Fear | 2026

Kristiina Airas
Director,
Co-Creator of the Original Idea

My vision for the film Pelko (Fear) was to express fear as an individual experience through a surrealist, expressionism-inspired lens and to let a dream tell the story of the main character, Elli. I am fascinated by the mystical and symbolic world of dreams, because dreams can tell the most amazing stories, and in dreams, anything is possible. In dreams, you can’t avoid facing your fears, and you can’t control your dreams. Dreams can be so powerful that we feel as if we have found insight and a sense of liberation from our problems. Our worst fears can be death – or sometimes life itself.

I wanted to make the viewer feel like they could relate to Elli’s fear. I explored the theatricality of the film through expressive means, which also reflect its content. For example, how can one combine grand gestures in acting while still keeping the drama impactful? Elli struggles on the borderline between life and death – facing herself and her problems.

I have always been fascinated by the expression of emotions in art through deviation from realism, as it frees both the artist and the viewer to give their own meanings to the work. My dream was to make an experimental film that would allow emotions to be explored through unrealistic means. I see the film Pelko (Fear) as an expressive painting; the artist knows the background story of the work, but the viewer has the chance to interpret the story in their own way. I wanted to offer my team the opportunity to experiment and build unique visual worlds together.

I see everyday reality as only a thinly visible surface in people’s lives. It is just a fragile shell that hides our true existence, with all its feelings and imperfections. Feelings are very abstract, and the power they create can be difficult to describe. Fear and the secrets it reveals about who we are lurk in our minds. Will we succeed – do we have a purpose in life? I feel that the real world is within us: in our emotions, physical and psychological experiences. This is the reality I want to depict in the film Pelko (Fear).

I am interested in addressing societal issues through the lens of the individual. In Pelko (Fear), I wanted to make fear the central theme and deal with our worst enemy – ourselves. Facing and accepting oneself and one’s problems is not a given; it can be the greatest challenge in life. Sometimes it can be a lifelong project, but it can also be a way to free oneself from the shackles of fear. The experience of fear is individual to each person, but it connects us all. I wish the film will inspire viewers and instill a sense of hope that anything is possible.