Originally from Tampere, Matias “Matson” Välkkilä is a young, emerging writer for whom storytelling is a lifelong passion. He has drawn inspiration from childhood animations and films, which led him to start developing his own worlds and characters at an early age.
At the festival, Välkkilä will present his first short story, Red Bird, a crime and superhero tale set in Tampere. At the center of this incredibly eventful story is a local vigilante, Red Bird, also known as Raul. The character originated in Välkkilä’s imagination during his school years as a humor-focused Batman parody named Pöllömies (Owlman). After years of refinement, Red Bird has grown into a multidimensional hero with an entirely unique world and a gallery of characters. The work is heavily influenced by dark and fantastical works such as Batman, The Crow, Se7en, Vares, Blacksad, and Terminator 2. Although Red Bird’s adventures have currently taken the form of a short story, Välkkilä’s long-term dream is to bring his created world to the audience as a full animated series.
Curators’ comments: ”There is an immense passion in Välkkilä’s storytelling that truly draws you in. It is a cascading and elaborate work of fantasy, where the sheer force of the narrative leaves all everyday realism behind, immersing the reader deep into a comic-book-like fantasy world.”