Interview with Finnish Filmmaker Jarkko Virtanen

Over the course of a month, I interviewed Finnish filmmaker Jarkko Virtanen online via Facebook messages. At 26 years old, Virtanen has already traveled the globe as the cinematographer for a 50-minute documentary about illegal immigration in the European Union, as well as attended the screening of this film, Paradise, Three Journeys in This World (2007), at festivals in Asia, Europe, and America. Virtanen earned his Bachelors degree at the University of Art and Design in Helsinki, and is currently finishing his Masters in Cinematography while shooting various short films, advertisements, music videos, and full-length documentaries. What follows is an edited version of our Facebook interview.

Anderson: Could you tell me about your background? Where were you raised?

Virtanen: I grew up in a small village called Mäntyluoto. It is on the west coast of Finland. There are about 1000 people living in the village. I did my secondary school and college in a nearby town called Pori. Both schools were specialized in arts.

A: How did you develop an interest in film?

V: When I was a kid I use to draw and paint a lot, but soon noticed that my skills were not enough [to advance] and moved on to still photography. When I was a teenager we used to make our own short films, and I got my first Hi8 camera when I was around 15 years old. I started to write scripts and plan bigger and bigger films . . . We never actually filmed the "big one," but it kept me thinking about filmmaking. I applied for photography school, but didn't make it. The next year, I applied for cinematography school and they took me in.

A: What cultivated your interest in cinematography, specifically?

V: It was logical to continue my interest in drawing and painting, expressing my feelings through pictures. [At first] I wanted to do everything myself, but again [realized] that my skills were not enough for writing or directing, and I had an eye for visual aspects of film.

A: Is there a film or film job that you have accomplished that you are particularly proud of?

V: In 2007, I shot a 50-minute documentary, Paradise, Three Journeys In This World, with very low-fi equipment, but made it look pretty good, after all. It's about important issues (illegal immigration in EU), too, so the story is also strong.

A: You studied at the University of Art and Design in Helsinki, correct? What influenced your choice in attending TaiK? Did you earn a Bachelor’s degree from the School of Motion Picture, Television, and Production Design?

V: Yes, I did my BA in the same school and now I'm still doing my Masters. TaiK is the best school in Finland where you can study film. That was the biggest reason [I chose it].

A: Could you tell me about how you launched your career in Finland? Would you take the opportunity to work abroad, if it were presented to you?

V: In Finland (and why not elsewhere, too) it's all about connections. If you manage to get to know people who are working in the industry, it’s easier for you to get a job. Nobody asks your CV. They hear that you have been doing this and that, and maybe someone puts in a good word for you. I'm applying to a film school in London, and would love to work abroad.

A: According to the Finnish Film Foundation’s website (http://www.ses.fi/en/), their goal is to “support and develop Finnish film production, distribution and exhibition.” Have you as a filmmaker, or someone with whom you have worked in the industry, ever taken advantage of their support, either for a short film or a feature? What are the benefits, or the disadvantages, of using their services?

V: Almost all the films made in Finland need the support of SES because it's almost impossible to make a film with private money . . . There are no big studios who produce [these] films, so almost all [feature films] receive their funding straight from SES. It's always [beneficial]. Usually funding comes from SES and some TV channels. In Finland, there are five channels.

A: Could you give me a brief synopsis of the film Paradise: Three Journeys in this World, and tell me about your involvement in the filmmaking process? What did you learn?

V: Paradise: Three Journeys In This World is a poetic documentary. In the first journey, we travel along the route of tomato trucks to Almeria, Spain, where illegal immigrants from Africa work in greenhouses. The second journey takes us to Morocco, where numerous immigrants are willing to do anything to get to Europe.

We meet Adam, who has escaped war in the Ivory Coast. Now he is living in hiding along with numerous other refugees and immigrants, constantly fearing violence from local authorities. The third journey takes us through the desert to Bakary Fofana’s home village on the border of Mali and Mauritania, where the desert [will, it is believed, ruin] human life in the village within the next few decades.

I was [involved in] preparing the film from the beginning, but wasn’t involved much on the story. I decided the [shooting] format, and planned and gathered the equipment kit used. I learned about video shooting, and about different cameras during the pre-production. I tested a few similar-sized and priced cameras, and made conclusions about what makes a good video camera. I figured out the visual style of the film and the ways to get there. There was a lot of talking and making notes about how we should shoot the film, what to avoid and what to reach [for]. Patience is a virtue in doc shooting, at least if you are dealing with some hot issues and people who are afraid.

A: Finnish cinema has been around since the 1890s – as long as motion picture technology has existed, but is there one particular aspect of your country’s film heritage that inspires you, or discourages you, in your work?

V: There are many problems in Finnish feature films, such as very bad and simple scripts. There’s also not enough money to do any other genre than drama (no Finnish action films, etc.).

A lot of good, world-class documentarians work in Finland, and they deal with important issues. The good thing about Finnish doc [filmmaking] is that people are not afraid of taking risks. You can find a lot of artistic stuff made on the Finnish doc scene.

A: How important is it to you to have one of your films screened internationally? If it’s important, is it financially feasible? And what would be the main reason(s) you want your film screened outside of Finland?

V: If you can get your film shown outside of Finland, you can hear comments from people who come from totally different cultural backgrounds. It might be very useful and interesting to know if your film can reach peoples’ hearts and minds in other countries, too. You cannot get rich making films in Finland . . . And traveling to festivals is just about seeing new people, possibly making contacts and hearing different viewpoints on your film.

A: What good advice have you received that you would be willing to share with other young, amateur filmmakers?

V: The best way to learn filmmaking is not by reading books. You have to go out there and do it.