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Distribution

Catalogue

My Grandmother Ironed the King's Shirts

Torill Kove
1999 | 10 min
Torill Kove's grandmother often told her stories. One in particular revolved around ironing shirts for the King of Norway. And what if that intriguing detail was just the tip of the iceberg? Perhaps she also worked covertly in the Norwegian resistance... Maybe she even spearheaded a campaign to create an unprecedented brand of guerrilla warfare! Treating history as a fabric woven from personal stories, animator Torill Kove follows a thread of family history, embroidering it with playful twists along the way. In My Grandmother Ironed the King's Shirts, she imaginatively renders her grandmother's life and work in Oslo, especially during World War II. Sharp and whimsical, her story combines her grandmother's tales with historical events and fantasy, and shows how a cherished anecdote can come to acquire a mythical status. My Grandmother Ironed the King's Shirts is about an ordinary woman with a revolutionary instinct. With sharp humour it explores storytelling, myth-making and the important contributions that are possible through the most humble means.

Still feeling mischievously rebellious? Buy the book from Firefly Books for more historical sabotage!

Awards and distinctions

  • Children’s Choice Award
    Bay Area International Children's Film Festival, Oakland
    2018
  • Award for Best Short Film Program given by the Children's Jury
    Festival Internacional de Cine Para Ninos, Mexico City
    2001
  • Parent's Choice Award
    International Children's Film Festival, New York
    2001
  • The Minister of Foreign Affairs Prize - Category: Early Education - with a cash prize of $3,000US
    International Educational Program Contest Japan Prize, Tokyo
    2000
  • Second Prize - Best animated film given by the Children's Jury
    International Children's Film Festival, Chicago
    2000
  • Special Prize
    International Animation Festival, Hiroshima
    2000
  • Special Diploma - for funny and inventive approach for telling personal and historical story.
    World Festival of Animated Films, Zagreb
    2000
  • Second Prize - Category : longer than 5 shorter than 15 minutes
    Los Angeles Animation Competition / World Animation Celebration, Los Angeles
    2000
  • Award for Best Animation - with a cash prize of $500US
    San Diego International Film Festival, La Jolla
    2000
  • Golden Sheaf Award - Category: Best Animation
    Golden Sheaf Awards /Short Film and Video Festival, Yorkton
    2000
  • Honorable Mention
    Animerte dager - The Nordic and Baltic Animation Festival Fredrikstad, Oslo
    2000
  • Audience Award
    Animerte dager - The Nordic and Baltic Animation Festival Fredrikstad, Oslo
    2000
  • Second Prize - Category: Animation (Tied with Ring of Fire by Andreas Hykade, Deutschland) with a cash prize of 5,000DM (2,500DM each film)
    Filmfest - International Festival for Animation and Short Films, Dresden
    2000
  • Award for Most Innovative Short Film or Video given by the Youth Jury (Ages 9+)
    Reel to Real International Film Festival for Youth and Families, Vancouver
    2000
  • Public Award - Category: Short Film (tied with Dobermann) - with a cash prize of 1250DM (625DM each film)
    Week-end in Wurzburg, Würzburg
    2000
  • Special Mention Award
    Film Festival, Reykjavik
    1999
  • Honorable Jury Mention
    Grimstad Norwegian Short Film Festival, Oslo
    1999
  • Norwegian Playwrights Association Best Script Award - with a cash prize of 10,000 crowns (2,000$ Cdn)
    Grimstad Norwegian Short Film Festival, Oslo
    1999