IRIS

Johanna Nuutinen

Dance in the fissures of humanity

Directed by Finnish choreographer Johanna Nuutinen in collaboration with filmmaker Jukka Rajala-Granstubb, the multidisciplinary work IRIS explores the themes of strength, desire, and survival through the mediums of dance and film.

The work takes the audience on a visually arresting and physical journey into a fabric woven of shards of humanity.

It weaves together the mesmerising live performance of two internationally renowned Finnish dance artists, Jonna Aaltonen and Eero Vesterinen, with six short films that include performances from top artists of the Finnish and Swedish dance and circus field.

Photos from film: Jukka Rajala Granstubb, Black and white image: Jukka Nuutinen

The work results from the interviews of 17 people in their 80s to 90s, which started with the question of what they want to speak about when there is not much life left to live anymore, and which type of memories have been the most meaningful. The result is distilled into five surrealistic stories which create a journey traveling between the sensitive stage scenery and raw landscapes on film.

Duration 55 min

Choreography and concept design Johanna Nuutinen Film Script Johanna Nuutinen, Jukka Rajala-Granstubb Cinematographer Jukka Rajala-Granstubb Editing Mervi Junkkonen, Jukka Rajala-Granstubb Movement dramaturgy Jarkko Lehmus Performers on stage Jonna Aaltonen, Eero Vesterinen Performers on film Aava Granstubb, Filip Forsström, Alma Äijö, Svante Martin, Anni Koskinen, Onni Hämäläinen, Yvan Auzely, Nathalie Ruiz, Eila Ilola, Kari Harju Composers Tuomas Norvio, Tapani Rinne Light designer Joonas Tikkanen Costume designer Minttu Vesala Supporters Finnish Cultural Foundation, Vivicas Vänner foundation, Hurber Foundation, Svenska Kulturfonden, Taiteen edistämiskeskus, City of Helsinki, SHAWBROOK Residency Centre, MALAKTA Art Factory, Fearless PINECONE .

ABOUT JOHANNA NUUTINEN
Choreographer Johanna Nuutinen graduated from the Finnish National Opera Ballet school in 2002. In 2002 she became a member of the Finnish National Ballet and created a successful career with the company while dancing soloist roles in works by Ohad Naharin, William Forsythe, Johan Inger, Jacobo Godani, Sylvie Guillem, John Neumeier, Jorma Elo and Jorma Uotinen among others, as well as created her own productions to the stage and on film.

In 2017 Johanna received a 3 year artist grant from the Finnish Cultural Foundation and at the moment she works as a freelance artist. Johanna creates commission works for renowned dance companies, independent productions for national and international touring and collaborates with various artists in the fields of music and multimedia as a performer and choreographer.

In 2013 Johanna created a short dance film "ME – The Story of a Performance" in collaboration with filmmakers Jopsu and Timo Ramu (MUSUTA Ltd.). So far the film has been presented at over 40 international dance and design film festivals . Her solo production HATCHED is also becoming an international success having been premiered in Hong Kong and continued touring in Russia and Finland. In 2017 she premiered two new works. The multidisciplinary work IRIS explores the themes of strength, desire and survival through the mediums of dance and film. The production ROOM for Pori Dance Company challenges the performer ́s perceived mental and emotional boundaries through an abstract choreography which gets it ́s emotional content through exhaustion. Her new work ANON - The Act of Waiting will premiere in Helsinki in November 2018. Johanna is currently working as a choreographer also on MIRAGES, a dance film and live event cinema performance, which will premiere in 2019. johannanuutinen.com