Programme 2021

512 Hours
A documentary on Marina Abramović’s revolutionary exhibition dives into the perspectives of the artist and the participants.
9 Days in Raqqa
The documentary follows an author visiting the young mayor Leila Mustapha who pursues rebuilding Raqqa ravaged by ISIS.
Amélie
OUTDOOR SCREENING Amélie celebrates its 20th anniversary and still delights with its surrealism, mystery, and shared drops of happiness.
Any Day Now
The heartfelt film about a refugee family living in a reception centre, expecting news about whether they can stay in Finland, is nominated for the best film Jussi award.
Are We Lost Forever
A bittersweet separation story about two men, one of whom is ready to move on, while the other one still longs for the past.
The August Virgin
A charmingly carefree film from the streets of summery Madrid, where 30-something Eva is trying to find herself, while others flee the city for the August holiday season.
Banksy Most Wanted
A documentary about the anonymous superstar of street art tries to find the answer to the big question: who is Banksy?
Because of My Body
The documentary delves into the relationship between sexuality and disability by following Claudia, who wants to explore her sexuality with some help.
Berlin Alexanderplatz
In a modern-day adaptation of the classic novel, a refugee moves to Berlin and is drawn into a spiral of crime in the nocturnal neon-lit city.
The Bike Thief
The classic Italian film brought to the present! An immigrant delivery driver’s livelihood is threatened when his bike is stolen.
Boiling Point
A nightmarish domino effect at one of the best restaurants in London leads the busiest night of the year to its boiling point.
Charlatan
The master director tells the strange true story of a 20th-century Czech healer, who struggles between his conscience and his calling.
Compartment No. 6
OPENING FILM The Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix winner travels through 90’s Russia by train, where sharing a compartment brings an unlikely duo together.
Copilot
When Turkish German Asli falls in love with a young Arab at university, she does not know where that love will take her – into a dangerous web of lies.
The Day We Died
A well-acted and fiercely shot dramatic thriller that offers a sharp depiction of the 2015 terrorist attack in Denmark.
Dear Comrades!
The veteran director shows his strength with this impressive film, in which a mother is looking for her daughter after a factory strike takes a bloody turn in the 1960s Soviet Union.
Destello bravío
With a fascinating blend of realism and surrealism, the film delves into the mindsets of a group of women in a tiny, sleepy village in rural Spain.
Eden
In the Jussi nominee for best film, the expectations, growing pains and crushes of youth get mixed up at a confirmation camp, shaking everyone’s belief in God, relationships and the success of the camp.
Fabian: Going to the Dogs
In an innovative adaptation of the classic novel, a young doctor working in advertising falls in love with an actress in the decadent 1930s Berlin, where Nazism is just beginning its rise.
Faithful
In 1950s Algeria, Fernand and Hélène’s love story takes a dramatic turn, when he joins the resistance against the French occupation.
The Fam
Lust for life through joy and pain, seven teenage girls passionately rebel against the shortcomings of their surroundings.
February
A stunningly beautiful meditation on the passage of time, nature and a life lived, depicted in three parts.
Games People Play
A best film Jussi nominee about the weekend of a group of thirty-something childhood friends on an idyllic island, where old feelings bubble up.
Gaza Mon Amour
A Kaurismäkiesque comedy, in which a romance in Palestine between a middle-aged fisherman and a dressmaker takes on political dimensions.
Ghosts
This ambitious debut feature takes a fierce look at the streets of Istanbul, where four lives intersect when unrest sparks during a countrywide power cut.
Glory to the Queen
An incredible true story of four Georgian female masters who rose to the top of Soviet chess during the Cold War.
The Gravedigger's Wife
FINNISH GALA PREMIERE The subtle and enchanting film, about a gravedigger who needs money for his wife’s surgery, grows into a universal tale of family and love in hard times.
Here We Are
A warm depiction of the difficulty of letting go, following a father and his autistic son who run away together, when the time comes for the son to live on his own.
Herself
CLOSING FILM An unrelenting mother escapes her violent husband and starts a new life with her daughters in the Irish drama, which was a standout at the Sundance Film Festival.
How to Kill a Cloud
A documentary about a Finnish climate scientist’s ambitious attempt to create rain in the United Arab Emirates asks, whether it is possible to control the climate – and by whom.
I Comete – A Corsican Summer
A warm look into the refreshingly slow lifestyles of the inhabitants of a small village on the island of Corsica.
It Snows in Benidorm
In the mysterious drama starring Timothy Spall, retired Peter travels to Spain to see his brother, only to find him missing when he gets there.
Kiss Me Before It Blows Up
A light romantic comedy about a lesbian couple getting engaged. When their German and Israeli families come together, cultural clashes cannot be avoided.
Ladies of Steel
The best film Jussi nominee is a delightful comedy about a road trip that three over 75-year-old sisters take across Finland.
Lobster Soup
In a small Icelandic town, local fishermen and tourists alike are fond of a cosy café, which brings its owners a tempting offer – but can they sell the heart of the community?
The Macaluso Sisters
In a moving screen adaptation of the director’s own play, one of four sisters dies, which affects the others for decades to come.
