Finnish Film Affair 23

Producer Oskar Forstén (Polygraf) discusses his archive feature doc Showtime in Helsinki, about a three-day Cold War extravaganza in 1975 whose unintended consequences only became obvious three decades later. “[It] is a film that deconstructs the anatomy of an almost forgotten diplomatic process. In its essence it is Cold War history like never told before, about a conference that was considered meaningless, but that ultimately changed the world,” he tells BDE.

Standing in My Power presents contemporary childbirth culture in Finland as seen from the perspective of two birth professionals who are fighting for a better birth experience and the rights of the birthing people. “I believe we need a film like [this] today because birth-givers’ right to self-determination is still not a given in our culture, and because many birth-givers still lack the awareness, motivation or courage necessary to demand their rights,” producer Kirsi Mattila tells BDE.

The industry event of Helsinki International Film Festival and a marketplace for Nordic films and Finnish series, Finnish Film Affair will once again gather hundreds of decision makers to Helsinki on 20-22 September. Presented in the showcase will be nine new feature doc projects from the likes of Virpi Suutari (Once Upon a Time in a Forest) and Truth.com by Tonislav Hristov.

Prolific Finnish producer Kaarle Aho (Making Movies) discusses his urgent new doc project Truth.com with Business Doc Europe. “The film is about the use of fake news in the hybrid war that is taking place in Eastern Europe and the Balkans. It is a highly topical, very important subject right now when there are forces trying to unbalance Europe on the move,” he says.

The Focus on Finland event was the first of a series of doc pitch sessions at Finnish Film Affair, running 20-22 September. Five new projects were presented to the documentary professionals in attendance. “The aim of the event is to strengthen the promotion of Finnish content to international industry events and increase the opportunities for Finnish content creators to achieve international funding, sales and distribution,” say organisers.

Showtime in Helsinki, directed by Arthur Franck and produced by Oskar Forstén won the FFA Documentary Award, valued at €3000 and which goes towards the production of an international trailer. The film concerns the 1975 ‘Helsinki Accords’ conference, designed to bring the Cold War to an end, but which ultimately led to “the demise of the Soviet Empire and totalitarian rule in Eastern Europe.”

The Finnish producer/director team of Jouko Aaltonen and Mervi Junkkonen pitched the intriguingly titled The Art of Reindeer Racing at FFA, about a shy young girl who finds a mentor in the form of a champion racer. “It's a story about coming-of-age and is also about the importance of a mentor in a young person's life,” commented director Junkkonen. “It demands an extra courage to come out of your shell and find your own voice ,and this is what my film is about.”