COLOR GRADING
The Helsinki Effect
2025
The Helsinki Effect is an all-archival essay documentary that explores the power narratives and myths of the Cold War era, with ironic wit and a sharp political eye for the human drama on the grand, diplomatic stage. Based on hundreds of hours of archival footage, the film deconstructs the anatomy of an often misunderstood diplomatic process, and reveals how it came to impact the world in a decisive way.
“The Helsinki Effect is full of historical echoes, contrasts and funhouse mirror images of our current political realities.”
- Business Doc Europe
As an all-archival documentary built from hundreds of hours of previously classified document fragments and recordings from the 1975 conference, sourced in varying formats, quality, and age, Rebel Unit delivered the color grade and upscaled the archival footage, ensuring a seamless and coherent visual aesthetic throughout.
The Helsinki Effect premiered at CPH:DOX 2025 and has since screened at DOK.fest München, Millennium Docs Against Gravity, Beldocs International Documentary Festival, DokuFest, Underhill International Film Festival, Transilvania International Film Festival (TIFF), Athens International Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival, Helsinki International Film Festival and Nordisk Panorama.
It secured nominations for «Best Documentary» at the Chicago International Film Festival 2025 and Athens International Film Festival 2025, and was also shortlisted for «Best Film» in the Nordic Council Film Prize 2025.
Director: Arthur Franck
Producers: Sandra Enkvist, Thorvald Nilsen & Arthur Franck