Celebrating its 13th edition September 25-27, Finnish Film Affair, the industry event of Helsinki International Film Festival, is expanding its program with Finnish Weird (aka F-Weird) which will showcase up-and-coming talent, presenting “the most daring and unexplored ideas across a wide range of formats,” including documentary.
The Finnish Weird pitch event will take place on September 25 and will be hosted by filmmaker Mariangela Pluchino. A total of twenty projects will be selected to give a 2-minute pitch before a jury of industry professionals. The winning project will receive gear rental sponsored by Angel Films, editing facilities sponsored by Postcontrol, and a €2000 prize offered by the newly founded Riimu Creative Agency, headed up by Laura Laaksonen.
“Finnish Weird invites emerging directors, producers, scriptwriters and game developers, to submit projects that defy traditional standards and embrace uniqueness and oddity,” write organisers. “By welcoming unconventional ideas, the pitching series celebrates a fresh and uncommon side of filmmaking, making Finnish Film Affair the first industry event in the Nordics to highlight emerging talent that pushes the boundaries of creativity. Highlighting Finland’s popularity for its unique quirks, Finnish Weird asks filmmakers to bring to light their own definition of ‘weirdness,’ offering a glimpse into the future of filmmaking trends.”
The call is open to submissions from around the world and runs to August 25. Guidelines for applying can be found here.
Comments Alisha Hasan, Head of Industry: “We want FFA to be known worldwide as the event where the most unique and pioneering film, TV and transmedia projects are pitched; the projects that you won’t come across elsewhere! Finland’s brand internationally is quite exotic with all kinds of oddities, so why not take advantage of this and make it an export product? We hope that the Finnish Weird pitching session will have a long and international future, which will create global networks and direct attention and resources to the new and upcoming creators in the audiovisual industry.”
Between September 25-27, Finnish Film Affair will gather hundreds of film professionals in Helsinki for a 3-day industry event packed with insightful sessions, workshops, business opportunities, and networking. The complete Finnish Film Affair programme will be published early September.
