Watching a Film Festival in a Remote Lighthouse on a Tiny Island

Imagine living in a lighthouse on a remote island with spectacular views. And getting to watch an entire film festival all by yourself. Someone is doing just that right now.

The largest film-related even in Scandinavia, the Gothenburg Film Festival, an annual film festival in Gothenburg in Sweden, was forced to curtail screenings in cinemas due to the pandemic, and instead opted for most of the programme to be streamed online. And they seem to have escalated social distancing, taking it up several notches. Over the course of a week, they held screenings in two urban venues for just one festival attendee. 

And they also organised an incredible competition. They announced that they would give one deserving film fanatic a one-of-a-kind experience in the spirit of appreciating good cinema. The person would get a chance to view the entire festival line-up, alone, from a lighhouse on an island off the Swedish coast.

After reviewing more than 12,000 applications, the organisers revealed the person selected for The Isolated Cinema competition. The chosen one was Lisa Enroth, a film enthusiast and nurse who has been working almost non-stop during the pandemic. She&nbsplives in Skovde where she is a part of the local movie club. And she is really looking forward to a week of alternate reality and unwinding in a remote place. The best part We will be able to follow her via a daily video diary during her seven days on the island.

Enroth will spend a week living alone in the Pater Noster Lighthouse on Hamneskar island without a phone, computer or laptop, book or any kind of entertainment. However, she will be given a tablet, for limited periods, so she can record a daily video diary. And one other person will also be on the island for security reasons and will check in on her once a day.

A screen has been set up in the the lantern room at the top of the lighthouse where Enroth can also experience a 360-degree view of her new surroundings. The wind, the sea, the possibility of being part of a totally different kind of reality for a week all awaits her.

The organisers were looking for a person who was emotionally and psychologically up for the task, and were positive that Enroth would genuinely enjoy her stay, the alternate reality of movies and the majestic surroundings around her.