AV Growth project offers a growth programme for the audiovisual sector in Finland, Sweden, and the Baltic countries
The three-year project, with a budget of nearly one million euros, aims to support growth companies in the audiovisual and creative industries. There is demand for large international productions, which is why it is important to develop co-production structures and expertise to attract productions to the Nordic and Baltic countries.
Tampere plays a major role in the project
“Tampere is a fantastic actor with experience in attracting large international productions to the Pirkanmaa region. We have beautiful lake scenery and filming locations. However, even here, we have not necessarily seen the full growth potential for these large productions coming to Finland. As educators and developers in the AV industry, we also have a lot of untapped expertise and potential”, says Principal Lecturer Juha Suonpää from Tampere University of Applied Sciences.
Film Tampere, that acts as a partner in the project is an economic policy program operating under Business Tampere, the Tampere region's business and development company. It develops, grows, and internationalises the region's audiovisual industry and gaming sector.
Sweden has vast expertise in the audiovisual sector, which has been underutilized from Finland's perspective. Yrkesnämden för Film och TV is an umbrella organization for 70 companies in the sector, with extensive networks and communication channels.
“Estonia and Latvia are also involved in this, which helps to strengthen common activities created through culture. The agenda for cultural development goes hand in hand with this”, says Suonpää.
The AV Growth project has received funding from the Interreg Central Baltic program, which supports cross-border cooperation between Finland, Sweden, Estonia, and Latvia. At the same time, TAMK is also running a large cluster of national ESF-funded projects in the creative industries.
The project, which has been running for just over a year, has already achieved results
Suonpää emphasises that growing from small to large, from a micro-enterprise to a medium-sized enterprise, happens through internationalisation. Growth requires joint production structures. The AV Growth project addresses the lack of local, regional, and national production resources, expertise, equipment, facilities, and international networks in the film and television industry.
The AV Growth project involves 29 companies, most of which are small operators. Project Manager and Principal Lecturer Maria Salomaa emphasises the importance of the project for the companies whose needs and challenges it is designed to address. In addition, the entire audiovisual ecosystem will benefit from the project.
During the project, workshops and networking events will be organized where companies can share their experiences and learn from each other. The results will be shared in podcasts and videos.
The audiovisual sector is undergoing a major transformation – cross-pollination is needed in the sector
The operating environment has changed from the project preparation phase a couple of years ago to the present day. In Finland, funding systems place the AV sector in a challenging position. Funding granted by the Finnish Film Foundation is secure for the time being, but AVEK's share has been cut. Yleisradio has previously purchased TV series, but currently only to a limited extent. These changes are immediately reflected in this small field.
Salomaa says that the number of large productions has plummeted. On the other hand, the change is an interesting starting point for project operators.
Now we need a common platform to think about what we can do differently. Small operators need to think outside the box. For example, transmedia expertise, i.e., the distribution of media content across multiple media, has become more prominent. Perhaps during this project, we will get guidelines and input on how the industry should be developed to achieve growth. After this project, we will see what kind of cooperation between them could be possible.
Maria Salomaa
Suonpää agrees: transmedia reflects a changing and evolving field where we need to think more broadly, i.e., in addition to the AV industry, we need to include the gaming industry and extended reality (XR).
“When these fields cross-pollinate, new opportunities arise. This requires new skills and, above all, new networks. It has been great to see our wonderful students interviewing and documenting the companies involved in the workshops run by Film Tampere. Good results have already been achieved”, says Suonpää.
A circle of trust has also begun to form.
“I have been involved in international productions, and I know how incredibly important it is to build and achieve trust. Things go smoothly when you recognize and know your partners and trust them. That's how you can be sure to create bigger productions.”
Suonpää points out that simply staying alive is a form of growth for companies.
“Then you're ready as soon as the global situation changes and the structures are no longer stuck in the same rut. The structures in large cities such as Helsinki, Tampere, and Oulu are in good shape. They can provide an operating environment for productions coming from around the world. Even though we are an exotic and even strange place in the world, I predict that Finland's appeal will continue to grow for climate and security reasons.”
TAMK acts as a midwife and pilot – students have tremendous potential
As an educational organization, it is essential for TAMK to be involved in identifying the skills needed in the future. Going forward TAMK will increase the research aspect of the project and model its findings.
“With the students we are piloting a Finnish-Swedish joint development based on challenges raised by companies, and we are building a model for international operations. The goal is for it to be more permanent and not to end when the project ends”, says Salomaa.
The project participants note that the students have helped to harness valuable capital.
The equipment and tools are also a good competitive factor for us, as is the Tampere brand, which is also strengthened by this project. Our expertise will be even better in the future as we respond to changes in the industry and move smoothly between the gaming, film, and AV industries.
Juha Suonpää
Film Tampere runs a growth programme for companies
The 29 companies involved are mainly from Finland and Sweden, with some from the Baltic countries. They represent the AV sector, casting companies, TV and film production, and the gaming industry.
There are growth indicators that have been defined for the companies' growth program. The initial analysis utilised a maturity ladder. This provided an understanding of where each company is on its growth path. The companies want investments and new business models, networks, and to expand their key teams with new talent. The companies have 14 mentors at their disposal on their growth path.
“Even though the financing field is difficult, the companies have ambitiously chosen their growth targets and have, for example, started to expand their markets internationally”, Salomaa praises.
The platform under development has an enormous potential
During the project, a digital platform will be developed to help identify and validate the skills of those entering the field and those already working in it. This could have a positive impact on employment and the attractiveness of the field. The Swedish partner Yrkesnämden för Film och TV is responsible for the development, and students will test the platform.
“For students in the field, the platform will be a tool that will help them to reach beyond Finnish borders. This way young newcomers can offer their skills to international productions without having to live in Helsinki, which is a brand-new idea”, says Suonpää.
A creative AV ecosystem could emerge in Finland
When the project ends in a couple of years, visionary Juha Suonpää's dream is that something permanent will be created: a completely new structure that will convey the power of culture and the empowerment that comes with it, security, sense of safety and networking.
The ecosystem is not some movie-like mountain slope that you crash into with a plane, but something that is born from the fine intellectual capital of the project partners and companies and can be quickly adapted to future challenges.
Juha Suonpää
Maria Salomaa, who has a background in research, estimates that the project will generate interesting material and results on growth efforts in creative industries, which can be disseminated through research articles. This could also support political decision-making: the AV sector is heavily subsidised and has different metrics and measurability challenges than traditional industries. According to Salomaa, new open badges of cross-media use could also help ensure continuity.
Suonpää says that projects like this offer fantastic opportunities for all participants.
“For us, these kinds of projects can lead to anything in any applicable field of research. The staff's expertise grows, and students can develop great career paths. Our wealth lies in our diversity: here you can learn new ways of thinking from engineers as well as professionals in the health and cultural sectors, if you are curious enough to listen.“
Further information:
Juha Suonpää
Principal Lecturer | Business and Media
Tampere University of Applied Sciences
juha.suonpaa [at] tuni.fi (juha[dot]suonpaa[at]tuni[dot]fi), 0400 120 544
Maria Salomaa
Principal Lecturer
Innovation Management | School of Business and Media
Tampere University of Applied Sciences
maria.salomaa [at] tuni.fi (maria[dot]salomaa[at]tuni[dot]fi), 050 531 3143
Visit the project's webpage: AV-GROWTH - Central Baltic
You can find videos and podcasts in YouTube AV Growth - YouTube
Author: Hanna Ylli
