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© 2006 - present, Sabrina

translated and transcripted by The ENigma

MTV3 Tuomas Holopainen and Stobe Harju at the "Huomenta Suomi" Feb 23 2011 8:52 am

Host: Good morning. One of the most succesful Finnish bands Nightwish will next progress into making a movie. Under the works is a movie titled "Imaginarium" which will arrive in theaters next year. Tuomas Holopainen, what there will be to expect?

Tuomas: There will certainly be something very unheard and unseen things to expect. This is a projest that has been in my mind for several years already and about two and half years ago I came to a concrete conclusion that I have to do this.

Host: Right. Nightwish's music is grand and you are known as a friend of movie scores. Was the origin of this idea to visulize your music.

Tuomas: Yes, for the most part. After DPP I started pondering how to take everything to the next dimension. We have gone through most everyhing and gone so far over the top with pompousness that it was about the time to invent new ideas. So I got this flash like yeah, our thing has been so cinematic all the time, why not make it into a real cinema.

Host: And helping to realize the idea comes Stobe Harju, the director of the movie. Stobe, how challenging material for a director is Nightwish's pompous and visual music?

Stobe: Of course it's challenging, many people will think that yeah, right, let's start making a movie, so what. Everybody knows that Nightwish's music is so huge, which means that visualizing it and creating stories from it must be huge also. In general with the resources we have available in this country's movie sector, many will consider this impossible but that'll be just what we're trying to achieve with this project. We will try to keep up within the vast size of the music, which means there'll be quite huge visions to realize.

Host: What can you tell us at the moment? The project is still at the beginning. It's going to be a full length feature film for movie theater release, right?

Stobe: Right.

Tuomas: Yes, that's the plan. I'd like to think that something like this has never been done before. It'll be a full lenght film where music carries for the most parts, but there will be also acted scenes with dialog and ...

Stobe: Yeah, the story will be carried on by dialog and music. We could think that it'll slightly parallel a traditional musical and turn towards Pink Floyd's "The Wall". We talked about it and both the music and dialog will tell the the story along with acted drama scenes.

Tuomas: If I have to draw it for you: It'll become something between "The Wall" and "Moulin Rouge". But then again, not quite... (laughs)

Stobe: Yeah.

Host: Right. How about you, will we see the band members on the screen?

Tuomas: (Points at Stobe) That guy did actually write us in the manuscript...

Host: So you will have some dialogue to do also, not only playing instruments?

Tuomas: Yes, we will talk a little.

Stobe: But the bands will appear as themselves, as the band, no need to imagine them as anyhting else but Nightwish. It'll be important that we won't go to telling fairytales about the band.

Host: Imaginarium, it's about moving in a dreamworld, right?

Tuomas: Quite much like it.

Stobe: We really do not want to reveal the story much more than we already have done. I think that what we have said already will be enough at this stage.

Host: So we have to wait for what will be coming. But you told me, there will be plenty of animation included?

Stobe: Yes. Or actually animtion isn't the right word, beacuse everyone will immediately think about cartoons, but plenty of effects will be used as we will move in a drean world. Certainly we are not going to film real flying cows, those have to be created with alternative methods. (grins)

Host: How... hitting theaters in a year and only beginning the actual work now. Sounds like a tight schedule... ?

Tuomas: Here one "doubting Tuomas" is raising his head and actually I have done it for quite a many times, but the fact is that we have so good production team, like Markus Selin & Solar Films and Stobe right here. So there will be no other alternative but succeeding with this project. (laughs)

Stobe: We really have a good team with great spirit, production company and exteremely good band so we have all the ingredients to achieve anything.

Tuomas: Yet we are in this [project] with humble minds, this will be something that has never been done before and there are a few unclosed doors still left in the project, but we seem to be under the lucky stars right now.

Host: What about the budget, how big funds this project will move and will it all come from Nightwish?

Stobe: For the Finnish movie scene the budget is quite big and Nightwih is taking part in financing it. All funding come all from Finnish sources and we also got a positive decision from the Finnish Movie Foundation concerning a grant for the project. We're still waitung to hear the actual figures but in the Finnish scale this is a big project.

