ELO Film School Finland

The summer ahead is long and hot but the burden of shame from the past is haunting Joonas, 24, and driving him to solitude. A sudden phone call changes the direction of his summer and brings Joonas to an old manor for a summer job, forcing him to open up to his new workmates and to face his shame. Joonas works hard under the burning sun, driven by his past mistakes, whilst the others lounge under the calming shade of trees. On the last day the group loses track of time and misses the last bus home. They are left at the old manor and a magical midsummer night begins.

Sami directs a reality series but ends up as the main character.

Somebody Should Do Something tells a story of insecurity and longing for freedom, of fear that drives people to poor choices. The main character, Elvis, falls for the new girl in class, Onerva. Seeking acceptance from his friends, Elvis lies and tells them he’s had sex with Onerva. Due to the lies and misunderstandings, the whole town is soon at a point where somebody should do something.

Nick Mayers, a music icon, comes to believe that he is the only real person around whom the world revolves. When Nick announces this belief and refuses to perform on the night of a big concert, he sees how quickly his world turns against him. His theory is put to a test as he tries to escape his world.

Out into the big wide world as fast as possible. That’s Elli’s plan. But where should she get the money from, if not steal it? When Heze falls for her, she steals from him and both have to learn: “Adulthood is a big pain in the arse”.

Lidia has been babysitting 13-year-old Toivo for several years. When Lidia gets accepted to study abroad, the two face a new situation. What is it to say goodbye? Marco Polo tells a story of a shared game and the emotional weight of an inevitable goodbye between two people who both are at a turning point in their lives.

Akira Takaki spends much of his time rewatching his childhood home videos. Although his father filmed some of them nearly 30 years ago, Akira still remembers his favourite scenes by heart. With a truly unique and playful approach, this film explores what happens to childhood memories when they’re brought into the present.

Three friends celebrate midsummer together in a remote house. The next morning one of them is missing. Lila and Siiri recount their different takes on last night's events, trying to figure out where Riina could be. Siiri keeps trying to tell Lila something she is not willing hear.

Waste Land is a tragicomic ensemble film about a bunch of kids squatting an abandoned seaside hotel. The shabby hotel offers a life outside the society, at least momentarily. The house is more than a house – it is a utopian space for love, partying and freedom. But can the days of ease last when the squat is confronted both by outside forces and by internal conflicts?

Janika takes advantage of her pregnancy by smuggling amphetamine from Tallinn to Helsinki with her brother.

Story about 29-year-old Krisu, who is quite lost in her life. Luckily, she has a indie band called Wendy and the Refugee Neverland.

In a forest, three elderly sisters are playing hide-and-seek. As the play goes on, time starts to lose its linearity, and past selves merge with present ones. What follows is an odyssey through dreams and memories, a hallucinatory exploration of time and collective imagination.

After the disappearance of his wife Juha has lost control of his life as well as the connection to his son. One morning a visitor comes to his door and the one-day love story following this encounter leads Juha to crossroads. We Have Heaven is a short film about old junk, nocturnal organ ballads and cosmic distances.

Nesting is a story about Veikka (20), who is about to leave his work place - a construction site owned by Kari (50) - to start a new life in the big city. Veikka thinks the goodbyes will go smoothly, but gets interrupted by a rare situation: there’s a baby in the crane. The surprising problem is an annoyance at first, but in the end it opens up communication between the employees in a way that has been difficult in the past.

Sampo introduces his girlfriend Heli for the first time to his whole family at his parent´s wedding anniversary party. As the night goes on, they learn new and unexpected traits of each other.

They are everywhere without us observing them. These ‘invisibles’ can only be seen on camera and only heard thanks to a microphone. Footage shot in public spaces shows people who seem non-existent to everyone else in the frame.

Recast is a satirical black comedy about how one can remain true to themselves through the gauntlets of the industrial machine - or can they?

The Night Thief is a warmhearted drama set in the suburbs of Helsinki, Finland. It tells the story of a Somali man, Farah, whose car starts to disappear mysteriously at night. Although the car always shows up in the morning, Farah starts to run late from work, and fears that he could lose his job. Farah’s wife is moving to Finland from Somalia and if Farah were to get fired, his wife’s residency permit would be in danger. Due to the circumstances, Farah decides to do whatever it takes to catch the thief. In the end, things take an unexpected turn when Farah finally faces the person who has been stealing his car.

As she keeps watching old home movies isolated in her hotel room, the screen becomes a mirror from which she tries to see herself. Levels of subjectivity, narrative, and reality entwine into a surrealist fever dream of scopophilic cinéma pur. The final layer of meaning is all of us watching the film on the screen-mirror in the theatre.

A wetland archaeologist tracks groundwater levels in a drained swamp. In a quiet village, the emergency call center receives reports of a drifting island. This kaleidoscopic tale takes us on a journey across time and place, exploring the tense relationship between humans and wetlands from surprising perspectives that blend science and oral folklore.