Sinun Ciné 2026

The Sinun Ciné idea competition, now being held for the fifth time, brings together emerging creators to develop their film and television series concepts with the support of mentors. Established in 2022, the competition is an initiative by Espoo Ciné aimed at promoting greater diversity in the film industry, and is therefore specifically targeted at minority groups that are underrepresented in the Finnish media landscape. The competition has been open to students, early-career creators, and complete newcomers to the field.

This year, an expert jury assembled by the Writers Guild of Finland (Sunklo) selected ten finalists from the ideas submitted through the open call. The finalists are Elsa Kallio, Avery Salami, Evin Yildiz, Petra Mamia, Benjamin Phosri, Kinja Pakarinen, Kajsa Henriksson, Jennifer Ahlamaa Sae-Lee, Ilaida Önlen, and Tobias Holmberg.

During a two-day workshop held on May 20–21 at Kupla in Tapiola, Espoo, the finalists had the opportunity to get to know one another and meet mentors working in the film and television industry. With the guidance of a mentor selected for each participant, the finalists received training in storytelling and developing their ideas. During the workshop, participants practiced pitching their projects, attended talks by industry professionals, and heard experiences from Sinun Ciné alumni. The mentors for the Sinun Ciné 2026 were Eeva Putro, Marjo Airisniemi, Isabella Karhu, Reeta Ruotsalainen, Markku Haapalehto, Karoliina Gröndahl, Jarkko Virtanen, Lou Punkki, Einari Paakkanen, and Kirsi Marie Liimatainen.

The 2026 Sinun Ciné competition will culminate in its final event on August 21 at Cinema Gilda in Helsinki, in a public event open to audiences. A professional jury will select the winner of the competition, who will receive a €2,500 prize. The prize is sponsored by the City of Espoo, and the Sinun Ciné competition is organized with support from AVEK. More detailed information about the event schedule and program will be announced later.

Previous winners of the Sinun Ciné competition include Lumo Kumpulainen (2025), Yasmin Najjar (2024), Maaret Louhelainen (2023), and Pinja Eskola (2022).