Host: Another big project for Nightwish is the new album you were recording in London last week. How well does the music and the movie go hand in hand?

Tuomas: Very near hand in hand, the music on the album carries the storyline and it forms the base for the movie. It's also important to remember that the CD will stand alone as a whole, it will be Nightwish's next album which forms a separate unit. It will be released soon after the New Year 2012.

Stobe: It's an absolutely amazing record!

Host: You two will have an intense year together ahead, will your co-operation stand for the pressure?

Stobe: Shall I say? We have found only one thing we didn't agree during this whole projct. It feels sometimes a bit eerie because we seem to like the same movies, same books and... what was it again we disagreed?

Tuomas: The font colour in the teaser poster.

Stobe: Right, but we did compromise on it. Tuomas wanted black, I wanted white so it became grey!

(both laugh)

2nd clip, interview continued with Tuomas alone after the 9:00 am news

Host: Nightwish will proceed from making music to making movies. Tuomas Holopainen, what is the idea behind your movie project?

Tuomas: This has been in our plans for several years and now we are at the point where the manuscript is mostly ready, most of storyboards are finished and soon we are able to start making scenes and shooting the film.

Host: The movie will go hand in hand with the new album which has been under works simultaneously?

Tuomas: Yes, we started working with it last year and only last week we came back from London whre we recorded orchestra, choirs and all kinds of whistles and bells. Next we will continue with recording vocals, then mixing and the CD will be finished, so we are near the goal already.

Host: It sounds like a huge project again to me. Orchestra, choir, but is it the familiar Nightwish or are you reaching new territories?

Tuomas: It would be nice to throw in a cliche about being simultaneously heavier yet more melodic than ever with something new, but really, I don't know... (laughs) The listeners will decide. I have a feeling that the material is strong and it goes from one side to another all way through. There can't be found the red line in the music, just like there never was one.

Host: The movie will be worked beside the CD, so does that mean a further step towards movie scores, as you are known as a big friend of movie scores?

Tuomas: Not on purpose. The cinematic aspect has always been a part of our music, and it still is. Actually we have not decided how much the music in the movie will differ from the music on our new album. I do not believe that there will be huge differences, but some compromises considering how to fit the music to the drama obviously must be done.

Host: Right. We have received a lot of questions to you from your fans. Let's pick a few for you to answer. First one came from Kristiina; maybe you have been asked this before: Which Nightwish song you consider the all time best?

Tuomas: Ehhh... it changes according to my feelings every day, but if I really must name the one I'd take with me to an uninhabited island, then it must be The Poet and the Pendulum from our latest CD.

Host: What makes it the most important to you?

Tuomas: It's very personal to me and also very therapeutic song, during the 13 minutes it goes through the whole Nightwish's repertoire, from the heaviest to the most tender tunes. It's a song like me looking myself in a mirror.

Host: Henkka asks what kind of music you listen to right now?

Tuomas: I don't know if I'm getting old but I rather listen to silence than music nowadays. Even on the radio I prefer talk shows. If I do listen to music, it's usualy movie scores and sountracks. Of course also heavy metal, rock and pop will do but not every day. The genre doesn't matter when the song is good.

Host: Movie in the works, album in the works, and you should start touring too. How are your plans for it?

Tuomas: Nothing concrete has been set yet, but the plan is to start touring when the CD comes out and then we will be touring around the Tellus all the year 2012.

Host: Your summer brought happy family news in the band. Anette had a baby son and...

Tuomas: Yes, the gang was 'breeding' heavily (laughs)

Host: How does it affect to your tourng and schedules when the plan is to tour for a whole year.

Tuomas: It'll be a matter of organizing, not a problem for us. Of course we have to note such important things into our plans and leave time to stay at home between tour legs but this can be taken into account. It's not quite a unique situation among musicians.

Host: Now when you have got into making movies with Nightwish, is there still some more plans you would like to realize with the band in the future?

Tuomas: hmmm... *thinks* it must be the return to roots; an acoustic album with the scent of burning firewood and tar. At some point it must be done to close the circle... but let's first see how these movie things will turn out and get them finished. (grins)

Host: Thank you very much Tuomas. Let's wait for the movie.