Country Demographics for Finland('FI')

Film Commissions

East Finland Film Commission
Tel: 50 409 60 26 Fax: 13 260 69 98
E-mail: effc@effc.fi
Website: www.effc.fi
Project Coordinator: Marika Turkia

North Finland Film Commission
Tel: 8 558 47532 Fax: 8 558 47533
E-mail: info@nffc.fi
Website: www.nffc.fi
Film Commissioner: Pauliina Hujanen

West Finland Film Commission
Tel: 2 262 71 79
E-mail: wffc@turku.fi

Finnish Lapland Film Commission (c/o LEO)
Tel: 40 839 38 58
E-mail: anna.hakkinen@leofinland.fi
Development Manager, Film & Content: Ms. Anna Hakkinen

Introduction
Finland enjoys some of the most extensive and unspoilt environments in Europe. Vast forests, a unique archipelago and thousands of lakes present a striking mixture of wooded hills and waters. Finland is the most heavily forested country in Europe; forest covers about 70% of the country, while bodies of water (mainly lakes) cover almost 10%. A quarter of Finland's total area lies north of the Arctic Circle and Europe's largest archipelago, which includes the self-governing province of Aaland Islands, lies off the south-west coast. In addition to the pristine natural environment, Finland offers unique historical milieus, urban industrial estates and modern cityscapes. One notable effect of Finland's northerly position on the globe is that the four seasons of the year are clearly distinct from one another, both in weather and in light. The climate is marked by cold winters and warm summers - from +30C in summer to -30C in winter. Beyond the Arctic Circle, the sun does not set for about 73 days, producing the white nights of summer. Even in the south, the "night" consists of a period of prolonged twilight rather than real darkness. By contrast, northernmost Finland, above the Arctic Circle, enjoys a spell of "kaamos" - polar night - during the winter, when the sun does not rise.

Permits/visas
No shooting permit is required for filming in public places. Filming on private property requires a permit either from the owner or from city authorities. A permit from the police is needed if the filming requires special traffic arrangements (i.e. re-routing or stopping traffic). Filming of works (objects) protected by copyright law requires the consent of the copyright owner unless the works are publicly accessible and not the main focus of filming. Citizens of EU member countries enjoy free and unhindered passage to Finland. In accordance with the Schengen agreement passport holders from the following countries do not need a visa to visit Finland: Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, Japan, Republic of Korea, Liechtenstein, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, San Marino, Singapore, Switzerland, USA, Uruguay, Vatican and Venezuela. EU citizens and citizens from Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland can freely work in Finland for a maximum of three months after which they must register their right to reside in Finland. The citizens of countries outside the EEA need a worker's residence to work in Finland. (for more information visit www.formin.fi). EU-based production companies are allowed to function in Finland as long as they have received the required entitlement to do so in the country of their headquarters. In Finland, the Finnish minimum working conditions shall apply, even for workers posted in Finland. If the worker is not a union member and not covered by collective agreement, he/she is still protected by Finnish employment law (for more information visit www.mol.fi). There is no restriction on the movement of personnel and goods within the EU for EU citizens. Import of goods from countries outside the EU is generally subject to customs duties and VAT and must be declared when entering the country (for more information visit www.tulli.fi).

Tax breaks/incentives
International co-productions with a Finnish co-producer can apply for financial support from the Finnish Film Foundation, AVEK-The Promotion Centre for Audio-visual Culture and from regional film funds (for more information visit www.ses.fi, www.kopiosto.fi/avek, www.poem.fi).

Recent productions
Rollo and the Wood Sprite (feature film, 2001, MRP Matila Rohr Productions), Mosku (2003, Fantasiafilmi), Harbour Brothers (2004, Mandart Entertainment), Pelicanman (2004, Lumifilm), Promise (2005, Fantasiafilmi), Valo (feature film, 2005, Periferia Productions), Colorado Avenue (feature film, 2006, Kinoproduction), Jade Warrior (feature film, 2006, Blind Spot Pictures), Kalteva Torni/The Leaning Tower (feature film, 2006, Artista Filmi), Man Exposed (feature film, 2006, Lasihelmi Filmi), The Mystery of the Wolf (feature film, 2006, Kinoproduction), Unna and Nuuk (feature film, 2006, V2 Jaatynyt Enkeli/V2 Dead Angel (feature film, 2006, Solar Films), Vom Ende der Eizeit (feature film, 2006), Mandart Entertainment), Christmas Story (2007, Snapper Films), Firewood (short film, 2007), Harvest Time (short film, 2007), Keidas (short film, 2007), Mongolian Afternoon (short film, 2007), A Mate (short film, 2007), Muybridge (short film, 2007), My Crazyness Is My Love – Impressions of Vaclav Nijisnky (short film, 2007), My Portrait (short film, 2007), PrePost (short film, 2007), =X (short film, 2008), Butterfly from Ural (short film, 2008), Curse of the Remote Island (short film, 2008), Eestaas (working title) (short film, 2008), Girls’ Night (short film, 2008), Glenn (short film, 2008), Hietsu (working title) (short film, 2008), Jungle of Dreams (short film, 2008), Lapua (short film, 2008), The Least One Can Hope For (short film, 2008), Little Traveller (short film, 2008), Luonnotar (short film, 2008), Monte Rosso (short film, 2008), Naughty John (short film, 2008), Where is Where? (short film, 2008), World of Light (short film, 2008), Yksinen (short film, 2008), A Happy House (TV series, Kinoproduction), Dog Nail Clipper (feature film), Karjalan Kunnailla (TV series), Lieska (Suomen Filmiteollisuus SF), Pearls and Pigs (feature film), That Special Summer (feature film).

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