Magaluf Ghost Town
A thrilling documentary toying between fact and fiction, about the inhabitants of a small town in Mallorca, trying to survive in the riptide of tourism.
Making a Mountain
Could a power plant also be a ski slope and a tourist attraction? The Danish architecture firm BIG shows what can be achieved with open-minded city planning.
Mr Bachmann and His Class
A multifaceted documentary that follows a teacher with unique methods of surviving amidst the social and cultural ponderings of everyday life with teenagers.
My Little Sister
Nina Hoss and Lars Eidinger star in the touching drama about artistic twins who are brought together by a serious illness.
My Wonderful Wanda
A biting family drama about Polish Wanda who takes care of the patriarch of a wealthy Swiss family, whose secrets start coming out after a surprising turn of events.
The Mystery of the Pink Flamingo
A playfully comedic documentary trying to solve the mystery of our fascination with the figure of the pink flamingo.
Natural Light
The Silver Bear winner is a war film for those who do not like war films: a stunningly shot drama about keeping one’s humanity intact under impossible circumstances.
Never Gonna Snow Again
The celebrated Polish director’s atmospheric satire about a masseur who arrives in a wealthy neighbourhood to heal with his hands as well as with his hypnotic gaze.
Next Door
A deliciously self-deprecating brain-teaser about a smug actor named Daniel, who happens to meet an unknown man in a bar and gets taken for the ride of his life.
The Night Doctor
A neo-noir about a doctor who gets tied up in a web of crimes while taking care of drug addicts and homeless people on the streets of Paris at night.
Night of the Pink Flamingos: Shorts
The Night of the Pink Flamingos shorts selection brings absurd horror, dragsploitation and trash aesthetics to the silver screen.
Nordic Shorts
A look at the year’s most celebrated Nordic shorts offers everyday challenges, political satire and absurd humour – along with a bit of dancing.
Notturno
The Italian master filmmaker’s poetic documentary depicts life on the sidelines of trenches, in the warzones of the Middle East.
Oasis
Awarded in the Venice Film Festival, the film delicately depicts the longing for independence and the desire to be loved through three disabled people living in an institution.
The Other Side of the River
A documentary about young Hala who escapes arranged marriage and joins the Kurdish Women’s Protection Unit, which fights against Isis and the patriarchal society.
Persian Lessons
A nerve-racking tale of a young Jewish man who tries to avoid execution with a white lie and ends up as the Persian teacher of the leader of the concentration camp – though he cannot speak the language!
Pink Flamingos
John Waters’ notorious cult classic is still as shocking and as entertaining as it was decades ago when it was made.
Poppy Field
A gendarme trying to hide his sexuality winds up in a dead-end with his double life, when he faces a homophobic protest while on duty.
Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time
Neurosurgeon Márta follows her heart and returns from the USA to her birthplace Budapest, where the love of her life insists that they have never met.
Quo Vadis, Aida?
A heart-rending Oscar nominee based on true events, in which a UN translator is faced with the impossible while seeking refuge for her family after the Serbian army attacks Srebrenica.
Radiograph of a Family
An awarded documentary, in which the director examines the love story between her liberal father and her extremist mother in the tumultuous Iranian society.
Raise the Bar
Tackling the questions of equality, the sport documentary tells about a girls’ basketball team which wants to play against boys but ends up in a conflict with the national sport association.
Rival
When a little boy moves to be with his mother in Germany, he has to compete for her attention with a man that she is taking care of.
Shorta
In this fast-paced thriller, two police officers on patrol end up in the middle of a riot, when a young man dies in police custody.
Skins
A pastel-toned, episodic black comedy about tolerance in a world where people with different deformities are seeking acceptance.
Spring Blossom
A charmingly delicate depiction of growing pains of a Parisian high school girl who falls in love with an older man, written and directed by the lead actress.
Sun Children
The newest by the Iranian master director is an affecting tale of street kids who are recruited by a mob leader to look for treasure underneath a school in Tehran.
Sweat
Fitness trainer and social media star Sylwia starts to question her lifestyle behind its shiny facade, plagued by loneliness and a persistent stalker.
Taming the Garden
This documentary about Georgia’s former prime minister, whose hobby is to buy old trees for his private garden, is a halting story about the capitalisation of nature.
Tove
The 10-time Jussi nominee is a fresh take on the biopic, focusing on the life of the beloved artist and Moomin author.
The Trouble with Nature
A hilarious drama with breathtaking views follows the Enlightenment philosopher Edmund Burke in his quest for the essence of the ’sublime’ in the French Alps.
The Whaler Boy
Awarded at the Venice Film Festival, the film follows a young whaler who leaves his remote Siberian village behind and heads for Detroit in search of a beautiful webcam girl.
The Witches of the Orient
A stunning reinvention of sport documentary, telling the incredible story of Japanese women’s volleyball team, formed at a textile factory, who rose to victory at the Tokyo Olympics in 1964.
Yellow Sulphur Sky
An adaptation of Kjell Westö’s hit novel depicts the palette of relationships in Helsinki through decades.
★
For stargazers, cosmic film buffs, and cinéastronomers, Johann Lurf’s ★ is a chronological triumph of all starry scenes in the history of film from its early era to this day.