Anu

An Interview with Director of Mrs. Noisy, Amano Chihiro, and Actor Nagao Takuma

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In Japan, houses are built close to each other and the walls are thin. Neighbourhood quarrels are common and often they flare up because of the noise. This is also the situation in Mrs. Noisy (Misesu Noizi, 2019). In the film, everything starts with a single futon. The loud sound of Miwako’s (Ootaka Yoko) tamping the mattress is simply too much for Maki (Shinohara Yukiko), an author struggling for inspiration.

When she was working on the screenplay, the director of Mrs. Noisy, Amano Chihiro (b. 1982), was inspired in particular by the French film Clouds of Sils Maria (2014) by the director Olivier Assayas.

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Coronavirus update

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The Finnish government has today 12th March given instructions to cancel public events of over 500 attendees in an effort to contain the spread of the coronavirus. The capacity of any of the Helsinki Cine Aasia festival film screenings does not surpass this threshold*. As such and in light of the current government instructions, Helsinki Cine Aasia will go ahead as planned from 12th March until Sunday 15th March.

*** Update, 13th March: The City of Helsinki has recommended limiting public events to a maximum of 100 visitors. In line with the instructions Helsinki Cine Aasia will also limit the maximum capacity of single screenings to maximum 100 people. ***

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An interview with director Bat-Amgalan Lkhagvajav

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Bat-Amgalan Lkhagvajav and Ian Allardyce‘s charmingly sincere film They Sing Up On The Hill is included in the official programme of Helsinki Cine Aasia 2019. We spoke to Lkhagvajav about his sources of inspiration, his influences, and asked him for recommendations from the Helsinki Cine Aasia programme.

What inspired you to make the film They Sing Up On The Hill?

I have to mention first my friend, an English guy Ian Allardyce who is now based in the UK. Me and him, we have been friends for a long time and since 2003, and we have been making films together. Already then, we had the idea for this film but we did not know, how exactly we would make it so it got put on the shelf for all these years.

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Five questions to director Shuichi Okita

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Shuichi Okita’s warm-hearted drama, Mori, The Artist’s Habitat opened Helsinki Cine Aasia on Thursday 14th March. Shuichi Okita is also visiting Helsinki Cine Aasia. “Shuichi Okita’s original, sympathetic style makes people fall in love with his films. Time after time, Okita’s works have been among the most popular films also at Helsinki Cine Aasia,” said Eija Niskanen, the festival’s programming director. “We are very excited to have him as a guest of honour at this year’s festival,” Niskanen continued.

The one remaining screening of Mori, The Artist’s Habitat at Helsinki Cine Aasia 2019 is on Saturday 16th March at 3.45pm. Following the screening there is a Q&A with the director.

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An interview with director Kamila Andini

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Kamila Andini’s enchanting film The Seen and Unseen opened Helsinki Cine Aasia on Thursday 15th March. We spoke to the director about her sources of inspiration, influences and future plans, and asked her for recommendations from the Helsinki Cine Aasia programme. Andini is currently visiting the festival and will be attending the second screening of her film at Helsinki Cine Aasia on Saturday 17th March. After the screening, she will discuss film and film-making with Ulla Heikkilä from Women in Film and Television Finland.

What inspired you to make The Seen and Unseen?

I started working on The Seen and Unseen right after I had finished working on my first feature, The Mirror Never Lies. In my second film, I wanted to explore who I am as an Indonesian and how we are connected to each other and to the universe.

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Celebrating Asian cinema for the fifth year running – Helsinki Cine Aasia 2013-2017

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Finland’s only festival of contemporary Asian cinema Helsinki Cine Aasia is this year organised already for the fifth time. The festival was established by four experts on East Asian cultures and cinema – Eija Niskanen, the festival’s artistic director, Jenni Peisa, managing director and producers Leena Eerolainen and Johanna Rissanen. Niskanen, Peisa and Eerolainen are still strongly involved in day-to-day organising of the festival, and in addition, there are several other enthusiastic team members helping out each year.

Although the festival’s founding foursome knew each other through various channels even before, the decision to set up Helsinki Cine Aasia was made when Niskanen and Eerolainen bumped into each other at the Tokyo International Film Festival in the autumn 2011.

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Helsinki Cine Aasia – Get to know the organisers

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Helsinki Cine Aasia is organised by the Asian Cinema Association of Finland. It was founded in 2011 by four experts on East Asian cultures and cinema – Eija Niskanen, Jenni Peisa, Leena Eerolainen and Johanna Rissanen.

The inaugural Helsinki Cine Aasia took place in 2013. Of the awesome founding foursome, Niskanen, Peisa and Eerolainen are still tightly involved in organising the festival. Below they talk about their relationship with Asian cinema and some memorable moments along their festival journey so far.

In the picture, there are members from the Helsinki Cine Aasia organising team in 2014. From left to right: Sonia Junttila, graphic designer, Leena Eerolainen, producer, Johanna Rissanen, producer, Ria Vaahto, press officer and Jenni Peisa, managing director. In the middle is Eija Niskanen, festival’s artistic director.

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