Just Super () is a 2022 Norwegian computer-animated superhero film directed by Rasmus A. Sivertsen and produced by Qvisten Animation. It follows Hedvig, an 11-year-old gamer who is tasked with taking over the role of a superhero, Super Lion, from her father.
The film was released in Norwegian cinemas on 30 September 2022. It was selected to screen at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival, but the first screening at the festival on 20 February 2023 was cancelled due to concerns of blackface, to the objection of the filmmakers and the Norwegian Film Institute.
Cast
Hennika Eggum Huuse as Hedvig
Todd Monrad Vistven as Thomas
Johannes Kjærnes as Adrian
Tobias Santelmann as Super Lion
Kari Simonsen as Grandma
Henriette Marø as Teacher
Line Verndal as Aunt
Atle Antonsen as Uncle
Desta Marie Beeder as News Reporter
Charlotte Frogner as Mom
Release
Just Super had its world premiere on 10 September 2022 at TIFF Junior, a children's film festival held in Tromsø, Norway, where it won the audience award. It was released in Norwegian cinemas on 30 September 2022 and had 110,000 admissions.
In November 2022, Viva Kids acquired rights for North American distribution.
Screenings at the Berlinale
The film was due for its international premiere on 20 February 2023 in the Generation Kplus section of the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival (Berlinale). The premiere was cancelled minutes before it was due, in light of concerns raised by the Anti-Racism Taskforce for European Film (ARTEF) about "the film's depictions of Blackface and animalisation of Black people". All four subsequent screenings at the festival took place as scheduled, with a disclaimer about the concerns added. Sivertsen initially said he found the accusation of racism "incomprehensible" and the festival's decision to pull the premiere "shocking". He said, "When a film is invited to a festival, it goes without saying that it will be shown. If we cannot trust the festival to stand by its choices, one has to consider participation in Berlin in the future. The festival risks becoming irrelevant if it doesn't decide for itself which films we will see."
In a statement released on 24 February 2023, ARTEF said, after receiving the concerns from "colleagues" who had seen the film, it reached out to the Norwegian Film Institute (NFI) and Sivertsen on 18 February and to the festival on 19 February. It said, "In this film, the white heroes turn into lions that, unlike lions, have dark brown hands and partially dark brown faces and bodies which, as our colleagues pointed out, are depictions rooted in colonial thinking where Black people historically have been dehumanised and compared to animals", and while it "is not a watchdog" but "exist[s] inside the industry and merely identif[ies] problems and the systems that support them", it "wanted to avoid further harm to BIPOC audiences" and that the organisation and its members "received abhorrent emails and offensive remarks" during this process. Sivertsen explained that the mask and gloves were part of a costume meant to conceal the hero's identity and that the lion was chosen because it was featured in the logo of the Norwegian Automobile Federation, the film's main collaboration partner, and in the coat of arms of Norway, and because it is "a well-known symbol of courage and strength". The festival said "the film's representatives disregarded these concerns completely" and the premiere was pulled in agreement with the production company.