Actress Arna Magnea Danks has just made history. At the Kashish Mumbai International Queer Film Festival — the largest LGBTQ+ film festival in South Asia — she was awarded Best Performance in a Lead Role for her dual role as Birna and Björn in Odd Fish – the first Icelander ever to receive the award. The film also received the Best Feature Film award, along with a special recognition for Best Screenplay.
Arna was awarded for “a magnificent and flawless performance that brought the character vividly to life — a transformation so complete, so captivating in tone and presence, it reminded us of the true magic of acting,” says in the jury’s evaluation. “For embodying two personas with depth, nuance, and authenticity in a role that demanded both vulnerability and strength, the Narrative Jury is proud to award the Best Performance in a Leading Role to trans actor Arna Magnea Danks as Björn/Birna in Odd Fish.” In an interview with GayIceland Arna says she is immensely honored.
“When I got the news that I won as a best performer at this prestigious event, Kashish LGBTQ+ film festival, and our movie, Odd Fish won the best movie award, which means it will hopefully have the potential to reach millions of audiences around the world, my first reaction was disbelief and then immense gratitude and joy,” she says.
Arna points out that is so important that a feel good movie about a trans woman that shows the lives of trans people in a positive light is getting this recognition in this day and age, for it is truly a beacon of hope for our community and those that seek and need light in the growing darkness in the world.
“Through compassion, love and laughter a movie like Odd Fish is going to show the world that we are not monsters, but in fact as human as human beings can be. Love is always the way.”
The screenplay of Odd Fish by writer-director Snævar Sölvason was also awarded for “it’s gently unfolding and wonderfully crafted screenplay that brings tears to the eyes and makes one applaud its protagonist’s courage, the Jury would like to felicitate writer-director Snævar Sölvason for Icelandic feature film, Odd Fish,” says in the jury’s citation.
Cinema Needs More Trans Stories
Arna Magnea Danks is a distinctive voice in Icelandic cinema — a recipient of a special recognition for her acting work as well as her advocacy for transgender and women’s rights by WIFT in Iceland (Women in film and television) with a special mention for her role in Ljósvíkingar, a film that received a standing ovation at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and is now travelling to festivals around the world.
But her path to the screen has been shaped by a very different fight — the fight to simply be herself.
“Being trans is not a choice,” she says. “The only choice is the courage to finally stop hiding.”
Acting, But Only as Herself
Working and living in Iceland, Arna speaks openly about her position in the film industry as a transgender actress.
“I would never have gotten the chance to play one of the leads in the film Odd Fish (Ljósvíkingar) if I wasn’t trans,” she says.
“But I am also overlooked for other parts because of it. So it is a win and lose situation, but of course being trans means that there are fewer opportunities for me in comparison to a cisgender actress.”
Systemic transphobia, she explains, is rarely visible — but always present.
“It is hard to prove, but everyone that belongs to a minority feels it and the way it presents itself is often indirect and the proof is in the absence of opportunities.”
Before her transition, Arna mostly worked as a fight director.
My first reaction was disbelief and then immense gratitude and joy.
“I was struggling with acting in real life, pretending to be someone and something I wasn’t and acting professionally on top of that in roles that were equally opposing my personal truth — it was a bit joyless sometimes.”
Why Trans Stories Are Still Rare
Arna doesn’t sugarcoat her view on why trans protagonists are still so rare in popular films and TV.
“Because the majority of people are cisgender and straight and want to reflect themselves in TV and films and don’t really care about other stories. Producers produce whatever they think sells and ignore other stories.”
Her solution? Public pressure and structural change.
“I think we need to put pressure on production companies to produce more variety and when it comes to government film subsidiaries, there should be a demand that a certain percentage of films and TV each year includes varied, inclusive stories.”
Cinema Reflects — And Shapes — Society
Arna believes in the power of storytelling — but also in its responsibility.
“Historically, trans women have been portrayed as some kind of a monster to be afraid of, not really a woman, but an insane man. A serial killer, a danger to other women. Or trans women have been portrayed as a joke to be laughed at.”
Even recent efforts to tell trans stories often end in tragedy.
“Sadly also focused on the effect of growing up in a hateful environment does to the trans women and so those stories more often than not end in the death of the trans woman.”
Negative stories affect the public opinion that in return affects what kind of stories are being told of trans women, so it becomes a negative downward spiral.
What is needed is the reverse, she says.
“Positive, truthful stories of trans women that in return affect the public opinion, so it becomes a positive upward spiral.”
A Film That Changed the Conversation
In Iceland, Odd Fish (Ljósvíkingar) has become part of a much larger conversation — about visibility, about culture, about what kind of stories matter.
Former MP Jódís Skúladóttir described the movie as “one of the masterpieces of Icelandic filmmaking”, urging people to see it not only because of Arna’s groundbreaking role, but because of the truths the film tells.
“Arna Magnea Danks gives us a glimpse into the world of those who are different,” Skúladóttir said, “in a society that clings stubbornly to outdated values and prevents people from flourishing.”
Skúladóttir’s speech wasn’t just about cinema. It was about Iceland itself.
“While this cultural heritage of the Icelandic nation is decaying on our shores, it borders on absurdity to call ourselves a cultural nation,” she warned — referring both to the film’s portrayal of vanishing boat heritage and to the erasure of marginalized voices.
A movie like Odd Fish is going to show the world that we are not monsters, but in fact as human as human beings can be. Love is always the way.
For Arna, visibility is not about attention. It’s about the truth.
“Until the same kind of equilibrium is achieved in telling stories of trans and cis people where they can be both negative and positive without dramatically changing the public viewpoint, then we must focus on the positive,” she says.
“And the only way to achieve this equilibrium is simply to tell more and more of those stories in TV and film.”
With her performance in Odd Fish now recognized on the international stage, Arna Magnea Danks is not only telling those stories — she’s helping to rewrite the narrative for a new generation.
The editorial team at GayIceland warmly congratulates Arna on her groundbreaking achievement.