A stage packed with more than twenty performers playing and dancing together. An audience in silhouette with arms raised in front of a red-lit stage. A guitarist in silhouette against blue stage haze. A performer walking a runway banked with pink cloud while the audience films from both sides. Two people holding each other in front of a gold-lit stage. Dancers in tulle skirts performing on the steps outside Vanha Ylioppilastalo. Two singers in green costume sharing a microphone. A performer under a lit translucent canopy in blue light

You are the heroes of ODD. An ODD thousand thank yous.

Helsinki · 2026

Play the creditsCome to the afterparty

To every soul who showed up, stayed up late, gave up comfortable choices, and poured themselves into something that had never been made before — thank you.

A hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles.

Christopher Reeve
What happened in 2026

386people, artists, collectives and organisations made ODDfest 2026. Together.

Creative Week ran June 8–14. Partner events across Helsinki brought in more than 1,000 people. ODDference took two days — more than 50 speakers, more than 30 sessions. ODDfest opened on the Friday and ran through Saturday — more than 150 acts across central Helsinki, from Vanha Ylioppilastalo to Tavastia, with its own programme of talks on top.

None of it was ODD's alone. Curators from dance, film, music, games and research shaped the programme. Artists brought their own work, their own crews and their own crowds. Volunteers kept things calm when they got chaotic, and they did get chaotic. Partners, venues and foundations joined the oddness before anyone knew how it would turn out.

The theme was Bravery. Turned out it wasn't just a theme.

Every one of them is named below. That's the point.

The crowd at Tavastia filling the floor in front of a red and orange stage
Our ODD heroes

The doers. The supporters. The makers.

These are the people who made it real.

So many ODD souls joined us that a name may have slipped through. If yours is missing, we are sorry — write to ronny@oddfest.co and we will put it right.

Core team

  • Aki Pöntinen
  • Alexandra McCracken
  • Emma Helminiitty
  • Fernando Catalán
  • Georgii Iuzefovich
  • Hannamari Tamminen
  • Jonas Verwijnen
  • Joppe Quaedvlieg
  • Karoliina Pärnänen
  • Kevin Laamonen
  • Kirsi Shemeikka
  • Lara Kanerva
  • Laura Fuentes
  • Laura Ylinen
  • Max Wikholm
  • Pete Lipponen
  • Remu Shemeikka
  • Roman Turikov
  • Ronny Eriksson
  • Saara Taha
  • Ukko-Pekka "Upi" Itäpelto
  • Valle Turkka

