U.K. film producer is a big fan of Finnish storytelling

There was nothing very intentional about U.K.-based producer Mike Goodridge gravitating toward Finland. He explains it this way: “In my career I always follow great filmmaking and writing, for example Dome Karukoski and Aleksi Bardy for the Tom of Finland film. And I also have serious respect and a great working relationship with Jalmari Helander and Petri Jokiranta – both amazing Finnish filmmakers.

Goodridge explains further, “So perhaps unlike some others in the film business who are understandably drawn to Finland for specific reasons related to gorgeous locations and/or world-class film crews, etc, I am continually drawn to Finland because of the great writers and directors. And of course, I’ve been watching the Kaurismäki films for literally decades.”

Shooting the film Immortal took a lot of… sisu

The new Finland-based action film, Immortal, that Goodridge helped produce during the depths of the pandemic takes the local version of its title – Sisu – from the proud Finnish character trait meaning a combination of stoic determination, tenacity of purpose, grit, and resilience – and he’s proud to point out how much of the latter the former needed to succeed.

Goodridge, who was in Finnish Lapland for part of the Sisu shoot, has his own great stories to tell about the experience: “Finland is such a geographically interesting country, and Lapland is absolutely stunning. Petri Jokiranta was of course the lead producer for Sisu, and I’m in awe of what he’s achieved. He was one who put it all together in the midst of this vast Nordic wilderness. We had tanks, aircraft; it was quite impressive – and slightly surreal.”

Film crews: advantage Finland

Of course, as a seasoned producer, Mike Goodridge understands that good writing and directing doesn’t mean much if you don’t have the technical crews to back them up. “Film production takes a lot of people, each of whom have specific needs. And you have to successfully wrangle them.” With regard to the quality of Finnish film crews Goodridge happily reports that during the shooting of Sisu the crews’ professionalism was consistently reliable. As he puts it, “A truly well-oiled machine. We were doing something quite daring – it was a real challenge, partly because the scale was quite enormous. What we achieved on a relatively limited budget was pretty incredible. And this was in part due to the day-in, day-out professional capabilities of the crew.”

He offers a typical example, “Our locations manager in Lapland for Sisu knew exactly what he was doing, and knew exactly how to tackle the various challenges of landscape and weather. And of course, in Lapland, you have to finish before the snow comes – or then wait for the following year. And in a film like Sisu, landscape plays a major role.”

Brilliant writing, great crews. Anything else?

When pressed a bit, Goodridge admits to another facet of Finnish character and competence that continues to make him a die-hard fan of the country, pointing out that, “Finland’s not a flashy culture – just very professional and pragmatic – which regularly comes in very handy in the film business, as it is such a high-pressure environment involving lots of highly skilled people coming together for short periods of time. And this of course goes double during the pandemic, where Finland was a much easier place to film – particularly out in the countryside, where we were able to sustain a bubble around our crew. When you’re isolated, you can create these bubbles, and Finns tend to take extra care when it comes to such practical matters.”

With regard to the quality of Finnish film crews Goodridge happily reports that during the shooting of Sisu the crews’ professionalism was consistently reliable. As he puts it, “A truly well-oiled machine."