Aki Kaurismäki

Aki Kaurismäki

Birth : 1957-04-04, Orimattila, Finland

History

Aki Kaurismäki is a Finnish film writer, director, actor and producer. Together with his older brother, filmmaker Mika Kaurismäki, he founded the production and distribution company Villealfa. He's a graduate in Media Studies from the University of Tampere, Finland.

Profile

Aki Kaurismäki
Aki Kaurismäki
Aki Kaurismäki
Aki Kaurismäki
Aki Kaurismäki

Movies

Fallen Leaves
Producer
The story of two lonely people who meet each other by chance in the Helsinki night and try to find the first, only, and ultimate love of their lives. Their path towards this honorable goal is clouded by the man's alcoholism, lost phone numbers, not knowing each other's names or addresses, and life's general tendency to place obstacles in the way of those seeking their happiness.
Fallen Leaves
Writer
The story of two lonely people who meet each other by chance in the Helsinki night and try to find the first, only, and ultimate love of their lives. Their path towards this honorable goal is clouded by the man's alcoholism, lost phone numbers, not knowing each other's names or addresses, and life's general tendency to place obstacles in the way of those seeking their happiness.
Fallen Leaves
Director
The story of two lonely people who meet each other by chance in the Helsinki night and try to find the first, only, and ultimate love of their lives. Their path towards this honorable goal is clouded by the man's alcoholism, lost phone numbers, not knowing each other's names or addresses, and life's general tendency to place obstacles in the way of those seeking their happiness.
Cinéma Laika
Self
In the heart of the Finnish forest, the long-closed foundry of the little town of Karkkila has come back to life thanks to director Aki Kaurismäki and his creation of the town's first cinema. The peace and calm of the little town of Karkkila, nestled deep in the Finnish forest, is interrupted by unexpected sounds. In the abandoned foundry, noisy building work is taking place. Inside the building, Aki Kaurismäki is both builder and site manager of what is soon to become the Kino Laika cinema. The creation of the cinema is the talk of the town. In the factory still in activity, in a 1960s Cadillac, in a bikers' club, in the local pub, in the woods or in Aki Kaurismäki's former editing room, people start talking about cinema again.
The Dinosaur
Self
Acclaimed Finnish director Rauni Mollberg made several scandalous yet widely appreciated films. Former co-worker Veikko Aaltonen’s eye-opening documentary The Dinosaur looks at the relentless, often disturbing directing techniques behind Mollberg’s art and success.
Aki and Peter
Himself
THE OTHER SIDE OF HOPE is dedicated to filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki’s longtime friend and collaborator, the film critic and festival programmer Peter von Bagh. In this new video essay, filmmaker Daniel Raim explores Kaurismäki’s oeuvre through the world of von Bagh.
Plankton Salesmen
Self (archive footage)
A nostalgic look at the birth and death of arthouse film distribution in the early 2000s in Russia. The story of the Cinema Without Borders company and its two founders, Sam Klebanov and Anton Mazurov.
Midnight Man
Director
Music video of a song from the 2017 film "The Other Side of Hope" by Aki Kaurismäki.
The Other Side of Hope
Producer
A restaurateur befriends a Syrian refugee who has recently arrived in Finland.
The Other Side of Hope
Writer
A restaurateur befriends a Syrian refugee who has recently arrived in Finland.
The Other Side of Hope
Director
A restaurateur befriends a Syrian refugee who has recently arrived in Finland.
Peter von Bagh
Self
Piirainen's documentary on the last years of Peter von Bagh.
John From
Thanks
Rita is fifteen and spends the summer between warm afternoons of teenage love and party nights with her friend Sara. From Portugal to the South Pacific, the pleasures of this routine will take a turn when the young girl visits the art show of a new neighbor in the local community.
Spotlight on Atte Blom
Self
TV document about the Finnish music producer Atte Blom.
Temples of Dreams
Self
Documentary about Finnish film theaters - about their past, disappearance and future. And at the same time universal story how cinema is undeniably connected with life.
Il était une fois... Le Havre
himself
A documentary about the making of Le Havre
Bluesia Pieksämäen asemalla
Director
Juice Leskinen & Grand Slam live set recorded in 1988.
Historic Centre
Editor
Four voices and their visions of Guimarães, cradle city of the Portuguese nation and European Capital of Culture in 2012.
Historic Centre
Producer
Four voices and their visions of Guimarães, cradle city of the Portuguese nation and European Capital of Culture in 2012.
Historic Centre
Screenplay
Four voices and their visions of Guimarães, cradle city of the Portuguese nation and European Capital of Culture in 2012.
Historic Centre
Director
Four voices and their visions of Guimarães, cradle city of the Portuguese nation and European Capital of Culture in 2012.
Tavern Man
Producer
A day in the life of a lonely tavern man in an old Portuguese town.
Tavern Man
Editor
A day in the life of a lonely tavern man in an old Portuguese town.
Tavern Man
Writer
A day in the life of a lonely tavern man in an old Portuguese town.
Tavern Man
Director
A day in the life of a lonely tavern man in an old Portuguese town.
Une Journée particulière
Self
At the 60th anniversary of Cannes Film Festival, 34 famous directors are followed by camera.
