Film industry in Finland - statistics & facts
Even though Finnish box office revenues still recover from the pandemic, the number of cinema sites and screens peaked in 2023. The Finnish film industry has a long history dating back to 1917, the year in which Finland declared independence from Russia. Because of Aki Kaurismäki and his work, for example, The Match Factory Girl (Finnish: Tulitikkutehtaan tyttö) from 1990, Finnish film productions gained global attention. In 2023, more than 722 Finnish titles were screened at international festivals.
Following this trend, the number of movie premiers in Finland reached a new high of 227 premieres in 2023. That year, the American fantasy comedy film Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig was the most watched movie in Finnish cinemas, with over 680,200 admissions. The most watched domestic movie in Finnish cinemas was Fallen Leaves (Finnish: Kuolleet lehdet) by Aki Kaurismäki, with over 254,800 cinema admissions.
After the past challenging years, Finnish cinemas are recovering from the impact on the global film industry of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Film and video distribution and production companies, excluding the publishing of computer games, are close to pre-pandemic levels in terms of revenue.
Cinemas in Finland
The number of cinema screens in Finland increased to 381, after a decline in 2021 as a consequence of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Although the film advertising expenditure steadily increased from 2014 to 2019, it recorded a sharp decrease in 2020. Three years later, in 2023, it increased again by almost 26 percent from the previous year.Following this trend, the number of movie premiers in Finland reached a new high of 227 premieres in 2023. That year, the American fantasy comedy film Barbie, directed by Greta Gerwig was the most watched movie in Finnish cinemas, with over 680,200 admissions. The most watched domestic movie in Finnish cinemas was Fallen Leaves (Finnish: Kuolleet lehdet) by Aki Kaurismäki, with over 254,800 cinema admissions.
Film production in Finland
In 2022, the total revenue of film and video distribution and production companies amounted to approximately 3.5 billion euros in Finland. Furthermore, there were almost 2,200 companies operating in production and distribution of films and videos. The Finnish Film Foundation, an independent foundation which supports and develops Finnish film production, receives funding through the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture from pool funds allocated for promoting film art. In 2022, the support from the Finnish Film Foundation constituted 41 percent of the average production budget of a feature film in Finland.After the past challenging years, Finnish cinemas are recovering from the impact on the global film industry of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic. Film and video distribution and production companies, excluding the publishing of computer games, are close to pre-pandemic levels in terms of revenue.
