A great-grandson of Robert Flaherty, Van Ingen spent his childhood in both India and Finland. After studying anthropology in London, he returned to Helsinki to co-found, in 1990, the Helsinki Filmmakers Co-op. Co-run by Van Ingen for the next ten years, the Filmmakers Co-op converted the former Nokia Cable Factory into a working space for non-professional film production. Since 1989, Van Ingen has been a member of the artists’ union Muu, in 1993 holding the position of chairperson. He has taught film at the Academy of Fine Arts in Helsinki since 1990, and in 1993 participated in the formation of the Industrial Situations Group. Van Ingen’s work with moving image and sound – for the most part within installation, film, and video – has been influenced by both documentary and experimental traditions. In 1995, he collaborated with Toronto filmmaker Philip Hoffman on Sweep (1995), and is perhaps best known for his informal ‘trilogy’ of films The Blow (1997), Days (2000), and Fokus (2004). Van Ingen’s first major international retrospective was organized by Pleasure Dome, in Toronto in 2005.
- Robin McCullough
Interview with Sami Van Ingen
  |
 |
 |
 |