Le Havre
Producer
Marcel Marx, a former bohemian and struggling author, has given up his literary ambitions and relocated to the port city Le Havre. He leads a simple life based around his wife Arletty, his favourite bar and his not too profitable profession as a shoeshiner. As Arletty suddenly becomes seriously ill, Marcel's path crosses with an underage illegal immigrant from Africa, who needs Marcel's help to hide from the police.
Le Havre
Writer
Marcel Marx, a former bohemian and struggling author, has given up his literary ambitions and relocated to the port city Le Havre. He leads a simple life based around his wife Arletty, his favourite bar and his not too profitable profession as a shoeshiner. As Arletty suddenly becomes seriously ill, Marcel's path crosses with an underage illegal immigrant from Africa, who needs Marcel's help to hide from the police.
Le Havre
Director
Marcel Marx, a former bohemian and struggling author, has given up his literary ambitions and relocated to the port city Le Havre. He leads a simple life based around his wife Arletty, his favourite bar and his not too profitable profession as a shoeshiner. As Arletty suddenly becomes seriously ill, Marcel's path crosses with an underage illegal immigrant from Africa, who needs Marcel's help to hide from the police.
Bohemian Eyes
Documentary about the life of Finnish actor Matti Pellonpää.
Bad Family
Producer
The story of an overly protective and controlling father who suspects incest is taking place between his own son and daughter. These growing suspicions and concerns cause the father to become delusional and unrelenting in his quest to end the love affair between his children.
Calamari Union
Writer
17 men named Frank walk across Seattle hoping to find a better life. A remake of Calamari Union (1985).
Crítico
Self
Seventy critics and filmmakers discuss cinema around the conflict between the artist and the observer, the creator and the critic. Between 1998 and 2007, Kléber Mendonça Filho recorded testimonies about this relationship in Brazil, the United States and Europe, based on his experience as a critic.
Helsinki, Forever
Thanks
Helsinki, Forever is a montage film about the city of Helsinki by the award-winning Finnish film director and academic Peter von Bagh. The film draws a portrait of Helsinki and also acts as an essay on Finnish culture in a wider sense. It shows Helsinki as captured by leading Finnish feature film and documentary makers over a period of one hundred years.
To Each His Own Cinema
Writer
A collective film of 33 shorts directed by different directors about their feeling about cinema.
To Each His Own Cinema
Producer
A collective film of 33 shorts directed by different directors about their feeling about cinema.
To Each His Own Cinema
Director
A collective film of 33 shorts directed by different directors about their feeling about cinema.
The Foundry
Editor
Workers of a foundry eat their lunch and watch Lumiére brothers film Employees Leaving the Lumière Factory (1895).
The Foundry
Producer
Workers of a foundry eat their lunch and watch Lumiére brothers film Employees Leaving the Lumière Factory (1895).
The Foundry
Writer
Workers of a foundry eat their lunch and watch Lumiére brothers film Employees Leaving the Lumière Factory (1895).
The Foundry
Director
Workers of a foundry eat their lunch and watch Lumiére brothers film Employees Leaving the Lumière Factory (1895).
Lights in the Dusk
Writer
Koistinen is a sad sack, a man without affect or friends. He's a night-watchman in Helsinki with ideas of starting his own business, but nothing to go with those intentions. He sometimes talks a bit with a woman who runs a snack trailer near his work. Out of the blue, a young sophisticated blonde woman attaches herself to Koistinen. He thinks of her as his girlfriend, he takes her on her rounds.
Lights in the Dusk
Editor
Koistinen is a sad sack, a man without affect or friends. He's a night-watchman in Helsinki with ideas of starting his own business, but nothing to go with those intentions. He sometimes talks a bit with a woman who runs a snack trailer near his work. Out of the blue, a young sophisticated blonde woman attaches herself to Koistinen. He thinks of her as his girlfriend, he takes her on her rounds.
Lights in the Dusk
Producer
Koistinen is a sad sack, a man without affect or friends. He's a night-watchman in Helsinki with ideas of starting his own business, but nothing to go with those intentions. He sometimes talks a bit with a woman who runs a snack trailer near his work. Out of the blue, a young sophisticated blonde woman attaches herself to Koistinen. He thinks of her as his girlfriend, he takes her on her rounds.
Lights in the Dusk
Director
Koistinen is a sad sack, a man without affect or friends. He's a night-watchman in Helsinki with ideas of starting his own business, but nothing to go with those intentions. He sometimes talks a bit with a woman who runs a snack trailer near his work. Out of the blue, a young sophisticated blonde woman attaches herself to Koistinen. He thinks of her as his girlfriend, he takes her on her rounds.
Aaltra
Le patron Aaltra
In this pitch black comedy the rivalry between two neighbors escalates into an all out war. Through a maintenance error on a tractor they both end up, paralyzed, in a wheelchair. It seems they are doomed to stay together. They no longer focus their rage on each other but on the manufacturer of the tractor, in Helsinki. So get ready for a hilarious wheelchair road movie.
Visions of Europe
Writer
Twenty-five films from twenty-five European countries by twenty-five European directors.
Visions of Europe
Director
Twenty-five films from twenty-five European countries by twenty-five European directors.
Bico
Producer
Short documentary about life in a little town called Bico in the northern Portugal.
Bico
Editor
Short documentary about life in a little town called Bico in the northern Portugal.
Bico
Director
Short documentary about life in a little town called Bico in the northern Portugal.
Bico
Writer
Short documentary about life in a little town called Bico in the northern Portugal.
