The History of the Iceland Defense Force from 1951 to 2006
For 55 years a foreign armed force was stationed in Iceland under the auspices of NATO and had a lasting effect on the culture, politics and economy of the Icelandic people.
In the aftermath of the Second World War, relations between the former allied eastern and western powers deteriorated fast. Suddenly, the small island nation found itself in the midst of the ensuing “cold-war”, which it used to its full benefit to catapult into the modern world. A founding member of the NATO alliance, Iceland provided an important base for forward operations in protection of NATO’s northern flank and Scandinavia and the approaches to North America by U.S. and allied forces.
The Cold War had a profound effect on Iceland’s economy and culture and reverberated in the national political arena. All the political parties, whether for or against, did their best in utilizing the military presence and related controversies to their benefit. Allegations of corruption and treachery rang loud in the constant debate over the Keflavik base which represented the country’s 6th largest town and the principal international airport.
Three years in the making, this documentary tells the story of the American military presence at the NATO base at Keflavik International Airport from 1951 until the base was closed in 2006. The filmmakers traveled to the United States, the U.K. and all around Iceland to document this interesting period in Iceland’s history. They talked to historians, politicians and people that worked on the base and using the research of military historian Fridthor Eydal put together this illuminating documentary about the US presence, what they were doing and the impact it had on Iceland, its people and culture.
KAM film had made a documentary about the life on the base in 1992 with Konrad Gylfason directing and Guðbergur Davidsson as the DP. Fridthor Eydal was at the time the public relations officer of the Defense Force so it was fitting that the three would join forces in telling this cold war story.
The documentary premiered at The Nordische Filmtage Lübeck Film Festival in Germany on November 2nd 2018.
You can watch the documentary on Vimeo-on-Demand.
NARRATED BY
Simon Alison
APPEARING
Albert Jónsson
Alfreð Þorsteinsson
Andrew Lambert
Árni Bergmann
Árni Björnsson
Árni Þór Hilmarsson
Ástvaldur Eiríksson
Ásvaldur Andrésson
Birna Þórðardóttir
Dagbjört Óskarsdóttir
Daisy Neijmann
Eiríkur Hermannsson
Finnbogi Hermannsson
Fred Horne
Friðrik Haraldsson
Friðrik Magnússon
Gestur Guðmundsson
Guðmundur Jónsson
Guðni Sigfússon
Gunnar Þór Bjarnason
Helgi Ágústsson
Ian Brzezinski
Illugi Jökulsson
Jacob “Jake” Frank
John Roberts
Jóhann Dagur Egilsson
Jón Baldvin Hannibalsson
Jón Ólafsson
Kristbjörn Eydal
Kristján Pálsson
Mats Berdal
Óttar Sveinsson
Paul J. St. Laurent
Robert “Bob” Walker
Robert G. Loftis
Rósa Magnúsdóttir
Samuel J. Cox
Scott Thompson
Sigrún Elíasdóttir
Sigurður Jónsson
Stefán Pálsson
Styrmir Gunnarsson
Sverrir Haukur Gunnlaugsson
Teitur Ólafur Albertsson
Þorsteinn Þorkelsson
DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY
Guðbergur Davíðsson
ADDITIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY
Örn Marinó Arnarson
Konráð Gylfason
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT
Davíð Guðbergsson
SOUND RECORDING
Oddur Hreinn Sveinsson
EDITED BY
Konráð Gylfason
ORIGINAL MUSIC
Birgir Tryggvason
ADDITIONAL MUSIC
Uppright Music
FILM TRANSFERS
Bono Labs
Kvikmyndasafn Íslands
GRAPHICS
Konráð Gylfason
POSTER ART
Halldór Baldursson
RE-RECORDING MIXER
Birgir Tryggvason – hljod.is
COLOR GRADING & ON-LINE EDITING
Konráð GyLfason
WRITTEN BY
Fridthor Eydal
Guðbergur Davíðsson
Konráð Gylfason
BASED ON RESEARCH BY
Fridthor Eydal
PRODUCERS
Guðbergur Davíðsson
Konráð Gylfason
DIRECTED BY
Guðbergur Davíðsson
Konráð Gylfason
PRODUCED BY
Ljósop ehf.
CO-PRODUCED BY
KAM film
IN CO-OPERATION WITH
The Icelandic National Broadcasting Service (RUV)
WITH SUPPORT FROM
The Icelandic Film Fund
Ministry of Industries and Innovation
PRODUCTION YEAR
2018
RUNNING TIME
86 minutes
