Själö – Island of Souls

Lotta Petronella : 2020

Själö is an isolated island in the Baltic Sea, off the coast of Finland near Turku. Its name means island of souls. For centuries, a closed institution served as a final destination for socially transgressive women at Själö. Finally, in 1755, it was fully turned into an asylum and functioned as such until 1962. The outcast women were kept there in detention, to be observed, studied and measured – in much the same way as the surrounding nature is by scientists at the now converted Centre of Environmental Research of the University of Turku. While a young scientist is collecting samples around the island, the past emerges in the whispers of the unsent letters and empty rooms of the hospital, writing the unknown history of the nameless women. The space fills up with hidden memories as the invisible archives come alive. Whose stories are remembered and whose are forgotten? Lotta Petronella's documentary received the F:act Award Special Mention when it premiered at Copenhagen International Documentary Festival 2020.