The Finnish Film Foundation grants production support to a variety of new projects
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Loading... - Annette Monet
- 12 Apr 2023
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The Finnish Film Foundation gave out over €6.3 million in production support earlier in March. Among the nine selected features, Never Alone is bound to pique particular international interest. Described as a “long-time passion project” for director Klaus Härö, recently behind the English-language drama My Sailor, My Love [+], it’s set during the war in 1942, when Finland was allied with Nazi Germany. The film, written by Härö and Jimmy Karlsson, and produced by Ilkka Matila for MRP Matila Röhr Productions, was granted €800,000.
Jenni Toivoniemi, who made her feature debut with the well-received Games People Play [+], is behind another possible highlight, Butterfly (supported to the tune of €850,000). This modern comedy, set during a summer tango festival, will see a father and a daughter trying to reconnect. Miia Haavisto is producing for Tekele.
Other projects include Arto Halonen’s After Us, the Flood, produced by Art Films Production AFP (€745,000), as well as four features that received production support as part of the 50/50 scheme, intended for mainstream films with significant audience potential: Kolme valepukkia by Rike Jokela (Dionysos Films, €600,000), two titles from Yellow Film & TV, both awarded €600,000 – Reetta Aalto’s Hayflower, Quiltshoe and the Chicken and Mari Rantasila’s My Name Is Dingo – and, finally, The Grump’s Love Story. This continuation of the popular franchise, granted €500,000, will be produced by Jukka Helle, Markus Selin and Hanna Virolainen for Solar Films, with Mika Kaurismäki coming back to direct after 2022’s The Grump: In Search of an Escort [+].
The foundation also noticed two minority co-productions, starting with the chiller Cychosis, directed by Kari Vidø. After a near-death experience, Lulu ends up in hospital. She feels that someone, or something, is after her. As explained by the boy she meets, who can apparently see dead people, there is another girl following her around. Produced by Aleksi Hyvärinen for Finland’s Don Films, and Julie Rix Bomholt and Mia Elvstrøm Myrälf for SF Studios Production (Denmark), the film was awarded €165,000.
In Kevlar Soul by Maria Eriksson-Hecht (€150,000), two brothers are intertwined, “as if magnetically bound to one another”, until one of them falls in love. When Robin gets convicted for a felony, Alex blames himself for letting his first love distract him. But, ask the filmmakers, “Can you save someone who doesn’t want to be saved?” Misha Jaari, Mark Lwoff, Lizette Jonjic, Ronny Fritsche and Verona Meier are on production duties, with Finnish company Bufo and Zentropa Sweden attached. Read More…