Dogs Have No Hell
Editor
A short film by Aki Kaurismäki. It was shot in 2001 as a test before filming The Man Without a Past, featuring much of the same cast. Markku Peltola plays a man who leaves his company and boards a train to Moscow with the woman he is going to marry.
Dogs Have No Hell
Producer
A short film by Aki Kaurismäki. It was shot in 2001 as a test before filming The Man Without a Past, featuring much of the same cast. Markku Peltola plays a man who leaves his company and boards a train to Moscow with the woman he is going to marry.
Dogs Have No Hell
Writer
A short film by Aki Kaurismäki. It was shot in 2001 as a test before filming The Man Without a Past, featuring much of the same cast. Markku Peltola plays a man who leaves his company and boards a train to Moscow with the woman he is going to marry.
Dogs Have No Hell
Director
A short film by Aki Kaurismäki. It was shot in 2001 as a test before filming The Man Without a Past, featuring much of the same cast. Markku Peltola plays a man who leaves his company and boards a train to Moscow with the woman he is going to marry.
Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet
Editor
Ten Minutes Older is a 2002 film project consisting of two compilation feature films entitled The Trumpet and The Cello. The project was conceived by the producer Nicolas McClintock as a reflection on the theme of time at the turn of the Millennium. Fifteen celebrated film-makers were invited to create their own vision of what time means in ten minutes of film.
Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet
Writer
Ten Minutes Older is a 2002 film project consisting of two compilation feature films entitled The Trumpet and The Cello. The project was conceived by the producer Nicolas McClintock as a reflection on the theme of time at the turn of the Millennium. Fifteen celebrated film-makers were invited to create their own vision of what time means in ten minutes of film.
Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet
Director
Ten Minutes Older is a 2002 film project consisting of two compilation feature films entitled The Trumpet and The Cello. The project was conceived by the producer Nicolas McClintock as a reflection on the theme of time at the turn of the Millennium. Fifteen celebrated film-makers were invited to create their own vision of what time means in ten minutes of film.
The Man Without a Past
Writer
A man arrives in Helsinki and gets beaten up so severely he develops amnesia. Unable to remember his name or anything from his past life, he cannot get a job or an apartment, so he starts living on the outskirts of the city and slowly starts putting his life back on track.
The Man Without a Past
Producer
A man arrives in Helsinki and gets beaten up so severely he develops amnesia. Unable to remember his name or anything from his past life, he cannot get a job or an apartment, so he starts living on the outskirts of the city and slowly starts putting his life back on track.
The Man Without a Past
Scenario Writer
A man arrives in Helsinki and gets beaten up so severely he develops amnesia. Unable to remember his name or anything from his past life, he cannot get a job or an apartment, so he starts living on the outskirts of the city and slowly starts putting his life back on track.
The Man Without a Past
Director
A man arrives in Helsinki and gets beaten up so severely he develops amnesia. Unable to remember his name or anything from his past life, he cannot get a job or an apartment, so he starts living on the outskirts of the city and slowly starts putting his life back on track.
Aki Kaurismäki
Renowned filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki, creator of The Man Without a Past (Grand Prix du Jury, 2002 Cannes Film Festival) and acclaimed films such as Ariel, Leningrad Cowboys Go America, and Drifting Clouds, is the subject of AKI KAURISMÄKI, the latest release from the Cinema, of Our Time series. The younger member of Finland's most prolific and irreverent filmmaking team, Kaurismäki, together with older brother Mika, virtually invented "The New Finnish Cinema." Since 1981, Kaurismäki has made twenty-two films, many of which are excerpted in this documentary.
Juha
Editor
A farmer's wife is seduced into running away from her stolid older husband by a city slicker, who enslaves her in a brothel.
Juha
Producer
A farmer's wife is seduced into running away from her stolid older husband by a city slicker, who enslaves her in a brothel.
Juha
Writer
A farmer's wife is seduced into running away from her stolid older husband by a city slicker, who enslaves her in a brothel.
Juha
Director
A farmer's wife is seduced into running away from her stolid older husband by a city slicker, who enslaves her in a brothel.
Vaiennut kylä
Producer
Drifting Clouds
Editor
Tram driver Lauri loses his job. Shortly later, the restaurant where his wife Ilona works as a headwaitress is closed. Too proud, to receive money from the social welfare system, they hardly try to find new jobs. But they are completely unlucky and clumsy, one disaster is followed by the next. Finally, their courage, confidence, and their unbreakable love triumph over the fate.
Drifting Clouds
Producer
Tram driver Lauri loses his job. Shortly later, the restaurant where his wife Ilona works as a headwaitress is closed. Too proud, to receive money from the social welfare system, they hardly try to find new jobs. But they are completely unlucky and clumsy, one disaster is followed by the next. Finally, their courage, confidence, and their unbreakable love triumph over the fate.
Drifting Clouds
Screenplay
Tram driver Lauri loses his job. Shortly later, the restaurant where his wife Ilona works as a headwaitress is closed. Too proud, to receive money from the social welfare system, they hardly try to find new jobs. But they are completely unlucky and clumsy, one disaster is followed by the next. Finally, their courage, confidence, and their unbreakable love triumph over the fate.
Drifting Clouds
Director
Tram driver Lauri loses his job. Shortly later, the restaurant where his wife Ilona works as a headwaitress is closed. Too proud, to receive money from the social welfare system, they hardly try to find new jobs. But they are completely unlucky and clumsy, one disaster is followed by the next. Finally, their courage, confidence, and their unbreakable love triumph over the fate.
