War is always present somewhere in a Finnish person’s mind because of the numerous conflicts we’ve had with our neighbour in the east. There is always a story about somebody’s grandfather returning from the war. Or getting lost in action. The letters written from the front, every day for years, to loved ones at home.

The Melancholia. Both my grandfathers fought in the war. One of them singing sad songs in gibberish Russian and mumbling something about Petroskoi long after the war ended. The other just being angry. Trauma is supposed to pass down in our genes from generation to generation. No wonder we are still going on about the Winter War.

At this very moment actor Johannes Holopainen might be crawling around in the mud somewhere, playing the soldier Kariluoto in the movie The Unknown Soldier (Väinö Linna) currently in the make. Directed by Aku Louhimies, the movie is about a group of soldiers fighting in the Continuation War 1941-1944. The movie premieres Fall 2017.

If you feel like getting closer to Johannes you can go and see him play the lead in Pasi-was-here at Kom Teatteri. 

Johannes’s List

Travel: Sauna and fishing on Åland

Book: ¨A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never Do Again¨by David Foster Wallace

Music: Techno and the artist Oneothrix Point Never

Club: Äänivalli and for afterparty UG at Mäkelänkatu

Fashion: Nomen Nescio (Store now open on Fredrikinkatu 24 Helsinki)

Food: Suop at Suvanto 

Movie: Syysprinssi (in theatres October 2016)

// Tiger of Sweden Phone: +358 9 674 554 // Nomen Nescio info@nomennescio.fi