The Fritt Ord Foundation Tribute awarded to Frank Nervik, Norun Haugen, Ola Waagen and Piraya Film

October 22 2019

The award ceremony for Frank Nervik, Norun Haugen, Ola Waagen and Piraya Film took place from 2.30 – 4.30 p.m. on Tuesday, 22 October at Fritt Ord’s premises in Uranienborgveien 2, Oslo.

The recipients

Frank Nervik
Frank Nervik is a trained psychologist, but works these days as an installer and carpenter. In recent years, he has worked on a number of animal rights cases. During the period from 2012 to 2014, he went undercover with a hidden camera in the fur-farming industry in Norway and China, leading to the story revealed in the documentary film “Fur”. Nervik has also provided recordings taken with a hidden camera for Piraya Film’s documentary “The secrets of the pig industry”.

Norun Haugen
Norun Haugen has a master’s degree in philosophy from the University of Oslo, where she used to teach. Today, she works full time on behalf of animals. She spent five years undercover in the Norwegian meat industry to investigate animals’ living conditions. Haugen juggled several identities, living with the constant threat of being exposed. Norun Haugen’s undercover work is shown in the documentary film “The secrets of the pig industry”, produced by Piraya Film.

Ola Waagen
Ola Waagen directed the documentary films “Fur” (2014) and “The secrets of the pig industry” (2019). Waagen has a strong sense of civic duty. His breakthrough as a film-maker was with “Fur”, which triggered heated discussions in several countries. The film has won several prizes and nominations. Waagen’s second documentary film, “The secrets of the pig industry”, has recently contributed to national debates on multiple levels.

Piraya Film
Torstein Grude and Bjarte Mørner Tveit own and operate Piraya Film, which has produced both “Fur” and “The secrets of the pig industry”. Grude is a film photographer, director and producer, while Tveit is a producer and scriptwriter. Piraya Film is behind a number of documentary films that have enjoyed broad distribution the world over. Several of his films have received nominations and prizes – including two Oscar-nominations and an Emmy award. Piraya Film has recently co-produced the Sundance winner “Cold Case Hammarskjöld”.

The Fritt Ord Foundation Tribute
The Fritt Ord Foundation Tribute consists of NOK 100 000 for each of the four prize laureates. This recognition is awarded by the Fritt Ord Foundation’s Board for valuable activities in the service of free speech, preferably in connection with relevant issues. The Fritt Ord Foundation’s Board also awards the Fritt Ord Foundation Prize.

Contact:
Piraya Film
Bjarte Mørner Tveit, mobile: +47 408 70587, email: bjarte@piraya.no

Fritt Ord
Knut Olav Åmås, Executive Director, mobile +47 908 68139, email: knut.olav.amas@frittord.no

The speeches from the award ceremony:

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