"Made In Russia" Relentless Road Movie Through Russia and Siberia

From Kimmo Kuusniemi the Maker of  PROMISED LAND OF HEAVY METAL comes an 

EPIC RUSSIAN ADVENTURE DOCUMENTARY about FOLK METAL BAND;  KORPIKLAANI

WATCH COMPLETE DOCUMENTARY HERE!

 

Korpiklaani is a Finnish Folk Metal band originally formed in 1993 by Jonne Järvelä. In 2003 the name was changed into Korpiklaani. The band has released 12 albums of which 9 under Korpiklaani. The band is best known for it’s energetic and fun live shows. 

The band lineup is:  Jonne Järvelä (Vocals), Matti “Matson” Johansson (Drums), Kalle “Cane” Savijärvi (Guitars), Jarkko Aaltonen (Bass), Tuomas Ruonakari (violin), Sami Perttula (Accordian) MORE ABOUT KORPIKLAANI.

While in Finland in 2016 I met up with Jonne and during our time together he asked me if I would be interested in making a documentary about Korpiklaani. I came back to UK and contemplated the idea. The more I thought about it the better it sounded and when Jonne called me and told me  that Korpiklaani would be doing an extensive Tour through Russia I was sold.


The tour started in St Petersburg and took us through Siberia to Vladivostok on the coast of the Sea of Japan and back to Moscow.

 We did shows in 15 cities, travelled 19,000 km and all in just 18 days!


I have been making films for a long time around the world but this Russian tour was the most stunning and world view altering experience I've had so far. The night trains, big cities in Siberia, the tribes people of Habarovsk gave us an adventure of lifetime. Some day's you really felt you had been taken back in time and you wished it would never end.


Not many bands have toured this extensively throughout Russia and the fans really showed their appreciation, enthusiasm, openness and unrivalled energy at every gig which  lifted the already great live performance of Korpiklaani to new levels.

I first met KORPIKLAANI in 2008 when I interviewed them for my TV documentary about the  Finnish Metal Scene called "Promised Land Of Heavy Metal".


My band SARCOFAGUS was formed in 1978 and was the first Finnish Heavy Metal band. I’m known as the Godfather of Finnish Metal. This gave me nearly unlimited access to the Finnish metal scene and even helped me to get an interview with Madame President of Finland for the “Promised Land Of Heavy Metal” (SEE THE FILM TRAILER HERE)


The same complete trust gave me full access again during the filming of this Korpiklaani tour film as the band were fully aware of my past and knew they can trust me completely.


In a funny way, during the tour, the Russian audiences started seeing me as  Vaari Korpiklaani (the Old Man from their artwork i.e.the bands “Eddy”) and there were several photo requests from fans and even one girl in Irkutsk insisted  on giving me a drawing of the Vaari.       CHECK OUT OUR COMPANY SITE: http://www.splitscreenfilms.com

For a seasoned documentary film  maker this trip had totally new technical challenges as we were constantly on the move. Using the state of the art technology enabled me to film even while carrying my bags to catch the most interesting moments as they unfolded. 


The experience of a band on the road in an exotic country with the highs and lows, from fatigue to exhilarating moments are all captured on film.


I also filmed all 15 live gigs.


All in all I had over 80 hours of footage from gigs, backstages, hotels, planes, trains, automobiles, Siberian cities, Russian people/fans, places we visited and interviews with the band to make this very unique film.

Vladivostok, Russia

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