At Sunny Side of the Doc 2022 Finnish filmmakers will present no fewer than six new doc projects during the national showcase, scheduled for June 21.
Finnish documentary output remains robust despite an understandable reduction in the number of supported projects in 2021. Over the previous five years, the number of supported projects had remained stable at approximately 100 per year before last year’s drop to 79 projects. That said, the amount of Finnish Film Foundation investment remained the same – €2.5 million – which meant that fewer docs received more money.
Iris Olsson, documentary film commissioner told Business Doc Europe: “Looking at our last financing round of Spring 2022, I can for sure say that the doc scene in Finland is up and about. We saw a surge in documentary development and productions support applications as well as in number of granted supports. Many interesting films are [being made] that have waited for Covid restrictions to be lifted to enable a more safe working environment for crew as well as for the people in front of the camera, not to mention access to locations and events.”
She also points to current high profile Finnish doc successes, such as Tania Anderson’s Mormon doc The Mission (which premiered in Sundance), and Einari Paakkanen’s Karaoke Paradise which opened at CPH:DOX and is currently making a grand tour of major European fests. “Also Happy Worker by John Webster and Just Animals (Saila Kivelä, Vesa Kuosmanen) from Tuffi Films have started their festival rounds nicely,” says Olsson.
The Finnish Showcase will be presented June 21, 15.30 to 16.30 in La Rochelle. Later that afternoon, at 17.30, international doccers will be invited to meet the Finnish documentary industry during drinks at the Agora Café .
FINNISH SHOWCASE
Spy from a Distance by Ari Matikainen
A hybrid documentary film about the revelation of hidden identities during WWII and today. A WWII intelligence officer’s hidden past comes to light as his grandson starts looking into his grandfather’s activities as a scout patrol leader and his international spy networks. The main character’s grandfather and his team operated under a continuous Soviet threat to report their observations first to Germany and its allies and then after the war to NATO while trying to cover their tracks. As the mystery unfolds, a surprising picture of Finland as a central player in international intelligence is revealed and the protagonist’s observations of the secrets that have been passed down through generations and affected him, make us all reflect on our own identity today.
Production: KinoCompany
Length: 90’
Status: In development
Budget: €393,897
Estimated delivery date: Q4/2023
Looking for: Financing, co-producer
Director: Ari Matikainen
Producers: Ari Matikainen, Katja Koivisto, Kiur Aarma
Dangerous Play by Heli Sirviö
When a Kenyan star athlete is accused of gang rape, the only person who sticks by him is his Finnish girlfriend. They start the fight of a lifetime.
Production: Yellow Film & TV
Length: 75’ & 3 X 45’
Status: In production
Budget: €265,000
Estimated delivery date: Q2/2023
Looking for: Global distribution, funding
Director: Heli Sirviö
Producers: Evelina Kantola
Mono No Aware: Everything in Existence is Temporary by Timo Wright
Mono No Aware is an open world virtual reality documentary, in which you can move around freely inside the Exclusion Zone of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant Accident, as well as meet the people who once lived there.
Production: Wright & Co
Length: Non-linear
Status: Post-production
BUDGET €180,000
Estimated delivery date: Q3/2022
Looking for: Distribution, co-producer
Director: Timo Wright
Producers: Ada Johnsson, Timo Wright
The Flying Finns by Simo Sipola
An insider’s View on the World of Rally. The Flying Finns documentary series takes you in situations which are familiar to the fans of rally but which the drivers never talk about in public. What goes on inside a driver’s head while he’s going flat out on gravel or survives a near-fatal accident. How does it feel to lose a close teammate, and more importantly, how do you get yourself back in the cockpit and start racing again.
Presented by YLE Sales
Length: 4 X 27-33’
Status: In production
BUDGET €500,000
Estimated delivery date: Q3/2022
Looking for: Funding
Director: Simo Sipola
Producers: Ari Lehikoinen.
World sales: maria.kivinen@yle.fi, jukka.kaivola@yle.fi
Untold Arctic Wars 2 by Teemu Hostikka & Anna-Reeta Eksymä
During the Second World War, an iron curtain started to form in the north. On both sides of it, superpowers were trying to utilise the territory for their own military, political and economic aims. Untold Arctic Wars 2 will present the significance of the Arctic region during the Cold War that went on for more than four decades.
Production: NTRNZ Media
Length: 6 X 52’ 4K
Status: In development/pre-production
Budget: €1 million
Estimated delivery date: Q2/2024
Looking for: Financing
Director: Teemu Hostikka & Anna-Reeta Eksymä
Producers: Teemu Hostikka & Anna-Reeta Eksymä
World sales/Int’l Distributor: TVF International
Carmen
Carmen is the coming-of-age story of a resourceful girl who is passionate about dancing. This dynamic documentary follows a fearless Finnish Romany girl for seven years on her way to adulthood.
Production: Tuffi Films
Length: 90’
Status: In production
BUDGET €650,000
Estimated delivery date: Q1/2026
Looking for: Financing, sales agent, pre-sales, festivals
Director: Pihla Viitala
Producers: Juha Loppönen & Venla Hellstedt