Markus Allan: Always Be a Human
Director
A performance by Markus Allan.
I Am Curious, Film
Self
The Scandinavian entry in the BFI's Century of Cinema series of documentaries
Iron Horsemen
Assistant Director
Bad Trip, a biker who has been freshly inducted into a gang, flees from them after stealing one of their bikes.
Iron Horsemen
Producer
Bad Trip, a biker who has been freshly inducted into a gang, flees from them after stealing one of their bikes.
Iron Horsemen
Cadillac Man
Bad Trip, a biker who has been freshly inducted into a gang, flees from them after stealing one of their bikes.
Total Balalaika Show
Producer
A 57 minute documentary of a Helsinki concert featuring the Leningrad Cowboys and the Alexandrov Red Army Choir and Ballet, who collaborate on a number of US Rock songs sung in English (like "Sweet Home, Alabama") as well as more traditional Russian songs like the "Volga Boatman".
Total Balalaika Show
Writer
A 57 minute documentary of a Helsinki concert featuring the Leningrad Cowboys and the Alexandrov Red Army Choir and Ballet, who collaborate on a number of US Rock songs sung in English (like "Sweet Home, Alabama") as well as more traditional Russian songs like the "Volga Boatman".
Total Balalaika Show
Director
A 57 minute documentary of a Helsinki concert featuring the Leningrad Cowboys and the Alexandrov Red Army Choir and Ballet, who collaborate on a number of US Rock songs sung in English (like "Sweet Home, Alabama") as well as more traditional Russian songs like the "Volga Boatman".
Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses
Factory Worker Imitating Chaplin (uncredited)
After years of fame and misfortune in Mexico, the members of the Leningrad Cowboys decide to return to their native village. Their former manager Vladimir, who now calls himself Moses lead them on their way home.
Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses
Editor
After years of fame and misfortune in Mexico, the members of the Leningrad Cowboys decide to return to their native village. Their former manager Vladimir, who now calls himself Moses lead them on their way home.
Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses
Story
After years of fame and misfortune in Mexico, the members of the Leningrad Cowboys decide to return to their native village. Their former manager Vladimir, who now calls himself Moses lead them on their way home.
Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses
Screenplay
After years of fame and misfortune in Mexico, the members of the Leningrad Cowboys decide to return to their native village. Their former manager Vladimir, who now calls himself Moses lead them on their way home.
Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses
Producer
After years of fame and misfortune in Mexico, the members of the Leningrad Cowboys decide to return to their native village. Their former manager Vladimir, who now calls himself Moses lead them on their way home.
Leningrad Cowboys Meet Moses
Director
After years of fame and misfortune in Mexico, the members of the Leningrad Cowboys decide to return to their native village. Their former manager Vladimir, who now calls himself Moses lead them on their way home.
Take Care of Your Scarf, Tatiana
Editor
This droll tale of longing and awkward romance follows two misfits - a coffee addict and a vodka-soaked mechanic - as they hit the road in their Soviet-built Volga. Along the way they manage to pick up two women, the Estonian Tatjana and the buxom Russian Klavdia, despite sharing no common language and being completely clueless as to what to do with them next.
Take Care of Your Scarf, Tatiana
Screenplay
This droll tale of longing and awkward romance follows two misfits - a coffee addict and a vodka-soaked mechanic - as they hit the road in their Soviet-built Volga. Along the way they manage to pick up two women, the Estonian Tatjana and the buxom Russian Klavdia, despite sharing no common language and being completely clueless as to what to do with them next.
Take Care of Your Scarf, Tatiana
Producer
This droll tale of longing and awkward romance follows two misfits - a coffee addict and a vodka-soaked mechanic - as they hit the road in their Soviet-built Volga. Along the way they manage to pick up two women, the Estonian Tatjana and the buxom Russian Klavdia, despite sharing no common language and being completely clueless as to what to do with them next.
Take Care of Your Scarf, Tatiana
Director
This droll tale of longing and awkward romance follows two misfits - a coffee addict and a vodka-soaked mechanic - as they hit the road in their Soviet-built Volga. Along the way they manage to pick up two women, the Estonian Tatjana and the buxom Russian Klavdia, despite sharing no common language and being completely clueless as to what to do with them next.
Talking with Ozu
Self
A tribute to the legendary Japanese film director featuring the reflections of filmmakers Lindsay Anderson, Claire Denis, Hou Hsiao-hsien, Aki Kaurismäki, Stanley Kwan, Paul Schrader, and Wim Wenders
Ripa Hits the Skids
Producer
A week-long glimpse into the wretched existence of Ripa, a long-haired, hard-drinking lug. He is also a filmmaker-wannabee, whose last two projects were condemned for their sex and violence. A Parasite Deluxe, who barely recalls his previous night, Ripa cruises the bars and meets bank-teller Tiina.
The Prodigal Son
Producer
Esa is a small time crook who has been precisely released from prison. He starts to make money by mugging people. One day psychiatrist Lindström rings Esa's doorbell. He has a very strange request: he wants Esa to maltreat him. Esa accepts this request, but he is not aware of Lindström's bad intentions.
These Boots
Editor
Life of a member of the rock band Leningrad Cowboys from birth to moving away from home.
These Boots
Producer
Life of a member of the rock band Leningrad Cowboys from birth to moving away from home.
These Boots
Writer
Life of a member of the rock band Leningrad Cowboys from birth to moving away from home.
