Mr. Lordi meets Harmony Korine – OMVF programme now out!

Oulu Music Video Festival is proud to welcome a true icon: Mr. Lordi of the band Lordi. Having just released a new album and currently touring festival stages across Europe, the band is a baroque-scale multimedia horror universe – a total pop art piece created by its frontman. In addition to music, Mr. Lordi personally paints the band’s album covers, and designs their stage outfits and sets. Over the decades, he has also directed and done makeup for music videos both for Lordi and other artists. In his Carte blanche screening, the monster man shares his favourite videos – as well as his own work.

From shock rock to shock cinema: OMVF will host the Finnish premiere of American provocateur Harmony Korine’s latest, Baby Invasion (2024). The film is a "live broadcast" from an ultra-realistic first-person shooter game, following a squad of mercenaries disguised as baby avatars. With a score composed by legendary British musician Burial, the film carries the viewer through a hyperreality merging live action, AI animation and game-engine graphics. It can be viewed either as a nihilistic meme – or as an 80-minute Burial music video.

The electronic soundscape continues in a cineconcert, as Norway’s The Gloria, known for their minimalist, glitch-tinged sound, takes the stage at Valvesali to accompany a collection of silent films. In Walter Ruttmann’s iconic Opus tetralogy (1921–1924), cinema is liberated from representational imagery and transformed into an organic flow of colour, movement, and rhythm. Robert Florey and Slavko Vorkapich’s The Life and Death of 9413, A Hollywood Extra (1927) – a dark satire oozing with German expressionism – was made on a shoestring budget and became the most popular avant-garde film of its time in the U.S.

Francis Ford Coppola, too, experienced Hollywood’s dark side when his company Zoetrope neared bankruptcy after his passion project One from the Heart (1982) flopped at the box office. A visual triumph of artificial aesthetics, the film's neon lights from casinos and nightclubs blaze in garish hues across the Las Vegas night. OMVF screens the romantic cult musical in its newly re-edited and restored Reprise version, completed last year.

Special Screenings: David Lynch, Idols nostalgia, and top new Finnish music videos

Themes of hyperreality – from video games to reality TV – are also explored in special screenings. Finland’s biggest computer festival Assembly presents a showcase of top demoscene videos, and Tähtipölyä… Sing along! brings audiences back to the first season of Finnish Idols. In memory of David Lynch, who passed away in January, OMVF presents a selection of his most iconic commercials and music videos. Festival regulars Roos Hekkens and Veli Kauppinen have also curated their own screenings, tackling themes such as simulated patriarchy.

Next Wave showcases the results of the OMVF Next masterclass, launched earlier this year to support the professional growth of a new generation of promising creators. Over the past six months, young directors have been developing new works under the mentorship of filmmaker Mika Taanila and director Marcus Söderlund. In addition to brand-new Finnish videos, the screening features a mini-retrospective of Söderlund – known for directing music videos for Yung Lean and The XX.

In The World Of Tomorrow places Mika Taanila's work in dialogue with that of futurologist Erkki Kurenniemi (1941–2017). Other already announced screenings include the visual music masterworks of Synaesthetic Dreams, Lunar Dust by Billy Roisz and Ilpo Väisänen, a Kalevi Suopursu retrospective, and a unique documentary film about Brian Eno.

Afterparties: DJs, live music & immersive visuals

The festival’s club nights are a continuation of audiovisual celebration. On Thursday, Finnish stoner rock group Möyhy-Veikot performs with live visuals by VJ Jani Pitkänen. On Friday, early-2000s cult artist Tero performs his Commodore 64–crafted electro, followed by a music video jukebox where the audience can request their favourite pieces.

Saturday's club lineup features an audiovisual house set by Portable – a regular performer at Berlin’s Berghain – as well as dub-infused vinyl vibes from Malsson, and a rhythmically captivating DJ set by rising Helsinki-based Ojelma. The night’s immersive visuals are crafted by Bergen-based artist Ola Lyysgard.

The Finnish and Nordic competition screenings, professional programme, artists featured in the Valve Gallery exhibition, and the full event schedule will be announced on 10 July.