Finland is home to many of the Nordic countries' most inspiring and unique events.
Arctic 15 – The most effective matchmaking startup event in Northern Europe
Arctic15 is a meeting spot for startup entrepreneurs, investors, corporations and media from 60+ countries. Arctic15 aims to be the most effective matchmaking startup event in Northern Europe. The focus is on making deals and quality networking. The 2-day event brings together a professional, international crowd of startups, investors, corporates, media and influencers.
Baltic Circle – International festival for contemporary theatre and performance
Baltic Circle is an international festival for contemporary theatre and performance. The works seen at the festival look for new forms of performing arts and revised modes of production. Baltic Circle actively participates in both Finnish and international performing arts networks, takes part in multi-level development and education initiatives, creates publications, organises residencies and artistic exchanges, helps build up and shape the independent performing arts scene, and influences local cultural policy.
Creative Business Cup Finland– Global creative business competition
Creative Business Cup is an annual global competition, with participants from more than 80 countries all over the world. The competition is for creative and innovative startups and is shaped by a shared goal of all the National Partners in the Creative Business Network to connect and empower the cultural and creative industries worldwide. The competition in Finland is organised by Creative Finland.
Fashion in Helsinki – Annual fashion event focusing on emerging designers
Fashion in Helsinki is an annual event focusing on young Finnish designers and new emerging brands. The organizer Juni Communications has extensive experience in global PR for fashion and architecture and is known for identifying and supporting Finland's most promising designers. Featuring screenings, performances, fashion shows, exhibitions and talks, the annual event celebrates sustainability, new innovations and creativity. It is organized in cooperation with Aalto University.
Finnish Film Affair – International showcase of Finnish films and Nordic talent
Finnish Film Affair is the industry event of Helsinki International Film Festival – Love & Anarchy and an international showcase of Finnish films and Nordic talent. Organised since 2012, approximately 400 film industry professionals from around the world attend the event each year. Finnish Film Affair is also the home for Nordic Flair, a training programme that provides valuable career development opportunities for Nordic filmmaking talent.
Flow Festival – Leading boutique music festival
Flow Festival is a leading, European, boutique music and arts festival that takes place in a historic power plant area in the capital of Finland, Helsinki. It is an internationally acclaimed festival and event brand, and, as one of the world’s first carbon-neutral festivals, considered a forerunner in the music festival scene. Flow is also known for never-before-seen event productions, ambitious projects and multiple recognitions and awards. It has grown from a 4000 visitor downtown event into a 90 000 festival guest grand celebration.
Habitare – Finland’s largest furniture, design and interior decoration fair
Habitare, the largest furniture, design and interior decoration event in Finland offers experiences and ideas on interior decoration, and on the functioning and look of homes and other spaces. Habitare highlights ideas and works by a new generation of designers, and sparks conversation. Habitare attracts more than 50 000 local visitors annually.
Helsinki Book Fair – Cultural forum and fair for literature lovers
Helsinki Book Fair offers four days of new reads, discussions and chances to meet writers and lovers of literature. Parts of the fair programme are also available online. Helsinki Book Fair is a cultural forum of national significance that brings writers, politicians, artists and experts together to discuss some of the major phenomena of our time. Freedom of speech, tolerance and respect for human rights are some of the central values of the fair.
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Helsinki Design Week – Largest design festival in the Nordics
Helsinki Design Week is the largest design festival in the Nordic countries. The festival offers citizens a platform to participate in the development of the city and in related discussions. The international programme features circa 250 events every year, targeted at both professionals and the general public. It consists of signature, companion, and satellite events.
Helsinki Festival – Art festival showcasing various creative industries and events
Helsinki Festival is the largest arts festival in the Nordic countries, held annually in late summer. With its hundreds of events across the city, the festival aims to make art accessible for all. The programme features classical and world music, theatre, dance, circus and visual arts as well as a range of urban events.
