• environmental ,
  • Documentary films, over 30 min
In production | 90 min

Burnt Earth

Maastopalo

Details

Burnt Earth is a character-driven climate change story about ordinary, very relatable people, doing something exceptional. It’s a story about a group of firefighters from Finland – 49 men and 1 woman – who train to become the newest and most northern unit in a pan-European emergency response organisation. To learn how to fight large fires now and in future, the Finns travel to Portugal to learn from the best: from the veteran Portuguese firefighters already fighting on the frontlines of our rapidly warming world.
 
Coming from small-towns in the most northern regions of Europe, the Finns are seasoned professionals more used to rescue missions in ice and snow, but in Portugal they enter a fiery world they have never experienced before. Burnt Earth is a visually stunning and dramatically powerful film that takes the audience on an immersive journey into the devastating impacts of climate change, seen through the lens of those who dare to confront it.
 
DIRECTOR: John Webster
SCRIPT: John Webster
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Jarkko T. Laine
EDITING: Niels Pagh Andersen, John Webster
SOUND: Pietari Koskinen
PRODUCERS: Marko Talli, Eveliina Kantola
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Yellow Film & TV

Director

John Webster

Born in Finland of British parents, John Webster has been directing and producing documentary films since the early 1990s. Typical to his films are human-interest stories with strong central characters whose lives are followed over a long period of time. Over the years, his films have been broadcast to a wide international audience, screened and awarded at festivals, and two of his films have received the Finnish Jussi film award.

Read more about the director

Contact

Anni Asikainen

Advisor / International Promotion and Cultural Export of Documentary Films

• deputy starting Jan 8, 2024
• festival distribution strategy for documentary films
• travel, project and material and marketing support for documentary films

+358 9 6220 3049