Finno-Ugric Film Festival UUSVADA 2025

Finno-Ugric Film Festival 2025

“Indigenous Peoples”

UUSVADA KULTUURIKÜLA 20-22 JUNE

We are thrilled to announce that this year's FUFF festival will take place in Setomaa from June 20th to June 22rd. 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.

The detailed program of the festival will be anounced soon!

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS!
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.

Workshops

48-HOUR EXPERIMENTAL FILM CREATION LAB

Finno-Ugric 48-HOUR EXPERIMENTAL FILM CREATION LAB

We invited up to 5 directors from all over the world to create their experimental short films during the 2025 Finno-Ugric Film Festival in Uusvada, Estonia.

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. This year we focus on Seto Culture and Seto Language.

We happily announce the names of the choosen directors for this years edition.

Nolwenn Guiziou /France/
Timo Vergauwen /Belgium/
Horváth Kolos /Hungary/
Beata Migas /Poland/
Dmitrijs Scegolevs / Latvia/

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.

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

OTHER INTERESTING WORKSHOPS

Willow nest building

This workshop invites participants to explore attachment and safety through outdoor group work, utilizing natural materials found on-site to create a communal human nest. Emphasizing the journey rather than the final artwork, the focus will be on fostering a collaborative space with all festival attendees.

The process of co-creation will unfold throughout the festival, with the final sculpture or space remaining a surprise. We encourage curiosity, open-mindedness, and playfulness—feel free to join in whenever you feel inspired.

Reflective questions to consider include: What is the symbolic meaning of a nest? How might building a hatching incubator together influence the festival experience? In what ways does this process affect my relationship with myself, others, and the environment?

We look forward to engaging with you and sharing this unique experience at the festival.

The workshop is led by Triin Prull, art therapist.

INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL CIRCUS

Social Circus harnesses the power of circus arts for personal development and community building. By prioritizing inclusion and empowerment over performance excellence, it serves as a valuable tool for education and therapy.

Justin, a social worker and educator, will guide participants through various group and individual activities, inviting everyone to experience the joys of Social Circus firsthand. No prior experience is necessary—just bring your enthusiasm and willingness to engage!

FINNO-UGRIC COMICS WITH SANNA HUKKANEN

Comics artist Sanna Hukkanen (Finland) organised grassroots comics workshops around the Finno-Ugric world in Russia (Jugra, Mordovia, Udmurtia, Komi, Mari El, Karelia, Sápmi etc.), Estonia (Seto), Finland (Karelia, Sápmi) and Norway (Sápmi) in 2015-20. In these workshops language activists who speak endangered languages were drawing comics about their history and traditions, contemporary challenges, hopes and dreams. The workshop trips opened a whole new world for Hukkanen, and she compiled a graphic novel called Taiga – An Ethnographic Travelogue based on her sketchbook travel diaries. She will show some comics made by teachers, journalists, shamans and brave young culture activists and tell stories about the encounters with interesting people and places. She will also read passages from her own travelogue.

Visible and Invisible – Sketching Culture and Nature workshop

In this workshop, participants will learn to perceive beyond mere forms and contours. Through the practice of sketching people, patterns, natural forms, and landscapes, we will cultivate a deeper awareness of the connections between culture, nature, and ourselves. Sketching will serve as a tool for slowing down, enhancing our ability to notice, and fostering inner listening. We will explore how our placement within a landscape can reflect our own inner experiences.

The workshop will begin with a brief meditation, setting the stage for sketching intertwined with moments of silence, presence, and shared reflections.

Rea, a freelance landscape architect and artist, will guide the session, aiming to inspire a love for local nature in all participants.

Creative Writing

The Creative Writing workshop is a playful and inspiring gathering where individuals from diverse life experiences come together to discover themselves and others through creative tasks. This workshop offers an opportunity to dive into the exchange of ideas and experience the joy of writing. We will focus on various aspects of creativity—from understanding internal blocks to embracing one's authentic writing style. Participants will learn to generate ideas, deepen their writing through sensory awareness, and explore how time constraints can ignite our creativity.

The workshop provides tools and teaches habits that support and nurture creativity. Most importantly, each participant will find their unique voice and story.

I, Helen Maandi, will be leading this workshop. Storytelling has been an integral part of my life since childhood. I studied professional creative writing in New Zealand and have been passionately sharing creative tools with both youth and adults ever since. My aim is to support each participant in discovering their creative path and to inspire everyone to confidently tell their unique story.

EXHIBITIONS

"50 Charming Moments in Setoma." The exhibition showcases the artist's works inspired by the culture and traditions of Setomaa, including corporate graphics and designs that Evelin Urm has created since 2008 for Setomaa. The exhibition will remain open until September 7 at the Uusvada village house.

Evelin Urm is a designer and graphic artist who has designed numerous exhibitions and created visual identities for many major events in Setomaa, such as Seto Kingdom and Seto Folk. Additionally, she has designed publications for Seto Publishing, Seto-language books, and a comprehensive book on Seto Folk Costumes.

"ANIMALS IN THE WORLD OF FINNO-UGRIC PEOPLES."

Piret Räni

I have collected legends and folklore that give an idea of the meaning and significance of birds and animals in the Finno-Ugric worldview. I started with creation stories and added other stories from the times of a shamanistic worldview. I tried to find the oldest fragments that connect the Finno-Ugric cultures. There are in fact many, if you don’t get bogged down in names and obviously newer layers. Birds and animals are a very good subject for this kind of excavation to find common ground, as they have been our companions in our climatic zone for millennia. In the beginning, there was the primordial sea. Above the sea was the upper world and below the sea was the underworld. The Milky Way flowed like a river and connected the cosmos. And then, from the bottom of the primordial sea, the primordial duck brought a heap of mud in its beak…

CONCERTS

Langenu, a Setonic Black Metal band from Tartu, Estonia, creates soundscapes that range from straightforward noise walls to unexpected psychedelic diversions. Their discography includes the EP „Silmitu ilmutis“ (2009), the full-length album „Need, kes näevad imesid“ (2016), and a feature in the German metal documentary "Tartu Under The Horns" (2022). In 2022, the band reached a significant milestone with their EP Setooniq (Warhorn Records) – the world's first and only record entirely in Seto, a Finnic language spoken by approximately 10,000-12,000 people in South-East Estonia. Setooniq weaves tales of lost landscapes, haunting future visions, and the human inner cosmos, exploring themes as timeless as time itself.

At the Finno-Ugric Film Festival FUFF in Uusvada, Langenu plays their music for the first time on the holy soil of Setomaa. Come see the hideous creatures!

Ruhnu Saare lood ja laulud

"The songs and stories of Ruhnu Island's ensemble members have been dedicated for over 10 years to the revival of the rich cultural heritage of Ruhnu Swedish. In the fall of 2024, a new audiovisual album titled 'Memory of the Sea' will be released, highlighting the fact that this year marks 80 years since the great escape to Sweden, during which centuries-old vibrant cultural traditions on Ruhnu Island were interrupted.

The songs and stories of Ruhnu Island are a special project because it includes a cross-section of forgotten Ruhnu Swedish violin music and choral tunes performed by folk musicians Karoliina Kreintaal and Lee Taul. An interesting nuance is added to the concert by singer and storyteller Kairi Leivo. The stories, some dating back hundreds of years, give insight into a unique tradition. The current residents' tales of everyday life provide listeners with humorous images as well as topical stories about life in the village on the solitary Ruhnu Island."

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

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 20-22 JUNE