Tero Pihkakoski

A portrait of a relationship between three generations and how it shifts between the search for closeness, understanding and acceptance, as the teenage son steps closer to adulthood. The film continues to follow the lives of Tero and his son Henri, both previously featured in Kärkkäinen’s documentary The Living Room of a Nation.

The Living Room of the Nation is a documentary film that portrays a number of Finnish living rooms. The film is a story of changes, the inevitable passing of time, and the human desire to be needed, visible.

Tero, 28, from Northern Finland is becoming a father, but has not yet told anybody. One Saturday night in December his friend Saku comes for a visit, bringing Tero two pairs of baby overalls. For some reason the whole village has heard the news. The boys decide to make a toast for fatherhood.

In Ostrobothnia, men who have fallen in love with old tractors have set up a club that requires a Czech Zetor tractor. The main character of the documentary is the manboy Tero, who is looking for a woman of his life. While waiting for the hostess, the men drive their Zetors towards the Keskinen village shop and Katri Helena plays.

Intimate moment between a father and son – one night, one car ride, one problem.

Every day in Finland alone, two people commit suicide. Thousands of people are affected by suicide yearly. Once I Dreamt of Life is a feature length documentary film about suicide. It’s an account about one’s personal relation to suicide, but also studies suicide as social phenomena: The motives, warning signs & consequences. The film follows the journey of a young man, an animated character based on a real person, on his path towards suicide. The journey is described by people who’ve had encounters with suicide – parents who lost their child, young adults who considered or even tried committing suicide. When linked together, these experiences offer a collage of our perception of suicide. They tell about how people cope with the past and find a reason to go on with their lives. The intention is not to romanticize suicide or judge. It encourages people to talk about painful and difficult experiences and reminds us how important it is to be heard.