These Boots
Director
Life of a member of the rock band Leningrad Cowboys from birth to moving away from home.
La Vie de Bohème
Producer
Three penniless artists become friends in modern-day Paris: Rodolfo, an Albanian painter with no visa, Marcel, a playwright and magazine editor with no publisher, and Schaunard, a post-modernist composer of execrable noise.
La Vie de Bohème
Writer
Three penniless artists become friends in modern-day Paris: Rodolfo, an Albanian painter with no visa, Marcel, a playwright and magazine editor with no publisher, and Schaunard, a post-modernist composer of execrable noise.
La Vie de Bohème
Director
Three penniless artists become friends in modern-day Paris: Rodolfo, an Albanian painter with no visa, Marcel, a playwright and magazine editor with no publisher, and Schaunard, a post-modernist composer of execrable noise.
Where Is Musette?
Documentary filmed on-set during the making of Aki Kaurismaki's "La vie de Boheme"
Those Were The Days
Producer
A stranger arrives in Parisian night café where the Leningrad Cowboys are drinking.
Those Were The Days
Writer
A stranger arrives in Parisian night café where the Leningrad Cowboys are drinking.
Those Were The Days
Director
A stranger arrives in Parisian night café where the Leningrad Cowboys are drinking.
I Hired a Contract Killer
Story
After losing his job and realizing that he is alone in the world, a businessman opts to voluntarily end his life. Lacking courage, he hires a contract killer to do the job. Then, while awaiting his demise, he meets a woman and promptly falls in love.
I Hired a Contract Killer
Editor
After losing his job and realizing that he is alone in the world, a businessman opts to voluntarily end his life. Lacking courage, he hires a contract killer to do the job. Then, while awaiting his demise, he meets a woman and promptly falls in love.
I Hired a Contract Killer
Sunglasses Seller (uncredited)
After losing his job and realizing that he is alone in the world, a businessman opts to voluntarily end his life. Lacking courage, he hires a contract killer to do the job. Then, while awaiting his demise, he meets a woman and promptly falls in love.
I Hired a Contract Killer
Producer
After losing his job and realizing that he is alone in the world, a businessman opts to voluntarily end his life. Lacking courage, he hires a contract killer to do the job. Then, while awaiting his demise, he meets a woman and promptly falls in love.
I Hired a Contract Killer
Screenplay
After losing his job and realizing that he is alone in the world, a businessman opts to voluntarily end his life. Lacking courage, he hires a contract killer to do the job. Then, while awaiting his demise, he meets a woman and promptly falls in love.
I Hired a Contract Killer
Director
After losing his job and realizing that he is alone in the world, a businessman opts to voluntarily end his life. Lacking courage, he hires a contract killer to do the job. Then, while awaiting his demise, he meets a woman and promptly falls in love.
The Match Factory Girl
Writer
A young woman with nothing to look forward to in life discovers that she has been impregnated by a man who wants nothing to do with it.
The Match Factory Girl
Editor
A young woman with nothing to look forward to in life discovers that she has been impregnated by a man who wants nothing to do with it.
The Match Factory Girl
Producer
A young woman with nothing to look forward to in life discovers that she has been impregnated by a man who wants nothing to do with it.
The Match Factory Girl
Director
A young woman with nothing to look forward to in life discovers that she has been impregnated by a man who wants nothing to do with it.
Jonathan Ross Presents for One Week Only: Aki Kaurismaki
Jonathan Ross Presents for One Week Only: Aki Kaurismaki
Dirty Hands
Writer
A political drama set in the fictional country of Illyria between 1943 and 1945, the story is about the assassination of a leading politician. The country, an ally of Nazi Germany, is on the verge of being annexed to the Eastern Bloc. Kaurismäki's TV adaptation of Jean-Paul Sartre's play Les Mains Sales (Dirty Hands) tells the story of Hugo (Matti Pellonpää) who has just been released from prison. Before going to prison, he has worked as a journalist at his party's newspaper. This timid journalist, who uses the pseudonym Raskolnikov, wants to advance in his career and gets his chance when Hoederer (Sulevi Peltola), the leader of the party, has to be eliminated.
Dirty Hands
Director
A political drama set in the fictional country of Illyria between 1943 and 1945, the story is about the assassination of a leading politician. The country, an ally of Nazi Germany, is on the verge of being annexed to the Eastern Bloc. Kaurismäki's TV adaptation of Jean-Paul Sartre's play Les Mains Sales (Dirty Hands) tells the story of Hugo (Matti Pellonpää) who has just been released from prison. Before going to prison, he has worked as a journalist at his party's newspaper. This timid journalist, who uses the pseudonym Raskolnikov, wants to advance in his career and gets his chance when Hoederer (Sulevi Peltola), the leader of the party, has to be eliminated.
Leningrad Cowboys Go America
Story
The Leningrad Cowboys, a group of Siberian musicians, and their manager, travel to America seeking fame and fortune. As they cross the country, trying to get to a wedding in Mexico, they are followed by the village idiot, who wishes to join the band.
Leningrad Cowboys Go America
Producer
The Leningrad Cowboys, a group of Siberian musicians, and their manager, travel to America seeking fame and fortune. As they cross the country, trying to get to a wedding in Mexico, they are followed by the village idiot, who wishes to join the band.