Artists, performers, speakers & collectives

  • 25films
  • A. Blomqvist
  • Aavistus
  • African Acid is the Future: Maryisonacid (FR)
  • Akistoteles
  • Anastasia Lemberg-Lvova
  • Anastasia Maydanova
  • Anttu Koistinen
  • Aplomb
  • Ari Pulkkinen
  • Assembly (US)
  • Avanti! Presents: Paleface & Harput
  • Bar25 — Days Out of Time (DE)
  • Casvu.ai
  • Charisma Helsinki
  • Clavert
  • Connection Interrupted
  • DanceWorks Helsinki
  • Dení Vázquez
  • Discobingo
  • Diskopete
  • DJ Breik
  • DJ Dominga (CL)
  • DJ PoB
  • DJ Upi
  • DJ WUF
  • DocPoint
  • Dom P
  • Electric Elisa
  • Emma Ilves
  • Entheos
  • Espoo Game LAB
  • Espoo Theatre
  • Eva Kottonen & Jaana Haapaluoma-Höglund
  • Eve
  • Felix Alexander Lybeck
  • Filip Hiltmann (Way Out West, SE)
  • Flowers of Life
  • Folded Visuals
  • Föllakzoid (CL)
  • Genki
  • Gone Future
  • Goya Gumbani
  • Hanna Arvela
  • Hannes Götsch
  • Heidi Backman
  • Heith
  • Helsinki Perfume Club
  • House of Gorgeous Gucci
  • INDIE SHOWCASE
  • Ivan Tkalenko feat. Maija Kauhanen
  • Jaago
  • Jarkko Vilska
  • Joe Sauer
  • Johanna Hurme
  • Joona Kotilainen
  • Juho Romakkaniemi
  • Jukka Niittymaa
  • Jukka-Pekka Heikkilä
  • Juska "DJ Orion" Wendland
  • Jyrki Nummisto
  • Kaero
  • Kalle Oja
  • Karatika
  • Kaukolampi
  • Kuvittajat
  • Köppö
  • Lakeside Games: Twilight Ferry
  • Lauer & DENA (DE)
  • Leena Jääskeläinen
  • Lore Drop
  • Lotta Savolainen
  • Lottaliina Pokkinen
  • Lyran & Akademen
  • MAHLS
  • Mari Savio
  • Maria Ritola
  • Marina Yurchenko
  • Marko Kleinsepp
  • Matias van Houtum (Ö fest)
  • Matti Nives (We Jazz)
  • Matti Pietari Järvinen
  • Meow Wolf: Luke Dorman & Marley Prudeaux (US)
  • Messy Micc
  • Mikko-Pekka Hanski
  • Minna Mustapää
  • Minna Tervamäki
  • MISHA
  • Mitäs Mitäs Mitäs
  • MORA
  • Mr. Dad
  • Muovipussi
  • Nazva
  • Neo Element
  • Night Lore
  • Night Owl Dynamics: Gentle Night Talk
  • Night Shift
  • Nikolucky
  • Nordwave
  • Nuua Company
  • O MOUTH (Tuomo Prättälä)
  • ODD Club Presents Club Theatre
  • ODD DEEP SPACE
  • Odd Latent Games
  • ODDarcade
  • ODDgames
  • ODDlings
  • Oki Tåg
  • ONCHI
  • Oskar Sandas
  • Otto "YOTTO" Yliperttula
  • Otto Kylmälä
  • Pablo Contijo
  • Pascal Fischer (DE)
  • Paula Karvonen
  • Pauli Patinen
  • Pelkkää Hyvää Experience
  • Pihla Viitala
  • Psykerö
  • Q-teatteri
  • Q-Theatre
  • Reetta Koski
  • Reidar Wasenius
  • Rolf Ekroth
  • Rony Rex
  • Roope Mokka
  • Roope Rainisto
  • Rudi Ruuskanen
  • Rönkkö/Kuusijärvi
  • Salla Vallius
  • Salomé Daoudi / Nus Nus (DK)
  • Samppa Lappalainen
  • Sarah Julia (NL)
  • Shamal
  • Silja Filmaa
  • Silja Minkkinen
  • Simo Vassinen
  • Skaalaajat
  • Smell the Art
  • Sofi Merone
  • Solovey
  • Sonja Saarikoski
  • Stacy Epps, Believe & Wildchild (USA)
  • Studio Laaya: Foghorns Drown
  • Super Bario
  • Suva
  • Suvi Honkanen
  • Suvi Kemppainen
  • Tatu Rönkkö
  • The House of Vineyard
  • The House of Xclusive Lanvin
  • Total Refusal (AT)
  • Trevor Deep Jr.
  • Tunement
  • Tyre
  • Us
  • Valerie June (US)
  • VALIOBEATS (VALIOART)
  • VIRTA
  • VJ Indigo
  • VJ Turu Sanoma
  • Wanda O Rly
  • Wel-Z
  • Wera Malmivaara
  • Winged
  • Yemi

Volunteers

You were the heartbeat of the festival. Every smile, every direction given, every moment of calm in the middle of chaos — that was you.

