Finno-Ugric Film Festival UUSVADA 2025

Finno-Ugric Film Festival 2025

“Indigenous Peoples”

UUSVADA KULTUURIKÜLA 19-23 JUNE

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS!

We are thrilled to announce that this year's FUFF festival will take place in Setomaa from June 19th to June 23rd. This year, the main theme of the Finno-Ugric Festival is "Indigenous Peoples," with a special focus on Seto culture. We are excited to celebrate and showcase this rich heritage.
We are seeking volunteers to assist with the festival as well as the preparation leading up to it. If you're interested in volunteering, please let us know which of the following roles you would like to take on:

General Assistant for Preparations: A few hours of work per week leading up to the festival. English and Estonian language skills are required.
Drivers: Individuals with or without cars who are willing to drive around Setomaa and help transport visitors to the festival.
Kitchen Helpers: We will be preparing food ourselves, so additional hands in the kitchen would be greatly appreciated.
Festival Photographer: If you have a camera and a talent for capturing amazing shots, we would love your help.
Volunteer Coordinator: We need someone who is fluent in English, capable of engaging with people, and able to communicate effectively.
Videoblogger: We are looking for someone to document the festival through video.

Finno-Ugric 48-HOUR EXPERIMENTAL FILM CREATION LAB

We invite up to 4 directors from all over the world to create their experimental short films during the 2025 Finno-Ugric Film Festival in Uusvada, Estonia. Directors may bring a maximum of 2 additional crew members to collaborate on their projects.

Each film crew or director will be paired with a Finno-Ugric actor, character, or helper according to their needs (fluent in their native language), who will be fostering collaborative engagement throughout the project. The primary objective is to create films centered on Finno-Ugric themes and languages in an experimental format, spanning across various genres.

The premiere of these films will take place at the festival's closing ceremony. We offer support in the form of a line producer, food and accommodation during the festival. Additionally, we can provide a certain amount of film equipment as necessary, although we highly recommend participants bring their editing laptops and any other essential gear.

If you have a compelling idea or are motivated to participate, please submit a letter of motivation up to 1000 characters containing your film idea, along with a brief directorial bio by March 30, 2025. Selections will be made by April 15.

The workshop will take place in Uusvada, Estonia from June 19th to 23th 2025, hosted in Uusvada Kultuuriküla residency house.

Send the materials to

E-post: finnougricfilmfond@gmail.com

For further information you can write : sara.kisari@gmail.com

Tel.: +37258877144

ABOUT FUFF

“Imagine a forest where there is only one type of tree, would you like to walk and look around there? We all are different and we all have the rights to be ourselves. Diversity is a necessity not only a choice of the preferred ones.” Edina Csüllög at the opening of FUFF 2020 in Sänna, Estonia

The festival has taken place since 2014. Every year in the summer we gather to an Estonian countryside location to watch films made by people of Finno-Ugric small nations as well as Estonian, Hungarian and Finnish films.

Film Program

PANORAMA PROGRAM:
short films from larger Finno-Ugric nations with established film production, for example, Finland, Estonia, Hungary and Lapland and short experimental films (any genres) to show creative films made worldwide

COMPETITION PROGRAM/ NB !!!This year there is no competition program.
films from small Finno-Ugric nations. We would like to encourage Finno-Ugric filmmakers, who don’t live in places with established film production, to enroll in our competition and come to our festival and meet each other. We provide travel support and possibilities to participate in our workshops

OPENING AND CLOSING FILM:
usually feature films made by Finno-Ugric authors

Workshops

48-HOUR EXPERIMENTAL FILM CREATION LAB

FREE DANCE WORKSHOP

EXPERIMENTAL MUSIC WORKSHOP
In this workshop the participants will try to listen to and explore their acoustic environment. What kinds of sounds are there to find? How does the silence sound? Can any abandoned object around us be used as an instrument? How can we respond to the call of the natural soundscape using our own voices and bodies as instruments? These are the main questions we will focus on, and try to solve in action during the workshop. Earlier experience in music is not necessary. People of all ages can participate in the workshop with their personal presence. During the workshop we will find a common way to play simple rhythms, encourage ourselves to use our voices and natural presence powerfully. In the end, these elements will be combined to create an orchestra or a "big happening.

