Risto Orko (born Risto Eliel William Nylund; 15 September 1899 – 29 September 2001) was a Finnish film producer and director. Orko was born in Rauma. With a career of over 60 years at the film studio

Suomi-Filmi Suomi-Filmi, lit. ''Finland-Film'', is a Finnish film production and distribution company established in 1919 by Erkki Karu. Suomi-Filmi produced around 160 feature-length films and for most of its history was one of the two most important film com ...

, he rose to be head of production and chief director in the 1930s. He became its CEO in 1945. In the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, Suomi-Filmi produced hundreds of films and numerous shorts. In the years 1933–43, Orko directed many films, including two (''Aktivistit'' and ''Jääkärin morsian''), which were banned for being "overly patriotic". He had a joint cooperation with the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

film industry during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. Orko also directed a Finnish-Soviet co-production, released into the American market with subtitles, entitled ''

The Day the Earth Froze ''Sampo'' (russian: Сампо) is a 1959 Soviet– Finnish fantasy film based loosely on the events depicted in the Finnish national epic ''Kalevala''. In the United States, it was released in an edited version, ''The Day the Earth Froze'', by ...

'' in 1959.

Death

His death in Helsinki, aged 102, was received with great sadness in his native

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...

; thereafter he became known as the "last Finnish Film Tycoon".

Selected filmography

* ''

Sampo In Finnish mythology, the ''Sampo'' () is a magical device or object described in many different ways that was constructed by the blacksmith Ilmarinen and that brought riches and good fortune to its holder, akin to the horn of plenty (cornucopi ...

'' (1959) * '' Onnelliset leikit'' (1964) * ''

Borrowing Matchsticks ''Borrowing Matchsticks'' (russian: За спичками, Za spichkami, fi, Tulitikkuja lainaamassa) is a Soviet– Finnish comedy film produced by Mosfilm and Suomifilm in 1980. Film based on the novel by Algot Untola. Plot Antti Ihalainen ...

'' (1980)

External links

* 1899 births 2001 deaths People from Rauma, Finland People from Turku and Pori Province (Grand Duchy of Finland) Finnish film directors Finnish film producers Finnish centenarians Men centenarians {{film-producer-stub