English summary

‘Authentic and charming film that draws to great effect on the grandeur of Iceland’

‘Fantastic contrast between the characters and the magical landscape’

Poignant story about two Icelandic teenage boys who both experience their first love during a summer holiday, each in his own way.

Thor and Kristjan are two inseparable friends in a remote Icelandic fishing village. However beautiful the rugged landscape there might be, it doesn’t stop boredom from setting in during the long summer months. They do a bit of fishing, hang around the car demolition site and look at sexy pictures, as teenagers do. For neither of them is home a good place to be, so they spend a lot of time together. But this year the long summer months are different from in previous years. Thor has set his sights on seducing Beta, a girl from their village. Kristjan reluctantly follows his lead with Beta’s friend Hanna. But then a shocking event tests their loyal friendship to breaking point…

Filmmaker Gudmundur Arnar Gudmundsson (1982) grew up in an environment similar to the one in the film and attended a film school in Denmark. He has won some 50 awards for a number of short films, which have been shown at festivals worldwide. Heartstone is his first feature film, and is inspired by dramatic events in which a childhood friend of his was involved. His visually strong feature film debut was rewarded with 32 international awards!