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HANCOCK, Mich. — When she began her latest filmmaking project, Kristin Ojaniemi didn’t know much about the Setters Co-op in Bruce Crossing, even though it’s in her hometown and has been there 100 years.
One year later, she’s shared what she learned through the DVD “Co-operatively Yours,” a documentary detailing the Finnish cooperative movement in America through the lens of Settlers Co-op as it celebrated its centennial. The film has greatly expanded people’s knowledge of the cooperative movement across Finnish America, and is the primary reason Ojaniemi has been selected by the City of Hancock’s Finnish Theme Committee as the 2018 Hankookin Heikki.
The 35-year-old Bruce Crossing native has two feature-length documentaries to her credit; her first endeavor into the genre was “UP a River,” which told the story of camp owners who were forced to vacate their properties along the Ontonagon River when their leases expired.
It’s “Co-operatively Yours,” though, that firmly put Ojaniemi on the filmmaking “map” – on two sides of the Atlantic Ocean. The film rights have been purchased by Finland’s national broadcast company YLE, and the film will be shown at least three times during 2018 in Finland.
Ojaniemi’s research work for the film took her to Finland in spring 2017, and since then the finished product has been featured at screenings at the Finnish American Heritage Center at Finlandia University, as well as at FinnFest USA 2017 in Minneapolis. The film is available on DVD as well, at several retail outlets across the U.S.
When she’s not exploring her Finnish roots, Ojaniemi can typically be found exploring the many outdoor recreation opportunities her hometown provides. She’s employed as the creative services director for an NBC affiliate station in Rhinelander, Wisconsin; she also teaches a course in digital video at Nicolet College in Rhinelander. A graduate of Grand Valley State University, Ojaniemi lives in Bruce Crossing with her boyfriend Justin and their pets.
Ojaniemi was announced as Hankookin Heikki at the 2017 Finnish Independence Day Gala Concert by the Finnish Theme Committee of Hancock. The award is bestowed annually upon a person who has exhibited extraordinary effort toward preservation and promotion of Finnish culture in the Copper Country and beyond. Her first “official” duty as Hankookin Heikki will be as the parade marshal of the 2018 Heikinpäivä parade, which takes place in Hancock on Saturday, January 27. For further information about the Finnish Theme Committee or the Heikinpäivä festival, call (906) 487-7549.
