Kosmorama 2026 opens with HEX, the documentary about Witch Club Satan.
Kosmorama – Trondheim International Film Festival is proud to present the black metal documentary HEX as this year’s opening film. The Trondheim-produced film will have its world premiere at this year’s festival.
This year’s opening film at Kosmorama is the music documentary HEX, following the Norwegian black metal phenomenon Witch Club Satan. The festival opening also marks the world premiere of the film, produced by Trondheim-based production company Herstory.
"We at Kosmorama are thrilled to open the festival with HEX, an important film about women who take unconventional paths and dare to claim their space, both in front of and behind the camera. Kosmorama has been following Herstory and their work on this film for a long time, and it’s especially exciting to show it now as we return in week 10, from March 8th," says Silje Engeness, festival director of Kosmorama.
Director Maja Holand is delighted that the film’s first screening will take place in Trondheim.
"Kosmorama is the perfect launchpad for this film, which will then travel out into the wider world. It all began in Trondheim—the very first shots for what became HEX were filmed here, at Rosendal Theater."
A surprising black metal success
HEX is Maja Holand’s feature-length debut and chronicles a unique project in Norwegian music history. The black metal band Witch Club Satan enters a male-dominated music scene with no prior experience playing instruments. The band becomes an unexpected success and, just a few years later, is now touring internationally.
Holand had close and exclusive access to the band, capturing everything from intense live performances to pagan rituals and vulnerable behind-the-scenes moments. In line with the band’s feminist and occult project, the film also explores a dark chapter of Norwegian history, when many women were accused of—and executed for—being witches.
With HEX, the goal has also been to create a striking audiovisual cinema experience, and audiences can expect a powerful show when the film opens Kosmorama. Holand has extensive experience as a cinematographer, and the production company Herstory has a particular focus on employing innovative sound technology.
"HEX is Norway’s first full-length documentary to use so-called spatial audio, a technology that creates a three-dimensional, immersive sound experience," says producer and CEO Mari Nilsen Neira of Herstory, adding that this approach has been part of a research project with partners including SINTEF.
About the Film
As the black metal band Witch Club Satan, Nikoline, Victoria, and Johanna enter a music scene steeped in mystique, extremity, and male dominance. Without having played a single instrument beforehand, they throw themselves into this unfamiliar landscape and use the conventions of the genre to express their raw and hidden powers, becoming an unexpected—and controversial—success.
The film follows not only the band’s musical journey, but also their inner transformation as the masks fall away. It also delves into a dark chapter of Norwegian history, when women were executed for being witches. This is a story about claiming space, screaming loudly, challenging both oneself and the world, and daring to unleash the inner witch.
NB: This screening is a special event and is not included in clip cards or festival passes.
