The film Yellow Sulfur Sky (Den svavelgula himlen) is directed, produced and co-written by Claes Olsson (Colorado Avenue, Shades of Happiness) from the acclaimed eponymous novel by Kjell Westö published in 2017.

It’s a bittersweet tale about love and friendship, and how we are shaped by gender, class and the time we live in. The film is set mostly in the present, but goes back to the 1970s.

Nicke Lignell (Syke/Nurses) plays the title role of Frej, an author who rose to fame 25 years earlier. Linda Zilliacus (Moscow Noir, Thicker than Water) plays the wealthy Stella Rabell, member of Finland’s Swedish-speaking elite, for whom Frej develops a bittersweet love that lasts decades. Pekka Strang (Tom of Finland, Dogs Don’s Wear Pants) is Stella’s older brother, the charming and manipulative Alex, who becomes Frej’s close friend.

The film is shot in the Swedish language to stick to the spirit of the novel. According to Solar Films, the bulk of the filming unfolded in the Helsinki metropolitan region and Uusimaa (Nyland) province and will next move to Portugal.

The film is produced by Jukka Helle, Markus Selin, Hanna Virolainen and Claes Olsson for Solar Films, in co-production with Yle, Sweden’s Bright Moving Pictures, Germany’s Why Not Films (Germany), Denmark’s Smile Entertainment, with co-financing from Nordisk Film, support from the Finnish Film Foundation, Nordisk Film & TV Fond, Konstsamfundet and Svenska Kulturfonden. The premiere is set for 2021.

Meanwhile Solar Films other major production Class Reunion 3 directed by the Finnish Hollywood director Renny Harlin, has now completed principal photography.

The film was among the first full-length features in Finland which started production after the pandemic peak, abiding to the very strict health and safety filming protocol.

The third instalment in the comedy series adapted from the Danish hit films series Klassefesten was adapted for the screen by Harlin and Mari Perankoski. The two first Finnish film versions sold more than 800,000 admissions, attracting around 14% of Finland’s population.