Uncharted waters
Finland’s Miikko Oikkonnen offers DQ an insight into his career and his writing process before discussing his approach to dramatising a real-life ferry disaster in factual drama Estonia. Finnish writer Miikko Oikkonnen has created series such as crime drama Bordertown and thriller Heksinki Syndrome. But there is no doubt that Estonia, which dramatises the real-life sinking of the titular ferry in 1994 and the subsequent investigation into the tragedy, is the most significant and challenging project of his career so far. Filmed in Finland, Sweden and Estonia, with numerous scenes also shot on water stages in Brussels, the eight-part series shines a light what happened to the MS Estonia in September 1994 and the international inquiry that followed, all through the eyes of survivors, rescuers, family members, politicians, investigators and journalists. It is produced by Finland’s Fisher King in coproduction with Sweden’s Kärnfilm, Panache Production Belgium and Estonia’s Amrion Oü for C More Finland, Sweden’s TV4, MTV Finland and Telia Estonia. Beta Film is the distributor. Here, Oikkonnen discusses how he began writing for television, the challenges of making Estonia and the role drama can play in retelling real stories. How did you start out as a television writer? I studied directing at Aalto University, but alongside directing, I often found myself involved in writing and producing student productions. This eventually led me to a job at [Finnish broadcaster] YLE as an assistant producer, and through that, I was also commissioned for my first scripts. So instead of film, television … Continue reading Uncharted waters
