World congress to Finland

Finnish UNIMA is interested in hosting world congress 2016

The Finnish Unima is looking for possibilities to get the Unima world congress and festival to Finland in the year 2016. Other option is year 2014 when UNIMA is having a council meeting.

The word congress has been in this millennium in Magdeburg (2000), Rijeka (2004) ja Perth (2008). The next world congress will be in China. There will be made the decision about the world congress 2016. The board of the Finnish Unima thinks that Finland has good chances to get the main happening or at least the council meeting 2014. President of the Finnish Unima Janne Kuustie and coordinator of international connections Kati-Aurora Kuuskoski believe that Finland could be an interesting option for this big happening. Finland has good reputation, people are interested in Finnish puppetry and Finland is also quite an exotic country. The Finnish Unima thinks that the upthrust of Finnish puppetry should be used now. Where in Finland this kind of a big happening could be situated? Janne Kuustie tells that Oulu city has already been interested in hosting the congress. Oulu is also a good place for organizing a big festival because it is so familiar city to him. Annual “Kesäaika päättyy”- festival (Summertime ends- festival) has been organized in Oulu already from the late nineties by Puppet theatre Akseli Klonk. Oulu puppeteers have a lot of experience in organizing festivals. In summertime we can use Oulu City Theatre and Culture Center Valve. In the very center of Oulu there will be more than ten stages available, Janne Kuustie says. Oulu is in Northern Finland, so in summertime “nightless nights” could be an attractive matter.

Needs a lot of work and money

The congress and the festival need a lot of work and also money. The economical size should be made clear. The significance of the members of Finnish members is really important for the success of the happening. The congress and the festival will need a lot of employees and volunteers. Janne Kuustie and Kati-Aurora Kuuskoski believe that it is possible for the Finnish Unima to start working on it already now. The representatives of the Finnish Unima are Katriina Andrianov, Hannu Räisä, Janne Kuustie and Anne Rautiainen. Kuuskoski thinks that all depends on them and how they can promote the idea in the international meetings. Officially there has not come out any countries that might be interested organizing the meetings or the congress. Denmark has unofficially been interested in the meeting of 2014. The discussion has been started. Kuustie and Kuuskoski believe that after the council meeting in Holland next summer we all will be much wiser about the becoming places of the meetings.

Timo Väntsi