Written by new-contact on Oct 20, 2010. Posted in On Location

Finland offers striking scenery and a Russian double

Finland may not yet be on every Location Manager’s list of ideal filming locations, but that could all change in the coming years. While the lack of filming incentives has played a part in the country struggling to find a place on the filmmaking map, it could prompt the interest of productions looking for a Russian double and guarantees of snow.

Johanna Karppinen, Project Manager at the Finnish Lapland Film Commission (FLFC), said: “In addition to strong contrasts in landscape, the four truly distinct seasons transform surroundings dramatically. Winters with blue polar nights are epic and mysterious in their atmosphere and summers are characterised by long, light nights. In the autumn the forests transform into a splendid and unforgettable display of reds, golds and purples.”

On the subject of incentives, Petra Theman, of Finnish Film & Audiovisual Export, said: “There are possibilities of financing feature film minority co-productions from the Finnish Film Foundation and some small regional funds, but that is about it. Finland has however been chosen lately for several interesting international projects because of other reasons - truly fast, effective and multitasking crews, 100% sure snow, Russia lookalike locations and so on.”

Easy accessibility makes the scenery all the more inviting. The country has a solid transport infrastructure as a result of its popularity as a tourist destination, while communication is aided by a strong mobile phone network. As a result shoots can be made to feel remote, but a comfortable hotel and an airstrip can be just minutes away.

In September of this year The Location Guide helped the FLFC arrange a fam trip to Finnish Lapland and Helsinki, which was attended by Nicholas Daubeny, Antonin Depardieu, Simon Baber, Bill Mountain and Oliver Damian. Daubeny has worked as Location Manager on such major projects as Mission: Impossible 3, The Pacific and Inception.

He said: “Helsinki would make a good double for a Russian city and the country as a whole is on a par with the UK in terms of expenses. It would also be very good for projects looking for a fantasy setting, especially for second unit work. There aren’t any incentives, but incentives aren’t everything.”

He added that one of the principal downsides is a mosquito problem that can affect the country during the summer months, although so-called Mosquito Magnets can be used to get rid of them. Karppinen said: “The level of annoyance they can cause depends so much on the type and needs of the production, filming area and so on. The volumes of mosquitoes vary yearly.”

Daubeny also highlighted the potential of Santa Park in northern Finland. The area is a Christmas theme park during the festive season, but for the rest of the year is available for filming. It offers 13 hectares of space, including 1,000 metres of tunnels and space for production offices so could be used for weather cover shooting.

Another appeal of shooting in Finland could be as a location for car commercials. A mountainous north-western region offers atmospheric roadways, while the frozen conditions offer another interesting choice. Hanna Mutanen, of Grillifilms, said: “We usually have nice winter snow and ice, starting from late November until May. Lakes and rivers have thick ice to carry a car from January to April.”

Helsinki is Finland’s production centre. Crews generally have experience of filming in more extreme conditions as most of the projects that come to Finland are there for exterior shoots. Mutanen concluded: “Most of the better studios are based in Helsinki, but there are some also in the north-west. Usually international productions are here for the locations, not that much for studios.”