The first part of OMVF 2024's programme is now out!

At the 31st Oulu Music Video Festival, expect to see UFOs and peculiar sports videos—with international guests including Swedish director Matt Broadley and Scottish Felix Geen. The summer of 2024 marks a super sports year: the European football championship will be held in Germany, the Olympics in Paris. Sweat-drenched videos and films will fill the screens at the Oulu Music Video Festival!

Sports are more popular and commercial than ever. Although streaming services are filled with mediocre sports documentaries, sports are also made into interesting art. The festival's second theme of supernatural phenomena, has spawned some of the most popular films. But sports itself is already strange. Think about for example running after a ball with with a frown on your face and contorting into bizarre poses on a trapeze.

The best of European music videos, experimental shorts, and mesmerising films

Curated by OMVF's new artistic director Joel Karppanen, the music video screenings will feature the best and weirdest sports and sci-fi videos. As part of Oulu European Capital of Culture 2026, OMVF will organise a Nordic music video competition in 2025 and a European one in 2026. The 'New from Europe' screening looks towards the festival’s future internationalisation by showcasing a selection of the best European music videos from the past year. The film program includes a screening of experimental sports shorts featuring works from Mika Taanila, Saara Ekström, Norman McLaren, and Takashi Ito. The festival will premiere the latest version of Austrian Johann Lurf's mesmerising space symphony ★. Equally hypnotic are Anisia Uzeyman and Saul Williams' Afrofuturistic musical Neptune Frost (2021) and Jonathan Glazer's Under the Skin (2013).

Domestic guests and professionals from around the world

The festival's domestic guests include the unique and critically acclaimed musician Orvokki, whose Carte Blanche screening showcases Orvokki's favorite music videos. A retrospective screening is held by multi-talented Ima Iduozee, a dancer, choreographer, and director, who was last year named Helsinki's Artist of the Year. Nostalgia-hungry festival-goers will be delighted by Swedish director Matt Broadley, who has directed dozens of well-known 90s Eurodance videos, including Ace of Base's All That She Wants video, which has garnered over 169 million views. Born in Scotland and based in Berlin, director Felix Geen uses AI in his music videos as a narrative tool. Geen has directed videos for artists like Yves Tumor, Orbital, and Avalon Emerson. At the festival, Geen will showcase his works in a Master Class and hold a limited-capacity attendance AI workshop. Geen and Broadley also serve as judges for the domestic music video competition alongside Helsinki Sanomat journalist and critic Eleonoora Riihinen. Over 300 videos were submitted to the competition, and the selected videos will be announced in July. The best videos will be awarded at the festival's award ceremony, the Pumpeli Gala, hosted by Oulu artist Sisko Iljana.

Afterparties feature Nordic DJ legends and Finnish rock and rap

OMVF's afterparties will feature performances by Finnish favorite Jukka Nousiainen Trio, new wave rapper Hassan Maikal, DJ Ima Idouzee, and critically acclaimed experimental electronic indie musician Orvokki. International artists include Norwegian disco legend Bjørn Torske and Swedish Daniel Savio from Stockholm. A compilation of music videos made for Savio's music will be shown at the Real Deal clothing store. The rest of the festival's program and guests, as well as schedules, will be announced in July.

The rest of the festival's program and schedules will be announced in July.

The Oulu Music Video Festival will be held from August 22–25 as part of the Oulu Festival Week.