National Press Club Headliners Screening: "The Day Iceland Stood Still"

Pamela Hogan is an Emmy-winning filmmaker, journalist, and media executive whose films have often focused on under-reported stories about ordinary women who do extraordinary things. Her film "Looks Like Laury Sounds Like Laury" was named one of “The Best TV Shows of 2015” by The New York Times. She co-created, and executive produced the PBS series "Women, War & Peace," directing the award-winning episode "I Came to Testify," which highlighted the experiences of Bosnian women during wartime. The series reached 12 million viewers and won several awards, including the Overseas Press Club’s Murrow Award, a Television Academy Honor, and the ABA's Silver Gavel. Hogan also served as executive producer for PBS’s Wide Angle, creating the Emmy-winning documentary Ladies First and the Time for School series. She has received a National Council for Research on Women award and teaches at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism.

A native of Reykjavik, Iceland, Hrafnhildur Gunnarsdóttir has produced numerous acclaimed films on the Icelandic women’s movement, including The Day Iceland Stood Still about the women’s day off in Iceland 1975 which has won several awards including Best Documentary at Nordische Film Tage in Lübeck and Audience Awards/special mentions from Thessaloniki, Mill Valley Film Festival and Ji.hlava documentary film festival. Furthermore Kitchen Sink Revolution on the movement’s 1980s evolution, which won the Icelandic Academy’s prestigious Edda Award. Recently she completed her magnum opus, a 5-part series titled People Like That. Filmed over 27 years, the series chronicles the 40-year struggle for gay and lesbian rights in Iceland. In 2019 The Vasulka Effect premiered at Rotterdam International Film Festival about Bohuslav Wood Vasulka and Steina Vasulka pioneers of video art and founders of The Kitchen in New York City. Both People Like That and The Vasulka Effect won numerous local awards including the Icelandic Academy Art Award. The Vasulka Effect was awarded Best Portrait at the International Festival of Films (FIFA) in Canada. A filmmaker and activist, Hrafnhildur has served as the chairman of the Filmmakers Association in Iceland and chairman and board of directors of Nordisk Panorama and Samtökin ´78. In 2024 Iceland’s President honored her with the highest honor of the Icelandic Republic; the Falcon Award – or the “Knight’s Cross” – in recognition of her body of work raising awareness in the field of equality. She received her BFA from the San Francisco Art Institute.

Ambassador Svanhildur Hólm Valsdóttir has served as Iceland’s Ambassador to the United States since September 2024. She previously led the Iceland Chamber of Commerce and held senior advisory roles to both the Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs and the Prime Minister. Earlier in her career, she spent more than a decade in media as a journalist, radio and television host, and editor. Ambassador Valsdóttir holds a law degree from the University of Iceland and an MBA from Reykjavík University.

Host or Publisher National Press Club