Finland
Finland’s stunning natural beauty offers a snow sure location with costs that are lower than in other Scandanavian countries.
Filming in Finland
For the fifth year in a row, Finland has been named the happiest country in the world (2022 UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network). It’s a safe, secure, transparent, film-friendly country and the industry is full of top-notch professionals.
The national production incentive is a maximum of 25% cash rebate for production costs. Some of the Finnish regions or cities also offer regional incentives to productions.
Costs are lower than in other Scandinavian countries with similar standards of working and living. Crews are used to extreme weather conditions and speak excellent English. Finland’s AV industry is not heavily unionized. Helsinki is the movie capital of Finland and that’s where most of the crew and main rental houses are based, but they operate across the whole country.
Finland has a well-built infrastructure, and it has a rich range of natural locations that are accessible and usable throughout the year.
Finland is known for being a snow sure location and Lapland has snow over 200 days a year. Finnish Lapland is also known around the world as the home of Santa Claus.
Finland’s nature also provides beautiful islands and archipelago, thousands of lakes, rivers and lush forests. Architecture covers different eras and types from soviet-inspired design to modern cities. The application process for filming permits is very simple in Finland, and permit costs are usually very low. For example, filming in public places are not subject to a separate permission.
Studios in Finland vary from small to several medium-sized. If a bigger space is needed, there are larger spaces which can be rented for filming purposes. Also, Finland has one of the most advanced LED volume studios in Europe which enables them to use real-time visual effects during live action.
Climate
The climate of Finland, a Northern European country, is of the continental type – cold and with a long winter in the north and inland, and relatively milder along the western and southern coasts.
Four seasons offer many kinds of opportunities for filming. The light in Finland is very cinematic and magical. They have white midsummer nights and blue polar nights. Also, spectacular reds and violets of the Northern Lights can be seen when the sky is clear.
Temperatures vary between +25ºC in the summer and -25ºC in the winter.
Our Partner
Our Finnish partner is the longest standing commercial production company in Finland. They focus firmly on the best creative talent, a steadily growing international presence and an open-minded attitude towards production methods and media platforms. They have served Bollywood Feature films to German reality shows.
In Finland, they have won a multitude of awards, with titles including, for example, “Commercial of the Year”, “Production Company of the Year” and “Music Video of the Year”.
Internationally, they have been awarded and nominated at Cannes Lions, Clio, Cresta New York, the MTV Video Music Awards, Epica, Effie, Eurobest, Montreaux and the New York Festival. Their short films have been favourites online and at festivals, and they have been featured, for example, at MoMa, New York.
Tax Breaks & Incentives
“Business Finland Audiovisual Production Incentive is a national 25% cash rebate for production costs in Finland. Feature and documentary films, scripted TV drama and animation productions are eligible for funding. Qualifying costs in Finland are local expenditure from pre to post production. We offer an ongoing application period on a first come first served basis. Decision making is fast, efficient and reliable. You will get a funding decision within 40 days and payment is on your bank account no later than in 21 days. The average time for the payment from the arrival of the report is around 10 days. Payments during the production in Finland are available and very much in favour by the applicants. In order to apply, please check first that your production meets the budget and expenditure requirements. Production Incentive is administered by Business Finland.
“Some of the Finnish cities and regions offer local incentives which are fixed to the region or area of the country in question. Regional incentives are based on local expenditure. There is usually no minimum budget and expenditure threshold. Regional annual budgets are used on a first come, first served basis. You may combine regional incentives with the national incentive. All regions are independent and have their own procedures for applications.
“National and regional incentives combined, it is possible to get up to 40% cash rebate of the production costs in Finland. ” – Film in Finland / Funding
Recent Credits
Production houses: Yash Raj Films, RTL Germany , Carnage Film, B-Reel films
Directors: Siddharth Anand, Mark Jenkinson, Hollywood Action Director Paul Jennings
Considering that Finland is a relatively small country population-wise, it’s amazing that we found a crew so professional and organized. We worked in over 7 countries for this film, and the Finnish crew gave us one of the most brilliant experiences working abroad we ever had. Finland’s conditions were quite challenging during the winter, but our crew was well-equipped and prepared.
Director of the movie WAR,
Siddhart Anand from Yash Raj Films
Interested in filming in FINLAND?
Let us put you in touch with the right production service company abroad. Simply fill out your requirements and we will get the right service partner for your pitch reaching out to you directly, saving you time and stress.
