Tampere Gives Record Incentive to 'Blood & Sweat' as Series Takes Japan by Storm

Blood & Sweat, an eight-part crime series shot in Tampere and Tokyo, is drawing massive attention in Japan and has received Tampere's largest-ever audiovisual production incentive, Tamperelainen reports.

The series filmed about 50 days in Tampere and roughly 20 days in Tokyo. Film Tampere program director Fanny Heinonen says the city is more than a backdrop — familiar sites appear in extended drone shots, including central Tampere, Särkänniemi, Finlayson and the Pyynikin Unity Hotel, and the production makes use of Finnish nature, sauna culture and local foods ranging from oatmeal to sautéed reindeer. The city’s incentive can cover up to 10 percent of the production budget spent in the Tampere region, with an additional 0–5 percent bonus possible for the publicity the area receives.

Blood & Sweat stars Jasper Pääkkönen and Anne Watanabe as two detectives investigating a string of murders. Finnish cast members include Antti Reini, Mikko Nousiainen, Alina Tomnikov, Tommi Raitolehto and Esa Latva-Äijö.

Tamperelainen notes Tampere’s recent international film activity: the Hollywood movie Over Your Dead Body premiered at South by Southwest and goes to U.S. cinemas on April 24 with global rights via Amazon Prime, while the local comedy Pirjo I Sverige, filmed in Terälahti, is due in Finnish cinemas on October 9. Film Tampere is negotiating with companies in the UK, U.S., India and Sweden to bring more projects to the region, Heinonen adds.