Please tell us about the projects you worked on before making ‘Portti’. How did you start, and how did you learn to make films?
I started making film when I was 13 or something, I got a VHS video camera from my parents. That set my future in so many ways. I ended up starting my own company that does mostly client projects but also my own productions. The guy starring in Portti is my friend Markku and we have made films since the 90’s! We keep on learning through trial and error. Also, because of my day job I get to learn from many master directors and designers that I work for.
Tell us about ‘Portti’. How do you describe it?
The filming of the short film "Portti" took a total of 5 hours in the car and the forest, plus an additional 2 hours in the studio. Of course, everything was quite carefully planned based on the script. And the funniest part was testing the capabilities of an iPhone, as this was entirely filmed with it, except for a couple of drone shots. I could have used a cinema camera, but I specifically wanted to push the limits.
I don’t directly oppose AI even though it's slightly satirized in this film. I used it as part of the movie’s planning process because it worked well in some parts. Of course, most of the work is still done by hand, but I’ve integrated AI into the process in a way that it doesn’t take anything away from my own creative contribution but rather supports it. AI is merely a servant for me. I don’t want to rely on or wait for whether its random output is suitable.
"Portti" was my passion project and a way to have fun with a friend. I handled the entire process from start to finish by myself; no team or funding was needed this time. Besides the VFX, cinematography, editing, music, and sound design, I especially enjoyed directing. Hopefully, I’ll get to do more of that in the future.
Please tell us about your favorite filmmakers.
I really love Stanley Kubrick, Ridley Scott and David Fincher. Lucas and Spielberg naturally had a huge impact on me as a teenager.
If you were given a good budget, what would be your ideal project?
Most likely it would be a sci-fi project. I’d love to do a film about UFO’s or aliens. Or perhaps something totally different with no sci-fi at all!
Describe how you would ensure that production is on schedule. What steps would you take?
Careful planning is the key. I tend to schedule everything, and I use Trello. I have daily plans for everything and system to follow the progress of things.
What was the hardest part of making ‘Portti’.
Mostly just finding time to do the production. I work full-time at my own company creating branded animations, VFX, FUI and title sequences for my clients so time is the challenge. The solution was to approach as just another client project. These kinds of films are the reason I have my day job, although I am very passionate about it as well.
If possible, tell us about your next work. What plans do you have for your future work?
I am already working on a new short film titled “No Humans”. Again, it is breaking new grounds as I am trying to push everything to high-end direction visually. You don’t need to be a big studio or have a lot of funding to create “hollywood” level cinema. Most of the tools are free or very low cost so I think there are no excuses anymore not to create your masterpiece.
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