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‘Halima,’ First Finnish Pic Ever by Black Female Filmmaker, Bags Fiction Project Prize, ‘Sauna Diplomacy’ Named Best Genre Project at Finnish Film Affair
Naima Mohamud’s warm comedy “Halima”, about a 10-year-old Somali girl adapting to life in 1998 Finland, won the Best Fiction Project prize at Helsinki’s Finnish Film Affair. The project marks a milestone as the first Finnish feature directed by a black woman, highlighting a previously underrepresented perspective in Finnish cinema.
Produced by It’s Alive Films, No-Office Films and Ireland’s Vico Films, the film draws on Mohamud’s family and childhood experiences and is scheduled for delivery in autumn 2027. Norway’s hostage drama “11 Hours” won the €3,000 Best Nordic Film Award, while Teenu Niukkanen’s Cold War-era comedy “Sauna Diplomacy” received the €2,500 Best Genre Project prize; Finland’s “Darkness Counts” was named Best Documentary Project.
In short
- “Halima” won Finnish Film Affair’s Best Fiction Project prize.
- It is Finland’s first feature directed by a black woman.
- “11 Hours” and “Sauna Diplomacy” also took major awards.
Explained simply
Finland is a Nordic country in northern Europe, and Somali people are one of its immigrant communities. The story is set in 1998 and follows a child adjusting to life between her family’s Somali background and her home in Finland.
Naima Mohamud is a Finnish filmmaker drawing on her own family and childhood experiences for the comedy. Finnish cinema has had few stories told from the perspective of Black women, so the project has drawn attention for who is making it and whose experiences it portrays.
The Finnish Film Affair is an industry event in Helsinki where filmmakers present projects and awards recognise work in development. Its prizes cover fiction, documentary and genre films, giving a snapshot of projects being developed in Finland and the wider Nordic region.
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