Officiële opening – Fallen Leaves

Two lost souls find each other in a karaoke bar in Helsinki where time has stood still. Ansa is a shelf-stocker on a zero-hour contract and Holappa is a sandblaster with an unquenchable thirst. Both long for the romantic ideal of unique and eternal love, but life sometimes gets in the way. Their path to happiness is hampered by countless obstacles, from forgotten names, lost phone numbers and wrong addresses to the excessive use of alcohol and the appearance of charming stray dog.

It reads like a cliché for a romantic comedy, but in the hands of director Aki Kaurismäki, it delivers a gem of a tragicomic love story. Fallen Leaves is feel-good cinema from Finland and an uncomplicated ode to romance with which Kaurismäki warmed and captured the hearts of many film lovers at Cannes this year.

Performance by Katie Koss on opening night

For Ukrainian-born Katie Koss (Katja Poltavets), it's all about self-development and reflection. With her sultry and soulful indie-pop, she takes you into her self-study. She explores herself, wonders about her perspective and reflects on topics such as freedom, female empowerment, self-determination and multiculturalism.
 
The Netherlands was introduced to Katie Koss in early 2022 when she sang a duet with MEAU in the Giro555 TV broadcast for the victims in Ukraine. Not long after, she impressed Humberto, toured with the Popronde as OOR talent and was tour support for Sabrina Starke. 

Katie Koss can be admired live in the foyer of De Harmonie from 10 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 8, after the opening film Fallen Leaves.