Leningrad Cowboys Go America
Screenplay
The Leningrad Cowboys, a group of Siberian musicians, and their manager, travel to America seeking fame and fortune. As they cross the country, trying to get to a wedding in Mexico, they are followed by the village idiot, who wishes to join the band.
Leningrad Cowboys Go America
Director
The Leningrad Cowboys, a group of Siberian musicians, and their manager, travel to America seeking fame and fortune. As they cross the country, trying to get to a wedding in Mexico, they are followed by the village idiot, who wishes to join the band.
Ariel
Writer
Taisto Kasurinen is a Finnish coal miner whose father has just committed suicide and who is framed for a crime he did not commit. In jail, he starts to dream about leaving the country and starting a new life. He escapes from prison but things don't go as planned...
Ariel
Producer
Taisto Kasurinen is a Finnish coal miner whose father has just committed suicide and who is framed for a crime he did not commit. In jail, he starts to dream about leaving the country and starting a new life. He escapes from prison but things don't go as planned...
Ariel
Director
Taisto Kasurinen is a Finnish coal miner whose father has just committed suicide and who is framed for a crime he did not commit. In jail, he starts to dream about leaving the country and starting a new life. He escapes from prison but things don't go as planned...
Hamlet Goes Business
Producer
A bizarre black-and-white film noir reworking of Shakespeare's 'Hamlet'.
Hamlet Goes Business
Screenplay
A bizarre black-and-white film noir reworking of Shakespeare's 'Hamlet'.
Hamlet Goes Business
Director
A bizarre black-and-white film noir reworking of Shakespeare's 'Hamlet'.
L.A. Woman
Producer
Music video to accompany Leningrad Cowboys' version of "L.A. Woman".
L.A. Woman
Writer
Music video to accompany Leningrad Cowboys' version of "L.A. Woman".
L.A. Woman
Director
Music video to accompany Leningrad Cowboys' version of "L.A. Woman".
The Final Arrangement
Writer
Two men, Nieminen and Varjola, commit a mail van robbery. Varjola betrays his friend: shoots him and takes the loot. Nieminen is arrested, but he refuses to reveal his accomplice's name. On his first leave on prison Nieminen finds Varjola in a small town, where he has became the mayor. Varjola, of course, is shocked to see his old friend again.
Macbeth
Producer
A Finnish film version of Macbeth. Macbeth, the Thane of Glamis, receives a prophecy from a trio of witches that one day he will become King of Scotland. Consumed by ambition and spurred to action by his wife, Macbeth murders his king and takes the throne for himself.
Thru the Wire
Producer
A member of the rock band Leningrad Cowboys escapes from prison and starts looking for his girlfriend.
Thru the Wire
Writer
A member of the rock band Leningrad Cowboys escapes from prison and starts looking for his girlfriend.
Thru the Wire
Director
A member of the rock band Leningrad Cowboys escapes from prison and starts looking for his girlfriend.
Shadows in Paradise
Writer
An episode in the life of Nikander, a garbage man, involving the death of a co-worker, an affair and much more.
Shadows in Paradise
Hotel Receptionist (uncredited)
An episode in the life of Nikander, a garbage man, involving the death of a co-worker, an affair and much more.
Shadows in Paradise
Director
An episode in the life of Nikander, a garbage man, involving the death of a co-worker, an affair and much more.
Rocky VI
Not to be confused with any of the sequels to Sylvester Stallone's classic Oscar-winning Rocky, this short film from Finnish filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki is actually meant as a parody of the late Cold War-era Rocky IV, which saw Stallone's character taking on a juiced-up Russian fighter played by Dolph Lundgren. In this 1986 send-up, Rock'y, played by Silu Seppala, goes head to head with Soviet Igor (Sakari Kuosmanen) and loses.
Rocky VI
Editor
Not to be confused with any of the sequels to Sylvester Stallone's classic Oscar-winning Rocky, this short film from Finnish filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki is actually meant as a parody of the late Cold War-era Rocky IV, which saw Stallone's character taking on a juiced-up Russian fighter played by Dolph Lundgren. In this 1986 send-up, Rock'y, played by Silu Seppala, goes head to head with Soviet Igor (Sakari Kuosmanen) and loses.
Rocky VI
Producer
Not to be confused with any of the sequels to Sylvester Stallone's classic Oscar-winning Rocky, this short film from Finnish filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki is actually meant as a parody of the late Cold War-era Rocky IV, which saw Stallone's character taking on a juiced-up Russian fighter played by Dolph Lundgren. In this 1986 send-up, Rock'y, played by Silu Seppala, goes head to head with Soviet Igor (Sakari Kuosmanen) and loses.
Rocky VI
Writer
Not to be confused with any of the sequels to Sylvester Stallone's classic Oscar-winning Rocky, this short film from Finnish filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki is actually meant as a parody of the late Cold War-era Rocky IV, which saw Stallone's character taking on a juiced-up Russian fighter played by Dolph Lundgren. In this 1986 send-up, Rock'y, played by Silu Seppala, goes head to head with Soviet Igor (Sakari Kuosmanen) and loses.
Rocky VI
Director
Not to be confused with any of the sequels to Sylvester Stallone's classic Oscar-winning Rocky, this short film from Finnish filmmaker Aki Kaurismäki is actually meant as a parody of the late Cold War-era Rocky IV, which saw Stallone's character taking on a juiced-up Russian fighter played by Dolph Lundgren. In this 1986 send-up, Rock'y, played by Silu Seppala, goes head to head with Soviet Igor (Sakari Kuosmanen) and loses.
