Transport producer turns to Finland’s colonial past in Owambo series

Finland’s shared history with Namibia, which dates back from the first Finnish missionary works in Owambo in 1870, and the nations’ complex post-colonial relationships, is the backdrop for the six-part suspense drama, to be pitched tomorrow at the Content London Focus on Finland by the creative team, Tekele Productions founder and producer Miia Haavisto, and writer Kaarle Aho.

Aho, himself an established producer (Making Movies co-founder) and writer of the Elisa Viihde Golden Venla nominated Are We Still Us, says he has been working for more than 16 months on Owambo, researching and writing the concept in close cooperation with Haavisto and Namibian partners.

“The idea of writing a drama series that takes place partly in Namibia and partly in Finland came actually from Miia,” he told us. “She asked me to develop something that would deal with post-colonialism or the trails of colonialism, in an original way, through a story that would not be only historical but that would largely take place in our time.”

The descriptive story from Tekele is the following: in Helsinki, a claim has been made, to have a sacred religious artefact returned to Namibia from Finland, where they have been stored in a warehouse, as an odd reminder of the Finnish Missionary work in Namibia over the course of 150 years.
A young Finnish art historian travels to Namibia and tries to handle the complexities of the repatriation issue European museums are not at all ready for. She needs the help of a local woman and an activist. The work of the two professionals, both lost in their ambition and life, echo the turbulent events of the 1980’s fight for independence. The present day story is rooted in the past.

Shortly before Namibia brakes free of the occupying apartheid regime and gains its independence through SWAPO, two young freedom fighters seek refuge from the Finnish Mission. A Finnish couple is drawn into the combat in different ways through the two friends in Owambo, near the Angolan border. The choices they make have consequences in the present, where international mining operations are competing over the ownership of minerals lying deep in the grounds of the desert.

Haavisto says she is grateful for the development support she has received so far from Yle, the Finnish Film Foundation and the key collaboration with her Namibian partner, co-producer Dantagos Jimmy-Melani of Ndapunikwa Films (Hairareb).

“Dantagos’ contribution and the contacts she has brought to us in Namibia when developing the story, have been utterly useful. It is a privilege to have such a partner on board this early on in a project, said Haavisto, credited for the premium series Transport and Finnish Oscar submission Tom of Finland.

Seasoned director Aleksi Salmenperä (White Wall, The Mine, Void) is attached to the ambitious international project.

At Content London, the former Cannes Producer-on-the-Move Haavisto, is looking mainly for potential sales and distribution partners.