Now one year old, Aurora Studios – specialising in the development, funding, production and distribution of feature films and TV series – is also introducing the Finnish Impact Film Fund (FIFF): a new private-equity fund with capital commitments of €5.5 million.

“Aurora Studios was established to facilitate the work of producers and creators, and to further the completion of domestic, high-quality audiovisual content,” said chairman of the board Ari Tolppanen. Already waiting for its release is, among others, Aku Louhimies' The Wait (see the news), an intimate love-triangle drama filmed in the Turku archipelago last summer, which Aurora will distribute locally once the pandemic allows. As announced in the summer, the company has also optioned book properties with the intention to develop film projects, such as Ulla-Maija Paavilainen’s biopic of Kirsti Paakkanen, legendary boss of the textile brand Marimekko.

“The FIFF is an integral part of this strategy. With it, we can act as even better partners and allies to producers and creators, as well as help talented teams in bringing their vision to audiences,” he added.

With financiers such as the Finnish Cultural Foundation, the Jenny and Antti Wihuri Foundation, the Saastamoinen Foundation, the Föreningen Konstsamfundet and the owners of Aurora Studios, the latter also acting as the fund's managers, the FIFF has already found its first investment: Bubble, directed by Jussi-winning filmmaker Aleksi Salmenperä.

Produced by Rabbit Films’ Minna Haapkylä, who is also starring in the film alongside Tommi Korpela, Anna-Maija Tuokko and Stella Leppikorpi, it tells the story of a girl whose world collapses when she finds out that her mother is having an affair. The small-town teen sees herself as a champion of feminism and free love, but apparently in theory only, as her liberalism clearly doesn't include her own parents.

“Aleksi Salmenperä is one of the best directors that I have worked with. His intelligence and empathy have made this journey a true pleasure,” Haapkylä, recently seen in Eden [+leggi anche:
trailer
intervista: Ulla Heikkilä
scheda film], told Cineuropa. She mentioned that while the film addresses difficult issues rather directly, it does so with a sense of humour.

“When a teen's body and mind undergo a tremendous change, it's natural for a young person to want to hold on to the only constant they know: their parents. They don’t want them to change at all!” she added.

The script for Bubble was written by Salmenperä and Reeta Ruotsalainen.