27/11/2023 - The campaign gets under way today to combat the negative effects of the pandemic on the cultural sector, rising costs and only slowly recovering audience numbers

The future of Finland’s biggest and most iconic film festival, Helsinki’s Love & Anarchy, which has been around for 35 years, is in jeopardy. The non-competitive film festival is known for its exceptionally wide-ranging programme, with screenings of more than 470 films from over 50 countries each year. Since 2012, it has also boasted its own industry sidebar, Finnish Film Affair, which is usually attended by over 500 audiovisual professionals from the entire world.

The festival, which has already hosted many big names such as actress Tilda Swinton and film director John Woo, is now struggling to survive, mostly owing to rising costs and due to the dip in audience numbers since the pandemic. The 36th edition, which unspooled in September 2023, attracted 51,000 guests – down about 10,000 compared to pre-pandemic times.

To save itself, the gathering is launching a fundraising campaign today, which will last until the end of the year. It starts with three special support screenings in Helsinki’s Bio Rex cinema: The Holdovers (2023) by Alexander Payne, a dramedy about an unpopular boarding-school teacher forced to spend Christmas with students who have nowhere to go; Four Daughters [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Kaouther Ben Hania
film profile] (2023), Tunisia’s Oscar entry by Kaouther Ben Hania, about the radicalisation of two sisters; and the much-loved classic In the Mood for Love (2000) by Chinese filmmaker Wong Kar-wai.

The campaign aims to raise at least €45,000 by the end of 2023, and you can also show the festival some love from abroad by buying specially designed digital “Save R&A” Christmas cards here.