TransBorder Conversations

Moving People and Images Journal () collaborated with Aalto University’s Critical Cinema Lab () to publish an article by Nerea Mandiola Solozabal (.s), a lecturer and researcher specializing in contemporary Basque culture and the moderator of our masterclass with Koldo Almandoz that took place this September.

You can read the English version of the article on both the MPI Journal website and the CCL blog.

”In 1968, the documentary Ama Lur [Mother Earth] by Fernando Larruquert and Nestor Basterretxea marked the emergence of a new symbolic force in the Basque film industry, sparking hope amidst the seemingly insurmountable constraints posed by Franco’s dictatorship in the Basque Country. For this small corner of the earth, facing the Bay of Biscay and surrounded by the Pyrenees, the documentary’s unique language, shifting from the poetic to the anthropological, evoked the Basque country’s deep cultural roots long consigned to oblivion by the harsh years of dictatorship.”

Moving People and Images Journal () has partnered with the Finnish Film Foundation (Suomen elokuvasäätiö, ) to publish a new article by Camille Auer (), a media and performance artist, writer, and cultural critic. The piece grew out of our Transborder Conversations Masterclass with director Ilrhan Kim and screening of her documentary Edhi Alice earlier this September.
You can read the English version of the article on the MPI Journal website, and the Finnish version is available on the Finnish Film Foundation’s site.

“Art can open a small door into someone else’s lived reality. Thinking of Alice’s words to her cat at the beginning of the film—‘if you understood me, you’d be human’—maybe this film lets someone who isn’t a trans woman from South Korea understand even a fraction of that experience. Or maybe it simply offers a glimpse into the lives of two specific, beautiful, hurting, loving, imperfect, and immeasurably important women.”

Thank you Suomen elokuvasäätiö - Finnish Film Foundation

You can read the article in English on the MPI Journal website: https://movingpeopleandimagesjournal.com/if-you-would-understand-what-im-saying-you-would-be-trans/

In Finnish on the SES website:
https://www.ses.fi/ajankohtaista/jos-ymmartaisit-mita-sanon-olisit-trans/

Jos ymmärtäisit mitä sanon, olisit trans - ses.fi TransBorder Conversations on Academy of Moving Pictures & Imagesin ja Taidekoulu MAAn järjestämä sarja näytöksiä ja masterclass-luentoja, jolle elokuvasäätiö on myöntänyt muun elokuvakulttuurin edistämisen tukea. Tämä yhteistyössä Moving People & Images Journalin kanssa julkaista art...

On the second day of Transborder Conversations we welcomed filmmaker Koldo Almandoz, who shared his film Oreina (The Deer, ) and joined us for a masterclass moderated by Nerea Mandiola Solozabal .s

When asked whether he thought Oreina was intended for a Basque or international audience, Koldo replied with his characteristic almost deadpan humor: “Disgracefully, I didn’t.” This set the tone for a conversation that mixed wit with serious reflection on filmmaking, identity, and peripheries.

Through Oreina, Koldo explored peripheries both personal and geographical, showing also what often remains unseen on screen. The film touches on Basque identity, its pride and paradoxes, while also resonating beyond the Basque Country, connecting to Finland, and some other peripheral ways of living.

Thank you to Koldo and Nerea for the conversation, and to our audience for your thoughtful questions.

Our events are supported by and in collaboration with Many thanks! ✨

Photography by

🎬 Save the Date: Masterclasses & Screenings – 11 & 12 September 2025!
This September, join us for two powerful films, each followed by an in-person masterclass with the film’s director.
📽️ Edhi Alice (2024) – a documentary film by Kim Il-ran
📽️ Oreina (2018) – a fiction film by Koldo Almandoz
🗓️ Full details are coming in August.
📩 Stay in the loop by joining our guest list.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfqxjJBuO0sqFfHow0LyfuD4hF643xML7Fu6OLeRyQL87PUGQ/viewform

We look forward to welcoming you again!

🙏The events are free and supported by Suomen elokuvasäätiö - Finnish Film Foundation and AVEK - Audiovisuaalisen kulttuurin edistämiskeskus , in collaboration with Goethe-Institut Finnland
Organised by Academy of Moving People & Images with Taidekoulu Maa and Critical Cinema Lab of Aalto University.

Hello friends! In case you tried to register for our next film screening and the link was not working, here is a new one. Registration via link is encouraged, thank you :)

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScylZHsZk13UIlFi9P4zY5Ayud9cgrcw_MAHfBvtkDrxfxeFg/viewform?fbclid=IwAR0THHRZBYLKzYJw2WCz25cWpZb_8zkjJ7-0GYdOvAYcexTgSzo3z2FVlIM

See you on the 26th of October!

TransBorder Conversations 3: RSVP for the screening & masterclass of "In the Blind Spot" by filmmaker Ayşe Polat TRANSBORDER CONVERSATIONS is thrilled to announce its third evening of cinema and conversation. Join us for a special screening of "In the Blind Spot," which made its debut at this year's Berlinale, followed by an in-person discussion with the director, Ayşe Polat, moderated by Tülay Yilmaz. This ...

Re-posted • TransBorder Conversations on näytösten, paneelikeskustelujen ja masterclass-tilaisuuksien sarja, jota järjestävät sekä . Elokuvasäätiö on myöntänyt TransBorder Conversations -hankkeelle muun elokuvakulttuurin edistämisen tukea.

Syyskuussa osana Rakkautta & Anarkiaa -festivaalia järjestettiin näytös African Moot -dokumenttielokuvasta sekä paneelikeskustelu, johon osallistui elokuvan ohjaaja, eteläafrikkalainen Shameela Seedat, elokuvan suomalainen osatuottaja Juha Löppönen (Tuffi Films ) ja Ylen tilaaja-tuottaja Erkko Lyytinen. Keskustelua moderoi toimittaja Sharron Todd, joka myös haastatteli Seedatia SES:n verkkosivuilla ja Moving People & Images Journalissa julkaistuun artikkeliin. Artikkeli on luettavissa suomeksi ja englanniksi (ses.fi / movingpeopleandimagesjournal.com).

Lokakuun lopulla elokuvasäätiön Kino K13 -elokuvateatterissa vieraili turkkilainen elokuvaohjaaja Senem Tüzen, jolta esitettiin lyhytelokuva Milk & Chocolate ja pitkä fiktio Motherland. Yhteistyökumppanina näytöksessä oli Aalto-yliopiston Critical Cinema Lab ja keskustelun moderoi Ceyda Berk Söderblom.

Kuvat/photos 1–4: Maria Rannanheimo
Kuvat/photos 5-9: Samra Šabanović

TransBorder Conversations is a series of screenings, panel discussions and masterclasses, organized by the Academy of Moving People & Images and Art School Maa. Finnish Film Foundation has supported the project. In September, the South African-Finnish documentary film African Moot was screened during the Helsinki International Film Festival, with a discussion with filmmaker Shameela Seedat, co-producer Juha Löppönen (Tuffi Films), mmissioning editor-producer Erkko Lyytinen (Yle) and moderator Sharron Todd. In October, Turkish filmmaker Senem Tüzen visited Kino K13 with her films Milk & Chocolate and Motherland. The event was organized in co-operation with Aalto University’s Critical Cinema Lab and the discussion was moderated by Ceyda Berk Söderblom.