PICNIC – In Light Invisible to the Human Eye
Details
The film was shot in September 2025 on the northern border of Israel and Gaza. During filming, the Israeli army launched a ground offensive into Gaza on September 15. The attack took place at the same time that the UN Independent Commission of Inquiry concluded that Israel had committed genocide in Gaza.
The film follows the Gaza War as seen from Israel. The filming locations include Israel’s war memorials from previous military operations. The locations are also popular picnic spots, where families come to spend time together and watch the war.
Narrator voiceover texts have been collected from the websites of the filming locations, as well as TripAdvisor and Google, where visitors shared their experiences in the areas featured in the film during the war period.
The film was shot entirely on 16mm and 35mm infrared film. Infrared light is invisible to the human eye. What is invisible can be incomprehensible—difficult to understand.
DIRECTOR: Jan Ijäs
SCRIPT: Jan Ijäs
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Jan Ijäs, Ville Piippo
EDITING: Jan Ijäs
MUSIC: Timo Kaukolampi
SOUND DESIGN: Svante Colérus
NARRATION VOICEOVER: Donna Roberts
VOICEOVER RECORDING: Hans Wessels
GALLERY INSTALLATION: Matti Rasi
PRODUCER: Jan Ijäs
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Atalante
Director
Jan Ijäs
Media artist and film director Jan Ijäs (b. 1975) studied documentary filmmaking at the Aalto University in Helsinki. He works with documentary, fiction, and experimental films. His production borders avant-garde film, experimental media art, contemporary art, and documentary film. His films have been screened widely in Finnish and international film festivals and as installations in museums and art galleries. He has won numerous industry awards, including the Finnish Risto Jarva Prize, the Charlottenborg Spring Exhibition Jury Award, and the Amnesty International Award from the Indielisboa Film Festival.
Contact
Otto Suuronen
Advisor / International Promotion and Cultural Export of Short Films
• festival distribution strategy for short films and short documentary films
• travel, project and material and marketing support for short films and short documentary films
• curating short film programmes
+ 358 9 6220 3019