Taike and Oulu Cultural Foundation announce Filmiapaja project to support audiovisual productions

Filmiapaja aims to unite professionals in the audiovisual field, develop the skills of writers and screenwriters in particular, and generate fresh stories inspired by the northern environment.

“The Oulu2026 Capital of Culture year is a nationally significant project whose impact will be long-term and broad. We are very excited about this project, which allows us to promote in-depth collaboration between professionals in different art fields. This is a great pilot for how we can develop permanent collaboration models nationwide,” says Taike Director Paula Tuovinen.

Filmiapaja will highlight the work and importance of screenwriters. The first phase of the project, which will last two years, aims to develop the highest possible quality of projects in the audiovisual sector. Productions that participate in the project will be developed through a series of workshops.

The productions will then be presented to selected financiers in the audiovisual sector at the end of the development phase in the second half of 2024. Funding will be allocated to some of the selected productions. Taike will provide approximately 350,000 euros in funding for the development phase of the project, while the Oulu Cultural Foundation has prepared to provide a maximum of 400,000 euros to finance productions related to northern themes created through the project. 

“Oulu is one of the northernmost European capitals of culture. The Northern identity is strongly reflected in the themes of the Oulu2026 cultural programme. Being on the edge of Europe often produces distinctive art and culture, which we want to strengthen and present more broadly in Europe. We also want to increase the opportunities for creative work in Northern Finland, for example in the audiovisual sector. Our goals coincide well with those of the Filmiapaja project,” says Programme Director Samu Forsblom.

In addition to enabling networking among artists and successful productions, the goal is to create permanent cooperation models and structures between different fields of the art, as well as to promote the employment of artists both regionally in Northern Finland and nationally. Taike is also negotiating with other national financiers of the audiovisual sector for additional funding for the production phase, which would further raise the quantity and quality of productions.

Professionals in the fields of audiovisual art and literature can apply following the call for applications in 2023, which will be announced on the Taike website.

Further information

Janne Niskala, Project Manager, Regional Artist for Audiovisual Art, tel. +358 (0)295 330 858, [email protected]

Janne Rosenvall, Project Manager, Regional Artist for Literature and Scriptwriting, tel. +358 (0)295 330 860, [email protected]