  • Aada Luotola
  • Aayush Jain
  • Abdul Rouf
  • Aleksandra Peljin
  • Alena Mima
  • Alex Strachan
  • Alexey Sokolov
  • Alina Demianets
  • Alisa Haikkola
  • Amritha Pal
  • An Pham
  • Anastasiia Barabash
  • Anna Nyberg
  • Arul Karthick Viswanathan
  • Camila
  • Carole Kurowski
  • Chhimi Lama
  • Chia-Hsuan
  • Claudia Ugalde
  • Cynthia Akoth
  • Dália Abambres
  • Daniel Lammi
  • Daniela Monteiro
  • Davide Forni
  • Dinesh Thapa Magar
  • Ekaterina Statsiura
  • Eleonora Pedron
  • Enna-Matilda Kukkola
  • Eric Nguyen
  • Farheen E Sehar
  • Feyza Aslan Baskurt
  • Fred Koskinen
  • Gabriela Möller
  • Giovanni Foppiani
  • Glenn Kullman
  • Graham Featherstone
  • Gunju Oyunkhishig
  • Hafiza Tisbeeha Rehman
  • Hanna Laakso
  • Henna Mettälä
  • Ibraahim Farah
  • Ida Tirkkonen
  • Ida Tolonen
  • Inez Kaukoranta
  • Irtaza Kiani
  • Janina Joutsen
  • Jason Selvarajan
  • Joya Roy
  • Julian Kollataj
  • Jussi Itkonen
  • Katja Afanaseva
  • Katja Jokisalo
  • Kelsie Vu
  • Kerttuli Karels
  • Kristian Kuismin
  • Kristoffer Frejborg
  • Ksenia Avetisova
  • Kseniia Shaleva
  • Lauri Vuokila
  • Laxmi Thapa
  • Léa Subrenat
  • Lily Dang
  • Lina Paavilainen
  • Linda Illman
  • Maria Freidin
  • Maria Johansson
  • Maria-Bianca Pavel
  • Mariia Gnedovskaia
  • Mariia Pavlova
  • Marika Luostarinen
  • Matilda Melin
  • Mayu Nishikawa
  • Mia Saukko
  • Milena Walder
  • Milja Lassila
  • Moises Teodoro Tihinen
  • Momo Pham
  • Muhammad Shahzaib
  • Nalle Silberstein
  • Nalle Österman
  • Niila Haapakoski
  • Niraj Neupane
  • Noe Escudero Neri
  • Olga Kryuchkova
  • Oskar Kouvalainen
  • Pauliina Cross
  • Pushpa Koirala
  • Ranjani Veeraraghavan
  • Rasmus
  • Rehnuma Heikintalo
  • Riitta Chorfi
  • Riitta Mettomäki
  • Roger Johnson
  • Roosa Virtanen
  • Rosaliina Kuparinen
  • Samuli Heino
  • Sana Mehta
  • Sara Saffari
  • Saurov Dhar
  • Sheryl Wong
  • Shidhanshu Khandelwal
  • Shivahang Rai
  • Simon Borali
  • Sini Järvinen
  • Sofia Taxell
  • Susanna Kiviniemi
  • Tamara Mezina
  • Tássia Rebelo
  • Teemu Reunila
  • Tiina Hietanen
  • Ting Loetaphirom
  • Tomi Marjakoski
  • Tori Leets
  • Veera Hoisko
  • Vianna Hämäläinen
  • Viktoria Radin
  • Vilppu Pekkanen
  • Vipin Kumar
  • Warisha Rizvi
  • Wen-Jing Lin
  • Wilma Korkeela
  • Zeynep Kaynar
  • Ziad (Ziki) Palani
  • Zoheb Rahman
  • Zubia Faisal

Partners & collaborators

Production

  • 16bit
  • ODDproduction
  • Rajupaja
  • Roudaamo

Partners

Media

Supported by

Collaborators

Also featured in our media wall

Photography

  • @flyingwhalefv
  • @ilmarimedia
  • @linasome1979
  • Elina Satova
  • Ida Henriksson
  • Julius Töyrylä
  • Neea Eloranta
  • Nima Assar
  • Remu Shemeikka
  • Ricardo Azevedo e Silva
  • Veikka
  • Yoanna Rönnqvist
Photographs

A festival lives in its photographs.

Every photograph here is by one of the photographers named in the credits above.

  • Silhouetted heads and raised arms against a red stage
  • A full band on stage seen over the heads of the crowd
  • The whole ensemble dancing across the stage together
  • More than twenty musicians and dancers spread across the stage
  • Brass players and singers packed along the front of the stage
  • A singer on a gold-lit stage seen past a silhouetted audience
  • A crowd in patterned costume filming a performance on their phones
  • Two people embracing, lit from behind in gold
  • Hands in the air in blue and white stage light
  • Three performers in gold and cream costume at the microphone
  • A dancer in a tulle skirt performing to passers-by on the street
  • A performer in silhouette with one arm raised, strings of lights behind
  • Two performers in front of a screen reading Finland Ballroom Scene
  • A row of people sitting along the edge of a stage banked with cloud
  • A performer in silhouette in blue smoke and beams
All ODDfest photos on Flickr

What comes next

Be first in line

Whatever comes next, hear it first.

Join the newsletter →Your voice shapes what comes next

What moved you? What should ODD become?

Tell us →The work continues

The festival may be over. But the space never closes.

Become a member at ODDspace →

We never threw the afterparty. ODDfest ended on 13 June, everyone went home, and then summer came — no last drink, no proper thank you, nothing. It has been bothering us since. So we're doing it in September instead.

Artists, partners, friends, your parents, whoever turns up. Music and open decks, art installations, and a great bunch of odd people. If you were not at ODDfest, come anyway.

We are a small non-profit with no budget, but we do have a wine cabinet. Bring your own wine, or beer, or whatever you drink. The non-alcoholic beer is on the house, thanks to Mikkeller.

Got a programme idea? Email upi@oddfest.co by Thursday 24 September.

Four steps at the entrance, so the space is not wheelchair accessible. Tell us in advance and we will work something out.

ODD is back

You're invited.

Saturday 26 September

19:00–00:00 · Free

ODDspace, Teollisuuskatu 9D, 00510 Helsinki

Find ODDspace

Stay ODD.