Books & films

A narrow, rustic suspension bridge crosses a wide river with a mountainous landscape in the background under a clear blue sky.
In Gabriel's books, you'll find stories of adventures around the world, love, and the journey of becoming yourself. One travel book and two poetry collections are available for purchase on this page.

ElinMaria is a co-creator of three documentaries, including two experimental dance documentaries, driven by a desire to highlight our common humanity. As a choreographer, she challenges conventional narratives of who and what a dancer is.
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Testimonials

A warm-hearted, honestly told travel book that depicts the lives of ordinary people in difficult conditions. The work serves as a travel guide, information resource, and cultural study. The work’s rich illustrations and clear narration are noteworthy.



Kainuu Literature Prize Jury
Aasian Syrjäpoluilla -kirja

The film highlights the human aspect of the archipelago in an entirely new way and beautifully illuminates the diversity of people in everyday situations within a completely unique environment. The film resonates with the innermost essence of the Archipelago Sea’s UNESCO biosphere reserve, “Man and the Biosphere,” a balance between people and nature.

Katja Bonnevier
Människor vid hav -film

A documentary from the inside that upsets us and conveys the fear of the nightly curfew, when the Israeli soldiers take control of the streets and randomly open fire” “The children play with grenades they’ve found on the ground. They imitate the sounds they make. Demonstrations and armed conflict are part of everyday life as walls are built up around the Palestinian town of Ni’lin, on the West Bank.

Gothenburg International Film Festival
Nilin Our Home

When normal life and desperation are not kept apart but are melded together so that desperation becomes the norm, and everyday life becomes desperate, it is not the laughing, shooting Israeli soldiers who provoke the most (they are cinematically speaking a pathetic cliché) but the overwhelming feeling of hopelessness. It is impossible to distance oneself.

Aftonbladet
Nilin Our Home -film

To live and survive. Five people with different traumas in their baggage meet and tell in words and dance what their experiences have brought. The feeling of sadness and inadequacy is embodied in movement to the music and on the dance floor a deeply human community emerges. good-feel dance documentary about the darkness of life and a tribute to the body, conversation and the importance of feeling alive.

Katarina Sundman, Film Festival Sundsvall
Imprint -film
  • A caravan of donkeys carrying loads walks along a rocky path with snow-capped mountains in the background. The text reads "Aasian Syrjäpoluilla" by Gabriel Sydänvirta.

    Aasian Syrjäpoluilla

    Off the Beaten Paths of Asia. A Land Traveler’s Journal

    Gabriel Sydänvirta, 2019

    • 380 pages, includes numerous travel photos
    • Price 28€ + shipping 8€ (Includes VAT 10%)
    • Available only in Finnish.

    When the world calls, you must answer!

    “This is a book about a dream realized, the story of a young man’s incredible backpacking trip from Finland to Nepal. A six-euro daily budget, a travel route through Russia, Mongolia, China, Tibet, Pakistan, and India to Nepal, and a curious mind guaranteed a journey that was anything but dull.

    During the six-month journey, Gabriel traveled overland by trains, buses, bicycle, horses, tractors, canoe, moped, and on foot, living among locals and collecting their stories. Through the stories and beautiful photos, the book’s reader are immersed into the everyday lives of local people and the traveler’s amazing adventures on the ancient Silk Road”.

    The book won the Kainuu Literature Prize in 2019.

    A warm-hearted, honestly told travel book that depicts the lives of ordinary people in difficult conditions. The work serves as a travel guide, information resource, and cultural study. The work’s rich illustrations and clear narration are noteworthy.The Literature Prize Jury.

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  • Colorful abstract artwork featuring a person lying down surrounded by vibrant waves and mountains. Text at the top reads "Gabriel Sydänvirta" and "Onneksi osaan vielä oppia perhoselta.

    Onneksi osaan oppia perhoselta

    Runoja. Gabriel Sydänvirta, 2014

    Poems

    • Price 20€ + shipping 7€ (Includes VAT 10%)
    • Available only in Finnish
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  • Abstract painting with bold red streaks against a blue background. The text reads "Gabriel Sydänvirta" and "Rinnassani Ruusutarha.

    Rinnassani Ruusutarha

    Runoja. Gabriel Sydänvirta, 2016

    Poems

    • Price 20€ + shipping 7€ (Includes VAT 10%)
    • Available only in Finnish
    Order form
  • A person covering their face with hands. Two other hands reach towards them from the sides. The words "AVTRYCK" and "Moving Heart presenterar" are written above. Various logos are at the bottom.

    IMPRINT

    A dance-documentary depiction of five people’s life-changing events.

    • Producer Moving Heart
    • Director Emelie Boman
    • Choreography and art directing ElinMaria Sydänvirta, Gabriel Sydänvirta
    • 14.44 min (2022)

    A dance-documentary depiction of five people’s life-changing events. With a careful and sincere exploration of memories, the movement picks up where words are not enough. They have one thing in common – each body carries a life-changing story.

    Production Company: Moving Heart in co-production with YOUdance and Film i Västerbotten. With support from Dans i Västerbotten and cooperation with Vän i Umeå and Balettakademien Umeå.

    Do you want to screen this film? Contact us

  • Poster for a documentary titled "Ni'lin Här Är Vårt Hem" featuring a person with a megaphone against a backdrop of a town and cloudy sky.

    NI’LIN OUR HOME

    Documentary about the life under Israeli occupation in the Palestinian West Bank village Ni’lin.

    • Producer, Director, Edit: Elisabeth Andersson, ElinMaria Sydänvirta (fd Andersson), Niklas Berg, Helena Gynne, Elin Jonsson och Camilla Lundkvist
    • Produktion company: 65 Grader Media
    • Co-production: Film i Västerbotten
    • 37 min (2012)

    A documentary about the life under Israeli occupation in the Palestinian West Bank village Ni’lin. The events take place in 2008 during the construction of the Israeli annexation wall through the village’s olive groves, and an intense period of Palestinian protests against it.

    Do you want to screen this film? Contact us

  • A woman looking upwards in a forest; a seated person plays a musical instrument. Text: "Människor vid Hav" and event details for a film screening on 14.7 at Korpoström Skärgårdscentrum.

    PEOPLE BY THE SEA

    An experimental documentary dance film captures everyday life on four islands in the Archipelago.

    In production. Premiere of gallery-version 2024

    This unique documentary captures everyday life on four islands in the Archipelago. Islanders collaborate with a choreographer to create dances inspired by their connection to their surroundings. How does a place become a part of who we are?

    Do you want to screen this film? Contact us

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