The Reef
Two siblings enter a mysterious parallel world and fight for the freedom of its inhabitants.
When Kath (14) and her brother Mika (12) head off in a camper van for a summer vacation with their mother, they are actually looking to escape the dark shadow that a recent tragic accident has cast over them. But adventure awaits the siblings in “Land’s End” where they meet an eccentric Girl who lives in an abandoned hotel and a wild gang of children on the beach who are involved in some kind of territorial battle. Only by joining forces can Kath and Mika help end this war and unravel the secret that lies behind why these children appear somehow stranded between two worlds.
Producers' note
In an era shaped by uncertainty, collective crises, and their lasting emotional impact — especially on younger generations — we feel a strong need to tell stories that address the inner worlds of children and teenagers with honesty, empathy, and imagination. Seita Vuorela's award-winning novel "Karikko" captivated us immediately with its unique atmosphere, poetic narrative style, and deeply moving themes, and we sensed this story had the potential to become something truly special. When Irish producer Margaret Milner Schmueck introduced us to the project — developed together with Germany-based Australian director Phillip Donnellon — we had just wrapped our first children's film THE PATH (winner of the German Film Award and German Film Critics Award 2022) and were searching for a new project with screenwriter Jytte-Merle Böhrnsen. Together with co-writer Rüdiger Bertram, she had proven with THE PATH that even the most serious subjects can be made accessible and gripping for young audiences without losing depth or authenticity, winning the Kindertiger Screenplay Award, voted on by a youth jury and sponsored by FFA and KiKa.
In this sense, adapting "Karikko" felt like a natural continuation of our work: once again we tell an entertaining story with a serious undertone from the perspective of young protagonists, embracing the adventure genre with age-appropriate lightness — this time, however, in a contemporary, more metaphorical setting.
Accordingly, THE REEF positions itself as an artistically ambitious yet accessible production with strong festival potential in children's and youth film. The film primarily targets children aged 10-14, though its genre elements will also appeal to young adults and a broader family audience. We're therefore convinced THE REEF will enrich the European cinema landscape for children's and family films, succeeding in both the arthouse segment and the broader family market.
Director's note
My two older sisters and I moved constantly as kids, spending more time in coastal campgrounds than in any real home—teaching us to adapt fast. In 2014, I met Seita Vuorela, author of "Karikko," the award-winning children's book our story is based on. She recognized the same cheekiness in me that lives in her characters, and I fell in love with her book instantly.
Though we're pitching our project as a mystery adventure full of wonder and humour, its core theme is grief and how children process it. Seita's characters handle loss and bullying with striking dexterity, using matter-of-fact language and dry humour that reminded me of terminally ill children I once met at the Royal Melbourne Children's Hospital.
Seita drew inspiration largely from Russian children she taught in depressed communities near the Finnish border, where she found extraordinary resourcefulness against darkness. My own work has always centered on transformation and finding light in ugly situations—making her stories a natural fit. Our most significant change was turning the big brother into an older sister, which deepened my connection to the sibling dynamic. We've carried the book's dry, ironic child voices into the screenplay, blending phrasing from children across different eras and origins—sometimes centuries apart.
The film's heart is its cast of quirky, diverse children—varied in ethnicity, gender, and background—united by salt-bleached hair, freckled skin, and small scars from sun and accidents. Our whole team is committed to portraying resilient young characters children can genuinely identify with. THE REEF is the film I wish I'd had as a child.
Screenwriter's note
Writing the screenplay for THE REEF was a precious experience for me. When I was first asked to read Seita Vuorela's source novel, I found myself holding my breath from the very first lines. Reading about the painful loss of a child cannot be easy, I thought. But Seita Vuorela found exactly the right story to tell it through — mystical, magical, buoyant, and full of hope. An adventure I want to keep returning to, again and again. Like Astrid Lindgren with her novel The Brothers Lionheart, Seita has created a world where time and space don't matter — only love and the courage to live do.
Last year, when a classmate of my 11-year-old son died unexpectedly, I was reminded once more just how important it is to write a children's film like THE REEF — a story that opens an important door for talking with children about the preciousness of life and its impermanence.
Together with Rüdiger Bertram, I wrote the screenplay for THE PATH for eyrie entertainment — nother film built around a serious subject, telling a story of flight and children caught in war. Together, we managed to create a timeless, important children's film that reached young audiences around the world and represented German children's cinema with great success. I'm convinced that with THE REEF, we will once again achieve a timeless, meaningful children's film classic — one that will represent German children's cinema internationally, and successfully so.
Biography
Evelin Penttilä is a film producer based in Estonia. She started her career as a film producer in 2011 and her filmography includes more than 10 feature films. In 2015 she founded Stellar Film as the leading producer aiming to make the film sphere in Estonia more versatile. Company has a slate of projects in all stages of production and is actively looking for new international collaborations. She is a member of European Film Academy, part of ACE Producers & EAVE networks and was selected as Producer on the Move 2022.
Biography
Oskari Huttu has worked as a producer for over a decade. During 2006-2010 he produced commercials for production house KOMIA Helsinki and 2008 he started his work with features in KOMIA’s sister company Bronson Club. Later on Bronson Club merged with Finland’s leading blockbuster production company Solar Films, and during 2010-2015 Oskari produced five features for Bronson and Solar, including Locarno/Critic’s week winning documentary Reindeerspotting (Bronson Club 2010), domestic cult classic comedy Kulman Pojat / Fanatics (Bronson Club 2012), acclaimed drama Kesäkaverit / Summertime (Solar Films 2014) and domestic super- blockbuster Luokkakokous / Reunion (Solar Films 2015). In the Autumn of 2015, Oskari left Solar Films to build a new company called Lucy Loves Drama.
Profile
eyrie entertainment develops and produces arthouse and crossover films for the German and international markets. The company was founded by Daniel Ehrenberg in Berlin in 2018 and is now based in Bonn. At eyrie we have a great passion for good stories that are entertaining and have something to say about contemporary society. We seek to establish close collaboration with diverse and exciting new screenwriting and directing talent to create outstanding pieces of cinematic art together. Our films are made to attract broad audiences and have the potential to reach far beyond our home territory.