Highlights

• 16.6.2025
• AVEK

Kaya Pakaslahti’s film asks: When does autofiction turn into betrayal?

Writer and director Kaya Pakaslahti explores the tension between artistic freedom and personal responsibility in her debut feature film My Year in Fiction. In the psychological drama, a teacher and a student blur the lines between art and life. This interview is part of a series introducing the filmmakers and projects selected for Kehittämö Talent Development Lab.

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• 11.6.2025
• AVEK

Narrative film by Juho-Pekka Tanskanen combines realistic and magical expression

Director Juho-Pekka Tanskanen is working on his first feature film Beatan kevät in the Kehittämö Talent Development Lab. Tanskanen, who has previously directed documentary films, explains his relationship with fictional film and talks about the significance of the cooperation between the producer and the director in terms of the film. The interview is part of a series on creators and their projects in the Kehittämö Talent Development Lab.

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• 9.6.2025
• AVEK

Laura Rantanen’s documentary film is a tribute to mobile libraries

In her film, director Laura Rantanen looks into mobile libraries, the people who use them and phenomena related to reading. The film Elämänlanka (Lifeline) defends everyone’s right to free art, information and stories. The interview is part of a series of articles presenting the creators selected for the Kehittämö programme and their projects.

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• 6.6.2025
• AVEK

The identity of a shopping centre security guard crumbles in the film by Veikko Timonen and Arman Zafari

Screenwriter Veikko Timonen and director Arman Zafari are developing the film Kaikkialla (Everywhere), which examines identity, the feeling of guilt and social rules as well as asks who the rules ultimately protect. The interview is part of a series of articles presenting the creators selected for the Kehittämö programme and their projects.

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• 3.6.2025
• AVEK

Hannu Karjalainen’s essay film is about an attempt to better understand the forest

In his film The Forest Is Wired For Wisdom, the artist Hannu Karjalainen examines trees and the forest both as organisms capable of communication and as strange and uncontrollable beings. The documentary essay advocates the biodiversity of forests. The series of articles presents the creators selected for the Kehittämö programme and their projects.

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• 10.4.2025
• AVEK

New voices get funding in the Finnish film industry

Five filmmakers have been chosen for the Kehittämö Talent Development Lab to promote their ideas for new works with the help of the funding and personal mentoring provided by this programme. A joint programme of AVEK and the Finnish Cultural Foundation, Kehittämö is a glimmer of light in the audiovisual industry, which has been ravaged by funding cuts.

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• 3.4.2025
• Blog

AVEK is a huge catalyst for growth in the audiovisual industry, despite its size

Realising the growth potential of the cultural sector requires grassroots actors like AVEK. In her blog, our Director Ulla Simonen highlights the opportunities in the audiovisual industry and how AVEK can support them. Simonen points out that cutting AVEK’s grant funds was a direct blow to the initial impetus for growth in the audiovisual industry. Fortunately, the Government’s spending limits session can still address this.

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• 21.2.2025
• AVEK

Call for applications and seminar invitation: Young People’s Short Film Festival project

AVEK, the Church Media Foundation and Yle are launching a new cooperation project to fund four short films targeted at people aged 16–19.

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• 17.2.2025
• AVEK

Record number of applications for AVEK grants in 2024

Last year, AVEK distributed a total of €2.9 million in grants to the audiovisual industry. The plight of the industry and the foreknowledge that AVEK’s funding would be cut were reflected in an upsurge in applications. 2024 was the last normal year for AVEK. Due to the halving of AVEK’s main source of funding, the compensation for private copying, there is still no certainty about this year’s funding.

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• 17.2.2025
• AVEK

AVEK invites applications for scriptwriting support, project grants and support for international promotion

Due to the cut in the compensation for private copying, we have not yet received the funds for this year. However, we will open the call for applications for some of the grants with the help of grant funds carried over from last year and the national funds granted by the Kopiosto Board.

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• 20.12.2024
• Blog

The year is about to change in uncertainty

The compensation for private copying, which is an essential source of financing for AVEK, will be halved next year. “We are now waiting for information on how the compensation will be divided among the various operators and what the share of the distributable funds in 2025 will be. This wait may take a while.” In her blog, Director of AVEK Ulla Simonen reflects on the influencing efforts conducted during the past year and considers the future outlook.

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• 22.11.2024
• AVEK

Application processing backlogged

This year, the continuous grant application period exceptionally closed at the end of October. We received a huge number of grant applications, especially for audiovisual works. We aim to reach decisions on all applications received by the deadline by the end of the year.

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• 22.11.2024
• AVEK

DigiDemo and CreaDemo demo grants awarded

A total of €480,000 was awarded to 28 projects in the form of AVEK demo grants. Supported projects include an embroidery kit combining traditional crafts and contemporary design, and a game featuring a bear who thinks that it is dead.

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• 24.10.2024
• AVEK

Apply to the new round of Kehittämö – open call until 13 December

The purpose of Kehittämö (Talent Development Lab) is to support the personal voices of new authors in the audiovisual industry. The authors chosen for this joint development programme of AVEK and the Finnish Cultural Foundation will receive financial support and personal mentoring for implementing their works.

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• 30.9.2024
• AVEK

Schedule for the remainder of 2024 and situational review on the impacts of the cutbacks affecting AVEK

There will be cuts to the compensation for private copying that forms AVEK’s funding in 2025. Based on current information, AVEK’s share of the compensation may be halved. This year, the ongoing application process for the grants will exceptionally close at the end of October.

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• 2.9.2024
• AVEK

Recent survey: AVEK grants create jobs and boost internationalisation of films

According to film production companies, grants from AVEK can determine whether new productions are started at all. The grants also play an important role in companies’ ability to hire labour and access international financing for their productions. This is revealed by our recent survey.

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• 14.8.2024
• AVEK

European film industry operators show their support for AVEK

The massive cutback to the funding of AVEK Audiovisual Centre raises concerns about the future of the Finnish film industry. The cutback is expected to have a devastating impact on the status of Finnish films in the international market.

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• 28.6.2024
• Blog

What does it mean if compensation for private copying is halved?

The “Älä anna kulttuurin kadota” (Don’t let culture disappear) campaign that started last week demands that decision-makers maintain just compensation for private copying. In her blog, AVEK Director Ulla Simonen talks about what cuts to this compensation would mean in practice.

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• 7.6.2024
• AVEK

The CreaDemo and DigiDemo concept grants have been distributed – the number of applicants keeps increasing

A total of €100,000 in grants was awarded to 20 projects. There were 235 applications for concept support in total, which is around 30% more than in 2023.

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• 27.5.2024
• AVEK

AVEK summer schedule in 2024

Our office will be closed from July 1st to August 5th, 2024. Before summer break, decisions will be made on applications for film and media art submitted by the end of April.

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