Floating Nowhere, Suspended in Dreams...
There's a fantastic equilibrium to be found from going to a festival in the freezing Nordic North when it is mixed with lovely warm people and great films. The traditional and famous sauna party only adds to the yin and yang of extremes. Some festivals can be a life-changing experience.The Tampere international short film festival is no exception and is responsible for changing the lives of many a filmmaker in a wholly positive way. Situated 100 odd miles North West of Helsinki and surrounded by lakes it is one of the most northerly and is the longest running short film festival in Europe (43 years old). Whilst the temperature at night can drop to minus 20c the hospitality inside the redbrick buildings mixed with the friendliness of delegates from all corners of the globe cannot fail to warm the bones especially when one or two Koskenkorva vodkas have been, err, sipped.
I've been attending the festival sporadically since 1995 and I'm glad to report it hasn't changed all that much - certainly not in any negative way. Being invited as a follow-up to Darren Walsh's live-animation exhibition at Encounters festival last September it was great to go back with an old friend and reminisce. The most striking change is the scale; the festival has expanded and has managed to incorporate many of the surrounding (ex-factory) venues in a manageable and easily-accessible way. It still manages to deliver an impressive range of screenings, special foci, workshops and special events. To see such consistency in programming over the years, especially considering the major changes that have affected all aspects of short film and animation production and distribution, the festival is like a true friend - one that you can always rely on but you don't necessarily see that often.
Paying particular attention to the Finnish national and international animated films I was impressed more by the Finnish offerings. The films from Katariina Lillqvist (Faruza), Jenni Rahkonen (Hanen Tilanne) and Heta Jaalinoja (My Baby Don't Love Me) all made a strong visual and narrative impact for various reasons.
If there's one thing a good festival can do it is this: it can make you appreciate and share the love people have for their art and the life-affirming nature of short film. Where else, over the space of a few days, can you get to meet like-minded people from all over the world, share your passion for film and animation and leave with the knowledge that people can become great friends in a relatively short space of time?
Well done and warm thanks to the fabulous festival team for keeping this essential European short film celebration alive.
If you get the chance, don't stay out in the cold - go!
photo credit: Darren Walsh
