# 100 Litres of Gold

100 Litres of Gold is a 2024 dark comedy film directed by Teemu Nikki [fi; it; arz]. About two sisters who drink 100 litres of their family's famous sahti before having to quickly replace it for a wedding, the film premiered at the 19th Rome Film Festival and is set for wide release in Finland on 28 March 2025.

## Synopsis

Taina and Pirkko, two sisters known for being the best sahti brewers in town, are asked to make 100 litres for their other sister Päivi's wedding. However, Taina and Pirkko live with alcoholism, in part due to the guilt they feel from a car crash that injured Päivi many years earlier. After working to brew the ale, they then drink all of it shortly before the wedding, and – while suffering the resulting hangover – try to find ways to get another 100 litres in time.

## Cast

Source:
* Elina Knihtilä as Pirkko
* Pirjo Lonka as Taina
* Ville Tiihonen as Hauki
* Ria Kataja as Päivi

## Production

The film is set in director Teemu Nikki's small hometown of Sysmä, with Nikki saying that despite having moved away decades earlier, he was always telling people "wild stories" about the town. His family, too, made sahti, of which he said they "are very proud". He dislikes the "country film" style made in Finland about places like Sysmä, and decided to put his own spin on it in writing 100 Litres of Gold, likening the resulting story to a Western; Nikki and producer Jani Pösö [fi] also thought that despite its differences with their own usual style of film, it was still both dark and funny. Nikki said that much of the humour is in things that are realistic, with inherently funny dialogue said with conviction, and that handling dark subjects with comedy shows "that humankind still has some kind of hope."
Nikki originally envisaged his story with male main characters, but saw a play starring Elina Knihtilä and Pirjo Lonka [fi] and knew he had to cast them, saying: "You don't fuck with these ladies. They demand respect and they are tough, although they carry this darkness with them." Nikki sought out the actresses because he knew he could trust them to "deliver this kind of role, because it's not that easy [...] to be very gross and funny but also lovable and realistic." Often writing specific roles for certain actors, Nikki did so again, getting Knihtilä and Lonka on board ahead of production. After they joined, he spent a year and a half writing the film, working collaboratively with them after each draft.
As they worked with Italian company I Wonder, the production was able to bring on board Marco Biscarini, who studied under Ennio Morricone, as composer.

## Release

The film had its world premiere in official selection in October 2024 at the 19th Rome Film Festival, after appearing in the industry selection at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival film market in September. For the Italian premiere, the filmmakers shipped twenty litres of unfermented sahti to Rome, before brewing it at the Finnish Embassy there to serve and "introduce this drink to the entire world" – Pösö was late to press for the film because he was buying a suitcase for the sahti. They planned to do the same at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival in November 2024.

## Accolades

| Award | Date of ceremony | Category | Recipient(s) | Result |
| Rome Film Festival | October 2024 | Best Film (Progressive Cinema Competition) | 100 Litres of Gold | Nominated |
| Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival | 29 November 2024 | Grand Prix: Best Film | Teemu Nikki, Jani Pösö | Nominated |
| Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival | 29 November 2024 | Best Director | Teemu Nikki | Nominated |
| Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival | 29 November 2024 | Best Cinematography | Jarmo Kiuru | Nominated |
| Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival | 29 November 2024 | Best Script | Teemu Nikki | Nominated |
| Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival | 29 November 2024 | Best Original Score | Marco Biscarini | Nominated |
| Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival | 29 November 2024 | Best Production Design | Maria Hahl | Nominated |
| Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival | 29 November 2024 | Best Actress | Elina Knihtilä | Won |
| Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival | 29 November 2024 | Best Actress | Pirjo Lonka | Won |