The film is based on the novel The Pigsties by Swedish Finn Susanna Alakoski, and features performances by Finnish actors Ville Virtanen and Outi Mäenpää.
Beyond premiered in Sweden last December, and won the critics' award at the 2010 Venice Film Festival. The film is also Sweden’s Oscar nominee this year.
Noomi and Ola Rapace play the main roles in the film.
The most important film prize in the Nordic countries, worth about 47,000 euros, is split between the winning film’s director, writer and producer.
The Nordic Council Film Prize has been awarded since 2002 to original films of high artistic quality. The films should also have strong roots in Nordic culture.
Prize announced by Helen Mirren
The winner was announced by British actress Helen Mirren at a midday press conference in Copenhagen on Monday. The prize will be presented to the winners on November 2.
The Nordic Council sought to bring the film prize more visibility by inviting the Oscar-awarded actress to present the prize.
Finland has won the prize once, in 2002, when Aki Kaurismäki’s The Man Without a Past took the main honours. Finland’s nominee this year was Zaida Bergroth’s The Good Son.
Finnish film success in Chicago
Despite losing the Nordic Film Council Prize to Beyond, Bergroth was victorious this past weekend in the United States, where The Good Son won the Golden Hugo award for new directors at the Chicago International Film Festival.
Aki Kaurismäki’s new film Le Havre won the festival’s main prize at the festival, which is one of the most prestigious in the US.