Silent Legacy
Details
In Europe, he is seen as “an African immigrant”; in Africa, as “a privileged European.” After ten years in Finland, contemporary dancer and choreographer Sibiry begins to long for a deeper connection to his home village in Burkina Faso. Yet unrealistic expectations weigh heavily on his shoulders, as friends and relatives keep calling to ask for money.
Silent Legacy is an intriguing story of an artist who seeks to tackle inequality — with nothing but a humble minibus — in order to find a place called home. The film explores identity, belonging, and position of a migrant living between two contrasting realities, where colonial legacies still prevail.
World premiere: Locarno Critics’ Week 2025
DIRECTORS: Jenni Kivistö, Jussi Rastas
SCRIPTWRITERS: Jenni Kivistö, Jussi Rastas
CINEMATOGRAPHY: Jussi Rastas, Ari Virem
SOUND: Olivier Goinard
EDITING: Jenni Kivistö, Jussi Rastas, Heli Kota, Sofia Bonds, Samu Kuukka
MUSIC: Emil Sana
CO-PRODUCERS: Sébastien Tézé (Ellis Films), Mamounata Nikiema (Pilumpiku Production)
PRODUCER: Ella Ruohonen
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Väki Films
Directors
Jenni Kivistö
Jenni Kivistö is a documentary film director whose feature Colombia in My Arms (2020), co-directed with Jussi Rastas, received 16 awards, including the Dragon Award for Best Nordic Documentary 2020 (Göteborg Film Festival) and New Nordic Voice 2020 (Nordisk Panorama). It also screened at numerous other festivals such as Sao Paolo and Havana. Kivistö’s previous films Land Within (2016) and Mother (2017) premiered at leading festivals Clermont-Ferrand and DOK Leipzig, with Mother also receiving the Silver Mikeldi at ZINEBI 2017. Kivistö studied film at Aalto University (Finland) and at Black Maria Film School (Colombia).
Jussi Rastas
Jussi Rastas is a Finnish documentary filmmaker with a background in cinematography. His debut feature Colombia in My Arms (2020), co-directed with Jenni Kivistö, received wide international recognition. It won the Dragon Award for Best Nordic Documentary at the Göteborg Film Festival and the New Nordic Voice Award at Nordisk Panorama, among 16 prizes in 32 festivals, including São Paulo and Havana. Rastas’s films are distinguished by their cinematic depth and multilayered approach to complex global themes.
Contact
Suvi Railo
Advisor / International Promotion and Cultural Export of Documentary Films
• festival distribution strategy for documentary films
• travel, project and material and marketing support for documentary films
+358 9 6220 3021