Vårvinterrajden

The Homecoming

September 2023 •Finnish

Sámi artefacts from the Finnish National Museum are returning home to Sápmi, while the holy drums of the Sámi people are still imprisoned in the basements of museums across Europe. The returning objects symbolise the dignity, identity, history, connection to ancestors and a whole world view that was taken from the Sámi people. Director Suvi West takes the viewer behind the scenes of the museum world to reflect on the spirit of the objects, the inequality of cultures and the colonialist burden of museums.

The turning point - the environmental stuggle that became indigenous affairs

November 2011 •Norwegian

Personal accounts from the Alta actions in the years 1979 to 1981. Large police forces were deployed against the demonstrators. The dispute over the Alta river began as an environmental issue, but became a major turning point for the Sámi people's struggle for equal rights in Norway.

Into the Land of Ice and Fire

November 2022 •Northern Sami

Two parallel stories are gradually unfolding the everyday life of two very different persons - that of 86-year-old Sara and 7-year-old Mihka - both residing in Guovdageaidnu - Kautokeino, in the middle of the Norwegian arctic tundra, through the drastic change of the arctic seasons and the passage from the long winter’s darkness to the never-ending light of the summer season.

Me and My Little Sister

January 2016 •Finnish

Loving someone of the same gender is frowned upon in Sami communities. Sparrooabbán (Me and my little sister) shows what it’s like to be a minority within a minority. Suvi describes how her little sister Kaisa wishes to be accepted as she is. Like her sister, Kaisa is a Sami, but also in a relationship with a woman, and she also works as a deacon. There are obviously more constricting communities in the film than only one.

Kaisa's Enchanted Forest

June 2016 •Finnish

Examines the extraordinary lifelong friendship between Skolt Sámi storyteller Kaisa Gauriloff and the Swiss-Russian author Robert Crottet through the eyes of Gauriloff’s great-granddaughter Katja.

Rap and Reindeer

March 2023 •Finnish

The documentary Rap and Reindeer follows the life of 18-year-old Sámi rapper Mihkku Laiti, who lives in the northernmost corner of Sámiland. The film is a coming-of-age story, following Mihku on his journey towards a career as a musician and rise to stardom in the midst of varying expectations. He’s charmed the crowd on Talent Suomi and proudly wears the Sámi clothing he has styled himself. He raps and yoiks in harmony, designs his own brand on his computer but also masters the skill of laborious reindeer herding. Above all, he sees his own unique roots and the Sámi language as his greatest strength. The future makes him wonder: to follow his father’s footsteps or to reach for his dreams.

Rahčan – Ella’s Riot

March 2023 •Norwegian

Love, music, Sami identity and environmental activism go hand in hand in this inspiring tale of young singer Ella and her fight against the mining company that threatens her Sami heritage.

Made in Tärnaby

December 1990 •Swedish

Follows Astrid & Sune as they show techniques and methods of sami handcraft.

Bortom hagan

January 1988 •Swedish

Documentary about Lars Theodor Jonsson who was a cross country skier in the 1920s and 30s and now lives alone in the forest.

Märak och Pirak

October 1994 •Swedish

Documentary about the priest and joiker Johan Märak and the artist Lars Pirak, and their friendship.

Svonni vs the Swedish Tax Agency

October 2020 •Swedish

A Sámi woman fights for her right to claim a tax deduction against the purchase of a dog. Why the Swedish authorities fail to recognize the dog's use as a reindeer herding tool versus a pet opens up a larger discussion about Indigenous rights and economic discrimination in this humorous takedown of the Swedish government's ignorance of Sámi culture.

With Reindeer and Sled in Inka Länta’s Winterland

December 1926 •Swedish

Everyday wintertime life of Sámi reindeer herder Inka Länta and her family, mingling authentic and fictionalized takes.

A Shout into the Wind

December 2007 •Finnish

The fate of a culture lies on the shoulders of few determined individuals.

LIHKKU!

March 2020 •Swedish

An essay film about how it may feel to grow up as a young Sami in Sweden, with poetry written by Ella-Maria Nutti and graphics by Irma Bergdahl. The partying of a typical teenager together with the labels put on you that wont go away, the questions which are thrown on you as knives in the back. A tribute to our ancestors who fought for our rights and a declaration of love to the young Samis who continues to fight

The Threat

April 1987 •Swedish

On Saturday, April 26, spring came to Sweden. That same day, Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded. Bringing mild winds to Scandinavia. Sweden suffered heavily of radioactive poison.

Eatnameamet – Our Silent Struggle

March 2021 •Finnish

The AssimiNation is a political pamphlet portraying the indigenous Sámi people fighting for their existence. The film follows the on going cultural genocide of the Sámi which the current Governmental politics allow. This film is a cry for help for the last indigenous people living in the EU.

Silenced Roots

July 2023 •Finnish

The Kautokeino Rebellion

January 2008 •Norwegian

Religious and cultural reawakening inspires rebellion in a 19th century Norwegian village.

My Fathers' Daughter

April 2025 •Northern Sami

Elvira, a confident Sámi teenager, firmly believes that her lesbian single mother conceived her at a Danish fertility clinic. She often daydreams about her father, envisioning him as a charismatic movie star. However, her world is turned upside down when her real biological father unexpectedly steps into her life.

Nine Lives

October 1957 •Norwegian

The movie takes place during World War II and depicts the true story of Jan Baalsruds amazing escape from the German army from the coast of Northern Norway and across the border to the neutral country Sweden.