When the Finnish film community woke up to the news that actor Tomi Arataro had passed suddenly at just 44 years old, the “more loving” team remembers the star.
“In the film, he plays an executive at a record company signing the main couple. They are aspiring to become musicians and have won their first record deal with him. It’s a small role, but it’s very important. It’s a memorable, light, and resilient performance.”
Arataro is best known for his work at Compartment No. 6, which was praised by Cannes. This earned him a Jussi nomination for Best Supporting Actor, but is next seen in Dome Karkoski’s “Hippo Love.”
“He definitely had an acting chop for a big part. He was already a Finnish theatre giant,” recalls Cipola. Produced for Helsinki Firmi, Anina Reppanen is called “very charismatic and extremely talented.”
“It’s shocking. People share Tomi’s memories and there’s a lot of peer support.”
The film will premiere locally on October 3rd, prior to the screening of “The More Loving One” at the industry event Finnish Film Incident.
Focusing on aspiring musicians Antoty and Svi (Pyry Kähkönen and singer Rita Behm), they follow their first success from their small town (where they fall in love) outside Helsinki.
Kähönen appeared in Miia Tervo’s “Missile” and Netflix’s “Vikings: Valhalla”, while Behm made his acting debut in the film. They are joined by Mimosa Willamo (“sisu”).
“Antti already has a band, but that doesn’t really go anywhere. He asks Svi to be the lead singer. That’s when things start picking up. The better their music careers, the more they’re in a relationship,” Sipola says.
“My friend called it a ‘Finnish love story’. There are bright moments, then reflecting all this melancholy and greater choices in life. ”
He pointed out that the story of Antti and Suvi reflects “the familiar duality that many creative people struggle with.” “If you have two people working in the same art form, it can be toxic. You can no longer separate the love you have and the love you have for someone.”
The film debuts its trailer here:
It is soon revealed that the band has only one star in Suvi. Even Jack Antonov, the go-to producer of Taylor Swift and Lana Del Rey, has been mentioned as she transforms into a global pop phenomenon.
“The novel was held in the ’90s and the producers and music industry famous people who lost their name from the time wanted to add a modern nod to that aspect. If a female star works for anyone in New York, it’s Mr. Antonov!” said Cipola.
Based on the book Juha Itkonen, “I’m most emphasizing about the reactions of tens of thousands of people who love it. I hide my address” – featuring an original song in English.
“Some of the lyrics come straight from the novel. They sing in English and we were just stuck with it. Iskkonen also gave me a psychological twist that I really connected to. It says something about the Finnish spirit.”
Chipola, who has the musical “Urban Family,” worked with the composer and “Musical Maestro” Joel Melasniemi. “I started working on scripts and as soon as I started working on music. Some of the songs are from 10 years old. They were from last year.”
“I got married, I got divorced, I lived this story. Then I was ready to tell it.”
“The More Loving One” is not the only new Finnish release that shoots music, but “The Light That Never Disappears” and the biopic “My Name Is Dingo” also blows away the songs. Selma Wilfnen’s “Happy Sassy Beautiful” about musician Kaija Ku, who shines the spotlight at FFA, will premiere in the spring.
“There’s clearly a need we’re trying to serve. We’re caught up in a wave that’s speeding up,” Cipola said. However, the current funding situation may shorten that.
“The success of Finnish films in the early 2020s was not strategically built and perhaps lost in all the battles we were fighting for, for the sake of funding, for new copyright laws.
He added: “We sincerely agree that we need to maintain our national audience. We need the support of an industry, but the only way to “update” ourselves is through international collaboration.
Tomi Arataro
Courtesy of Love & Anarchy Film Festival
