Italy’s I Wonder Pictures has landed on the Finnish comedy The Player as co-producer before debuting on Haugesund’s industry sidebar New Nordic Films.

The company will also handle local distribution. The project is directed by Teemu Nikki and produced by Jani Pösö of It’s Alive Films.

“I think Tim Nicky is one of the best directors in Europe. He’s talented, prolific and always surprising,” Andrea Romeo, managing director and head of acquisitions at I Wonder Pictures, told me type.

“I think his films will be more and more appreciated by the world and in Italy. His films always talk about important issues, maintaining a perfect balance between black comedy and directing films. We are also very happy to be working with producers like Jani And a collaboration with a prestigious company like It’s Alive Films.”

The Finnish duo have just been nominated for the Nordic Council Film Awards, and their previous film “The Blind Man Who Didn’t Want to See Titanic” also won in Venice.

Their 2017 film Euthanasia was chosen as Finland’s Oscar nominee, while the children’s film Snot and Splash is already in production, promising another dark twist as its protagonist must take a break from vacation And save the world from being sucked into a black hole.

In “The Player,” about the “cheapest driver in the hearse business,” Gamble meets an unlikely friendship as two men — “Tom of Finland” Pekastrand and Jarry Wellman — discover He was in a situation where he had nowhere to go.

“It’s probably the best film we’ve made to date,” says Jani Pösö, referring to his and Nikki’s signature “entertainment of deadly serious subjects.”

“Pekka’s protagonist is a gambling addict. He has a brain but no heart, and his only friend discovers that his brain only works at 15% capacity. It’s based on a true story Tim read: a The man lived a normal life, had a headache, went to the doctor, and that’s what they found. We called him 85 percent brainless.”

The film will talk about gambling or addiction from Strong’s character’s perspective.

“I wanted to make a comedy about a drug addict. About a man, Risto, who lies and steals and uses everyone around him, and whose only friend is a man with no brains, Aalto. And, of course, I Wanted to surround them with death, so I made them a hearse driver,” added Nikki, who also wrote the story.

“Risto ruined his life by himself and Aalto lost his family, his job and his home because all of a sudden he was a joke. Every morning they waited for someone to die to get the money so Risto could gamble. “

Then they came across an underground casino where they played Russian roulette. Their new job is to take care of players’ corpses.

“The movie is going to be a black comedy again, you’ll laugh and cry,” he said.

“I’d even call it a super dark comedy. With some action-thriller elements. These guys, in the end, risked their own lives!” Pösö noted, adding that the project was “different but the same” for the company.

“You could say we tend to have abnormal projects and normal projects, and this one is more or less normal. But again, we’re trying to find new ways to tell stories.”

“We know how serious Pekka and Jari are when it comes to their work. They really wanted to develop their characters, so Tim brought them in early. Usually, you never have time for rehearsals—we’re not in Hollywood. Although they probably also No time.”

But the new project also has a bittersweet side. Their longtime collaborator, cinematographer Jyrki Arnikari, died in the summer, and The Player is his last honor.

“He was our friend and mentor. It’s a pity, but I’m glad we were able to do this together,” admits Pösö. While the team has filmed a demo, main filming will begin in October, with a premiere set for 2023.

“We hope this is just the first co-production with I Wonder Pictures,” says Pösö.

“This is a new chapter for us and the way we make movies. And it feels good.”