Ice Hot Nordic Dance – Event for Nordic contemporary dance
Ice Hot Nordic Dance Platform is an event presenting both emerging and established names in Nordic contemporary dance and choreography to presenters, programmers and other professionals from all over the world. Ice Hot Nordic Dance partners aim to increase international touring and other working opportunities for Nordic artists, and to help our communities share ideas and connections.
Midnight Sun Film Festival – Legendary Film Festival at the heart of Lapland
The Midnight Sun Film Festival was founded in 1986 by a group of Finnish filmmakers, including the Kaurismäki brothers, and the Municipality of Sodankylä. The village of Sodankylä is located at the heart of Finnish Lapland, some 120 kilometres above the Arctic Circle, where the sun doesn’t set at all during the summer. The nature of Lapland and the nightless night provide the Midnight Sun Film Festival with a setting no other festival can compete with.
Music x Media – Future forum for music-related creative business
Music x Media is the most important annual forum for creative industries in Finland. With a history as an industry event for music professionals, it now offers a platform that brings together various creative industries around music, from labels to TikTokers, composers to coders, screenwriters to game designers, technicians to musicians. With 4 days of talks, discussions, workshops, masterclasses and gatherings, Music x Media encourages the creative industries to learn from, inspire, and understand each other.
Mänttä Art Festival – Leading summer festival of contemporary art
Mänttä Art Festival (est. 1993) is one of Finland’s leading summer exhibitions of contemporary art. Each year, a new curator brings a fresh perspective to the exhibition. Pekilo, a former factory building near the Mänttä mill chimneystack, has been the main exhibition venue for over a decade. The festival offers a broad and current view of Finnish contemporary art.
Nordic Business Forum – International business leadership forum
This world-class business conference brings together more than 7,000 business leaders from more than 50 countries. Nordic Business Forum organises events and courses to provide business leaders with opportunities to change the world.With offices in Helsinki, Oslo, Stockholm and Amsterdam, Nordic Business Forum has a solid decade of experience in helping leaders take their leadership skills and business to a new level.
Pocket Gamer Connects – Leading event for global games industry
Pocket Gamer Connects is the leading international conference series for the global games industry. It focuses on connecting people from across the entire gaming ecosystem with all the key formats covered from mobile, PC and console to XR, blockchain and web3 technology. PG Connects has established a stellar reputation as a must-attend conference if you want to meet the most exciting game makers, developers and publishers, as well as some of the world’s top investors, tools providers, platformers and more.
Pori Jazz – One of the world’s longest-running major jazz events
As one of the world’s longest-running major jazz events, the programme of Pori Jazz never fails to feature top names from Finland and around the world. The unique atmosphere, diverse, high standard programme, great services and beautiful surroundings attract about 400,000 visitors every year. A special Pori Jazz Kids Festival is also arranged for children.
SHIFT Business Festival – Growth and future oriented business festival
SHIFT Business Festival brings together growth-oriented businesses to set their sights on the future. The festival provides insights, networking, and tools for creating future-ready businesses. It is built to bring together change-oriented people and businesses to network, learn, and become inspired.
Slush – Global movement bringing together investors and startups
Slush is one of the most important startup events in the world. It’s a student-driven, not-for-profit movement with a mission to create and help the next generation of groundbreaking entrepreneurs. What started as a gathering of 300 local founders in 2008, has become a community of true global magnitude. Its Helsinki-based main event Slush, with founder-investor matchmaking, and pitching competitions, brings together yearly up to 4,600 startup founders and operators, accompanied by 2,600 investors worldwide. Since 2015, Slush has also run events around the world and made various products and resources available year-round to support and inform founders and investors.
Tampere Film Festival – Largest short film festival in the Nordic countries
This internationally renowned event is one of the three largest short film festivals in Europe, alongside Clermont-Ferrand (France) and Oberhausen (Germany) and takes place annually in March. Tampere Film Festival is the largest short film festival in the Nordic countries. Its screenings and events attract around 30,000 visitors annually. The event is also an Academy Award®, Bafta and European Film Academy qualifying festival, a festival recognised by the International Federation of Film Producers Associations FIAPF, and a member of Short Film Conference ISFC.
