NOR26: Butterfly

Australian premiere

Starring Renate Reinsve (Sentimental Value, Fjord) and Helene Bjørneby (The Worst Person in the World), Butterfly is an intriguing and mystical drama with touches of comedy about the bonds of family and pull of the past, set in the striking Canary Islands, from writer/director Itonje Søimer Guttormsen in her second feature.

Half-sisters Diana (Bjørneby) and Lily (Reinsve) grew up as the only resident children at an all-inclusive resort in the Gran Canaria, where their uninhibited mother, Vera, worked as a tour guide. Twenty-five years later, they are estranged, having both created distance from the island and from each other. Diana works as a kindergarten teacher in a small town in Norway, while Lily is a retired model and alternative artist in Hamburg’s art scene.

Now they are forced to return to the island to deal with aftermath of their mother’s sudden death at an esoteric retreat in the mountains. The reunion sets them headfirst into a journey of revelations about their mother's life, their shared childhood and the hidden heart of the tourist island.

Awards & Festivals

OFFICIAL SELECTION – International Film Festival Rotterdam 2026
NOMINEE - Best Nordic Film, Göteborg Film Festival 2026

2026 | Norway, United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden 
Norwegian, English, Spanish with English subtitles