director’s statement
“I read the book and I was devastated. I couldn’t put my finger on what moved me so much, but it was incredibly powerful.” — Vladimir de Fontenay
Adapted from the novella of the same name by American writer David Vann, published in 2009 in a collection titled Legend of a Suicide, and here adapted for the screen for the first time, Sukkwan Island is a film as brutally physical as it is subtly psychological. To find the ideal setting, Vladimir de Fontenay and his team spent three years scouting locations. The demanding shoot took just 26 days, with a screenplay rewritten through 33 drafts. The film was shot backwards from winter to summer, following the reverse chronology of the story, a constraint that turned into a formative experience for the entire crew.
At the festival
Screening · Sukkwan Island
Lucernaire, 53, rue Notre-Dame-des-Champs, 75006 Paris
Past screening
Cast
Credits
| Director | Vladimir de Fontenay |
|---|---|
| Screenplay | Vladimir de Fontenay — D’après le roman éponyme de David Vann |
| Country · year | France / Norway / Belgium / United Kingdom · 2026 |
| Running time · genre | 1h55 · Drama |
| Language | English |
| Production | Haut et Court |
| Distributor | Haut et Court |
Stills
Feature Film in Competition 2026
Best Actress – Feature Film
FIJA 2026
FIJA 2026
Audience Award – Feature Film
Le Garçon qui faisait danser les collines
FIJA 2026
Pass Culture Award
FIJA 2026
Best Feature Film
FIJA 2026
FIJA 2026
FIJA 2026