Ylösnousemus
Taksikuski
A man fakes his own suicide in order to see how his close ones react
Rosso
Key Grip
Giancarlo Rosso, a professional assassin from Sicily, is sent to Finland to kill a very specific target. When he reaches the country, he discovers that the target is one of his past loves.
Rosso
Dialogue
Giancarlo Rosso, a professional assassin from Sicily, is sent to Finland to kill a very specific target. When he reaches the country, he discovers that the target is one of his past loves.
Calamari Union
Writer
Calamari Union is an allegorical movie that tells the story of sixteen men all of whom are called Frank (inspired by Frank Armoton) apart from a single confrere, Pekka. Collectively the Franks and Pekka are unhappy with the perceived oppression they face in their district of Helsinki, Kallio, and decide to move to another, Eira, imagining it to be an unspoiled place where people can live lives of dignity. The journey is an ironic one given that both districts are not so far apart. In this spirit, their journey across the city takes on epic proportions with each of the travellers gradually falling by the wayside due to such travails as marriage, work, and death. In its entirety the film is a wry discussion of humanity within a system that regards humans as subservient components.
Calamari Union
Original Music Composer
Calamari Union is an allegorical movie that tells the story of sixteen men all of whom are called Frank (inspired by Frank Armoton) apart from a single confrere, Pekka. Collectively the Franks and Pekka are unhappy with the perceived oppression they face in their district of Helsinki, Kallio, and decide to move to another, Eira, imagining it to be an unspoiled place where people can live lives of dignity. The journey is an ironic one given that both districts are not so far apart. In this spirit, their journey across the city takes on epic proportions with each of the travellers gradually falling by the wayside due to such travails as marriage, work, and death. In its entirety the film is a wry discussion of humanity within a system that regards humans as subservient components.
Calamari Union
Editor
Calamari Union is an allegorical movie that tells the story of sixteen men all of whom are called Frank (inspired by Frank Armoton) apart from a single confrere, Pekka. Collectively the Franks and Pekka are unhappy with the perceived oppression they face in their district of Helsinki, Kallio, and decide to move to another, Eira, imagining it to be an unspoiled place where people can live lives of dignity. The journey is an ironic one given that both districts are not so far apart. In this spirit, their journey across the city takes on epic proportions with each of the travellers gradually falling by the wayside due to such travails as marriage, work, and death. In its entirety the film is a wry discussion of humanity within a system that regards humans as subservient components.
Calamari Union
Producer
Calamari Union is an allegorical movie that tells the story of sixteen men all of whom are called Frank (inspired by Frank Armoton) apart from a single confrere, Pekka. Collectively the Franks and Pekka are unhappy with the perceived oppression they face in their district of Helsinki, Kallio, and decide to move to another, Eira, imagining it to be an unspoiled place where people can live lives of dignity. The journey is an ironic one given that both districts are not so far apart. In this spirit, their journey across the city takes on epic proportions with each of the travellers gradually falling by the wayside due to such travails as marriage, work, and death. In its entirety the film is a wry discussion of humanity within a system that regards humans as subservient components.
Calamari Union
Hearse Driver (uncredited)
Calamari Union is an allegorical movie that tells the story of sixteen men all of whom are called Frank (inspired by Frank Armoton) apart from a single confrere, Pekka. Collectively the Franks and Pekka are unhappy with the perceived oppression they face in their district of Helsinki, Kallio, and decide to move to another, Eira, imagining it to be an unspoiled place where people can live lives of dignity. The journey is an ironic one given that both districts are not so far apart. In this spirit, their journey across the city takes on epic proportions with each of the travellers gradually falling by the wayside due to such travails as marriage, work, and death. In its entirety the film is a wry discussion of humanity within a system that regards humans as subservient components.
Calamari Union
Director
Calamari Union is an allegorical movie that tells the story of sixteen men all of whom are called Frank (inspired by Frank Armoton) apart from a single confrere, Pekka. Collectively the Franks and Pekka are unhappy with the perceived oppression they face in their district of Helsinki, Kallio, and decide to move to another, Eira, imagining it to be an unspoiled place where people can live lives of dignity. The journey is an ironic one given that both districts are not so far apart. In this spirit, their journey across the city takes on epic proportions with each of the travellers gradually falling by the wayside due to such travails as marriage, work, and death. In its entirety the film is a wry discussion of humanity within a system that regards humans as subservient components.
Rare, Medium, Well Done
Anssi Mänttäri’s low-budget movies with their intimate content have become classics. In this black comedy that takes place in Helsinki in summer the main character (played by Mänttäri himself) jumps from one bar and bed to the next. Especially vulgar black humour.
The Clan – Tale of the Frogs
Assistant Director
Young Alex Sammako has seen his brothers defy the law in a series of deeds that first land them in jail, and then, after they escape and return to their rural home, land them back in the lap of their locally notorious family. Alex wants nothing to do with them. He is in love with Mirja, whose family is not that different from the Sammakos, but who shares Alex's viewpoints and feelings. Not helping matters is a police department convinced that all Sammakos are bad, and the family itself, pressuring Alex to follow in their murky footsteps.
