All Boys

A choir of tired nurses sing to Anna-Mari Kähärä’s hypnotic tunes about the truths of everyday nursing work in a musical documentary directed by Susanna Helke and co-scripted by Helke and Markku Heikkinen. DocPoint’s opening film is new in its format, and jolting in its message. It is a cinematic-musical work of activism, calling for more humane work, life and old age.

Charles, the protagonist of this reflective documentary by Markku Heikkinen, lives in the city of Kajaani in the heart of central Finland. Children often shout at him in the street, and he has even received death threats to his own doorstep. But Charles, who has a gentle disposition, won’t let these adversities discourage him. He has decided to survive, and he is proud of his children who are growing up as Finns. He is also proud of his job: “It felt good when I got my first salary. By paying taxes I can give something back for the good things Finland has given me.” Charles was born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but the bloody tribal wars that broke out in the beginning of the 90s drove the country’s Tutsi population either to their deaths or into exile into the neighbouring country, Rwanda. In the documentary we follow Charles as he travels to Rwanda to meet friends and family. However, the reunion is not all pleasant: his mother lives in a gloomy refugee camp.

10 Letters to the Future is a documentary film that is a mid-term review in a world of intertwined crises. It is a puzzle, a kaleidoscope that enables a multi-voiced debate in society. The collectively made film was conceived in the era of the Coronavirus, when the reality of global anomalies pierced everything we took for granted. It was a time that caused many to reassess their lives in a new light. What happened to us and what kind of future do we want to be heading towards? Virus researcher, climate activist, political scientist and anti-vaccine protesters see the future challenges facing our society in a very different light. As the virus takes over the world, schoolchildren start collecting letters to be encapsulated in a wooden coffin built by students to be opened more than 50 years from now. The main characters in the documentary write their letters, addressing their loved ones or something unknown in the future.

The potato farmer couple's fresh relationship is based on openness and honesty. Petri, a fifty-something man who has come to terms with his bisexuality, is learning to be true to himself and honest with his partner. Petri's desire to fulfill his own passions raises new questions for Anu about her own desires and demands in their relationship. Beneath the empty landscapes of the north lies a world of men that they have tried to keep secret from their spouses, the surrounding community, and, to some extent, even themselves.

The documentary film tells the story of the Kajaani Seminary, founded in 1900 and later the Kajaani Teacher Training Unit, and the events leading to its closure, using interviews and archive footage. The Teacher Training Unit ceased operations in 2013.