Concerts

The South-Estonian wild forest has raised our favourite singers and performers who we would like to introduce to you! Singing together is the force we can unite in the evenings. Greatest ones like Mari Kalkun, Anna Hints, Tuulikki Bartosik, Kristel Mägedi or Lauri Sommer who have been devoted to us. Also performers from abroad like Otto Eskelinen and Vera Kondrateva are always ready to come.

Smoke Sauna Culture

You can enjoy the amazing heritage of Unesco, the smoke sauna, very traditional of Southern Estonia. Each evening you can clean your body and soul here.

For the Võro people smoke sauna is an important part of their everyday life and a place of ritual cleansing. Besides washing, sauna enables to restore health, life force and mental balance.

Going to sauna comprises a rich and particular set of customs including the skills of making bath whisks, building and repairing saunas and smoking meat in the sauna. Among the Võro people these skills are highly valued and transmitted from generation to generation.

Discussions

Human rights activists, cultural and language heritage keepers, nature and environment savers, climate change activists gather at our festival each year to discuss the most important things of our lives.

We understand that only together we can make a change in this world. No separate issues, all is one and one is all. Therefore, if you feel like joining or creating your discussion about important topics, please get in touch with us.

Regulations

FUFF is a short film festival, developing interest towards Finno-Ugric fiction, documentary and experimental films made by Finno-Ugric filmmakers, or films dealing with Finno-Ugric topics. (The Finno-Ugric peoples are any of several peoples of Eurasia who speak languages of the Finno-Ugric group of the Uralic language family, such as the Khanty, Mansi, Hungarians, Maris, Mordvins, Sámi, Estonians, Karelians, Finns, Udmurts and Komis.) We welcome film entries from all over the world which have topic related films. Independent filmmakers who are not part of mainstream commercial filmmaking are especially encouraged to submit their work. We also encourage the submission of student films. We cannot accept films which are not related to Finno-Ugric topics or not made by Finno-Ugric filmmakers.

Awards & Prizes

Important point
Amazing cultural achievement
Interesting visual approach
Special mention 1
Special mention 2

Rules

Finno-Ugric Short Film Fiction – Finno-Ugric Short Film Experimental programs:

• There is no limit of the number of films that a filmmaker or producer may register.

• Finno-Ugric means films made by filmmakers of Finno-Ugric origin or films dealing with Finno-Ugric topics that are made by non-Finno-Ugric directors.

• The maximum duration for short films is 30 minutes, including credits.

• Music videos, commercial work and political propaganda are not accepted.

• In order to be accepted, the material must be presented with English subtitles or with a Russian dialogue list which is sent to the festival by 30th of April 2021.

Once a film has been submitted for participation it cannot be withdrawn.

• All shipping expenses of participating works, from their place of origin to the address of this organisation, shall be paid exclusively by the participant. The Festival will not be responsible for the cost of receiving any additional materials.

• The Festival does not pay screening fees.

• Films in FUFF’s official selection will be viewable in the FUFF Digital Film Library, accessible to industry professionals for the duration of the Festival and available to be viewed privately on a secure server by jury members, film festival programmers, critics, buyers and distributors during and after the event. The contact information for each corresponding producer or rights holder will be published.

• Selected films may form part of the festival’s travelling showcase, participating around the world.

• The Festival invites the filmmakers to the festival and provides accommodation and food for the time of the festival for certain filmmakers.

How to submit?

When submitting your film, please also provide an Electronic Press Kit including the following information:

• A still photo from the film (colour at 300 dpi, jpg or tiff format);

• A film synopsis (in Russian and English if possible, or at least in one of these two languages);

• A brief biography of the director (in Russian and English if possible, or at least in one of these two languages);

• A photograph of the director (colour at 300 dpi, jpg or tiff format);

• Film credits.

Submit your film HERE
And please send a copy of your film to finnougricfilmfestival@gmail.com

FUFF Festival 2019

Finno-Ugric Film Festival 2025 “Indigenous Peoples” UUSVADA KULTUURIKÜLA 19-23 JUNE