May 23, 2000
FINE LINE FEATURES' DANCER IN THE DARK SELECTED PALME d'OR WINNER
Icelandic Pop Star Björk Wins Best Actress Prize
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As the curtain fell on the 53rd annual Cannes International Film Festival, Fine Line Features emerged victorious collecting the two top prizes for its highly controversial musical melodrama, Dancer in the Dark. Directed by the legendary Lars von Trier, Dancer in the Dark was awarded the coveted Palme d'Or and the Best Actress award for singer-actress Björk. The film, which had its world premiere earlier in the week, has evoked heated debate both here and abroad from critics and audiences alike. The premiere, which reunited the film's stars Björk and Catherine Deneuve with Danish director von Trier, was the emotional high point of the two-week festival. The win marks the first time that von Trier has been recognized with the top honor after having debuted all six of his feature films at the festival. The Palme d'Or is also the first for Fine Line in its ten year history of debuting films at the festival, as well as the first for parent company New Line Cinema in their 33 year history.
Fine Line president Mark Ordesky commented on the awards by saying, "Not only is this a momentous event for Fine Line as a company, but it's a huge personal triumph for me as an individual. Since the early days of my career, I have wanted to collaborate with Lars von Trier on a film and the success of this picture at Cannes represents the culmination of that dream. What you see on the screen from Björk and Catherine Deneuve and Lars himself was achieved at great personal sacrifice and I congratulate all of them for their astounding accomplishment."