Copenhagen  - Danish director Lars von Trier was Wednesday named winner of the 2009 Nordic Council Film Prize, worth 350,000 kroner (70,000 dollars).

Von Trier and producer Meta Louise Foldager were awarded for the movie Antichrist, "a wild, visually beautiful and shockingly violent film about sorrow, rage and guilt," the jury said.

The film premiered at the Cannes film festival in May, and generated a heated debate. Charlotte Gainsbourg won a best actress award at Cannes for her portrayal of a woman losing her mind.

The Nordic Council Film Prize has been awarded since 2002 when Finnish director Aki Kaurismaki won with his movie The Man Without A Past.

The film prize was due to be presented October 27 during the Nordic Council Session in the Swedish capital, Stockholm.

The council is the forum for inter-parliamentary cooperation between the five Nordic countries Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden, and three autonomous territories including Greenland.(dpa)