The Clan – Tale of the Frogs
Screenplay
Young Alex Sammako has seen his brothers defy the law in a series of deeds that first land them in jail, and then, after they escape and return to their rural home, land them back in the lap of their locally notorious family. Alex wants nothing to do with them. He is in love with Mirja, whose family is not that different from the Sammakos, but who shares Alex's viewpoints and feelings. Not helping matters is a police department convinced that all Sammakos are bad, and the family itself, pressuring Alex to follow in their murky footsteps.
Crime and Punishment
Screenplay
An adaptation of Dostoyevsky's novel, updated to present-day Helsinki. Slaughterhouse worker Rahikainen murders a man, and is forced to live with the consequences of his actions...
Crime and Punishment
Director
An adaptation of Dostoyevsky's novel, updated to present-day Helsinki. Slaughterhouse worker Rahikainen murders a man, and is forced to live with the consequences of his actions...
April Is the Cruellest Month
Ville Alfa
The Worthless
Production Design
Manne, Harri, and Ville Alfa are rootless twenty-somethings in search of purpose for their banal lives. After Manne steals a priceless painting from a group of petty criminals, Manne and Harri flee from the gangsters across Finland, while Ville goes to Paris. On the road they meet Veera, an old girlfriend of Harri's, and try to avoid the gangsters in pursuit.
The Worthless
Assistant Director
Manne, Harri, and Ville Alfa are rootless twenty-somethings in search of purpose for their banal lives. After Manne steals a priceless painting from a group of petty criminals, Manne and Harri flee from the gangsters across Finland, while Ville goes to Paris. On the road they meet Veera, an old girlfriend of Harri's, and try to avoid the gangsters in pursuit.
The Worthless
Set Designer
Manne, Harri, and Ville Alfa are rootless twenty-somethings in search of purpose for their banal lives. After Manne steals a priceless painting from a group of petty criminals, Manne and Harri flee from the gangsters across Finland, while Ville goes to Paris. On the road they meet Veera, an old girlfriend of Harri's, and try to avoid the gangsters in pursuit.
The Worthless
Screenplay
Manne, Harri, and Ville Alfa are rootless twenty-somethings in search of purpose for their banal lives. After Manne steals a priceless painting from a group of petty criminals, Manne and Harri flee from the gangsters across Finland, while Ville goes to Paris. On the road they meet Veera, an old girlfriend of Harri's, and try to avoid the gangsters in pursuit.
The Worthless
Dialogue
Manne, Harri, and Ville Alfa are rootless twenty-somethings in search of purpose for their banal lives. After Manne steals a priceless painting from a group of petty criminals, Manne and Harri flee from the gangsters across Finland, while Ville goes to Paris. On the road they meet Veera, an old girlfriend of Harri's, and try to avoid the gangsters in pursuit.
The Worthless
Ville Alfa
Manne, Harri, and Ville Alfa are rootless twenty-somethings in search of purpose for their banal lives. After Manne steals a priceless painting from a group of petty criminals, Manne and Harri flee from the gangsters across Finland, while Ville goes to Paris. On the road they meet Veera, an old girlfriend of Harri's, and try to avoid the gangsters in pursuit.
Jackpot 2
Smoke Artist
Three young people, two boys and a girl, meet on a Friday evening in an urban post-disaster setting which has brought Helsinki to ruins. The boys' sole purpose of life is to play a Flip-Flop pinball machine.
Jackpot 2
Costume Design
Three young people, two boys and a girl, meet on a Friday evening in an urban post-disaster setting which has brought Helsinki to ruins. The boys' sole purpose of life is to play a Flip-Flop pinball machine.
Jackpot 2
Production Design
Three young people, two boys and a girl, meet on a Friday evening in an urban post-disaster setting which has brought Helsinki to ruins. The boys' sole purpose of life is to play a Flip-Flop pinball machine.
Jackpot 2
Assistant Director
Three young people, two boys and a girl, meet on a Friday evening in an urban post-disaster setting which has brought Helsinki to ruins. The boys' sole purpose of life is to play a Flip-Flop pinball machine.
Jackpot 2
Three young people, two boys and a girl, meet on a Friday evening in an urban post-disaster setting which has brought Helsinki to ruins. The boys' sole purpose of life is to play a Flip-Flop pinball machine.
Jackpot 2
Writer
Three young people, two boys and a girl, meet on a Friday evening in an urban post-disaster setting which has brought Helsinki to ruins. The boys' sole purpose of life is to play a Flip-Flop pinball machine.
The Saimaa Gesture
Producer
A documentary film about a tour of three Finnish rock bands around Saimaa lake system in a steam boat in 1981. The bands (Juice Leskinen Slam, Eppu Normaali and Hassisen Kone) are shown playing songs in their gigs and, in between, the members give intimate interviews or just act plain silly and have a good time.
The Saimaa Gesture
Director
A documentary film about a tour of three Finnish rock bands around Saimaa lake system in a steam boat in 1981. The bands (Juice Leskinen Slam, Eppu Normaali and Hassisen Kone) are shown playing songs in their gigs and, in between, the members give intimate interviews or just act plain silly and have a good time.
The Liar
Ville Alfa
Talkative, hyperactive young drifter Ville Alfa goes around Helsinki, basically trying to borrow money from friends and strangers by means of an incessant delivery of quirky and snappy quasi-intellectual lines and fabricated excuses.
The Liar
Writer
Talkative, hyperactive young drifter Ville Alfa goes around Helsinki, basically trying to borrow money from friends and strangers by means of an incessant delivery of quirky and snappy quasi-intellectual lines and fabricated excuses.