Finnish films filled theatres to the brim

The 9th DocPoint - Helsinki Documentary Film Festival closed on Sunday 31st, its films and events drawing an audience of 27,000, of which 22,000 in the theaters alone. The first ever DocPoint Tallinn was also a success with its 2100 visitors. What attracted the visitors of DocPoint Helsinki most were the premier screenings of Finnish documentary films.

The opening film, Joonas Berghäll's and Mika Hotakainen's Steam of Life, filled the 700-seater Bio Rex with documentary fans. Afterwards the film that has already become a phenomenon, received a 15 minute round of standing applause as first in DocPoint's history.

Another great moment of this year's DocPoint was the Tempo silent film concert, which also gathered a nearly full hall of attendees. The Five Corners Quintet's improvised jazz accompanied the works of production company Aho & Soldan, featuring a modernizing Finland in the 1930's.

The new Finnish documentary films truly brought the audience in, as In the Shadow of Doubt, Auf Wiedersehen Finnland, and of course, Steam of Life, all sold out, with The Perfumer, Portrait of a Man, Into Eternity, Iceberg Shadow, and The Magnetic Man coming in close.

Seminars on American independent film and the state of Finnish film were also a great success, and audiences were quick to find their way to the Meet the director meetings at the festival bar Painobaari, Nicolas Philibert being the most popular on Saturday.

The youth and children's documentary film event DOKKINO was organized on the 25th-29th January. The main theme of DOKKINO was family. The event gathered an audience of 2100 pupils from 52 different schools. The industry funding, distribution and networking event, DocPoint Encounters garnered much praise from participants.

DocPoint will celebrate its 10th anniversary next year, until then, thank you.