What’s on in Helsinki this week

The Lapinlahti Film Festival celebrates the shared experience of cinema. Each year, the programme is built around a different theme, with this year's edition exploring heritage and taboo. Highlights include Aftersun, The Witch and Shoplifters. The festival takes place from 17 to 23 August at Lapinlahden Lähde, housed in a former psychiatric hospital. Screenings are held both in a tent in the garden and in the auditorium inside the historic hospital building. Crisp August evenings and a film festival – could there be a more atmospheric combination?

Screenings are free but require advance registration.

Merimelojat's traditional dance pavilion evenings return for the penultimate time this summer. Dancing begins by the sea at 7pm with music by Saska Helmikallio and continues until 10pm. Arrive a little earlier to join the dance lesson from 6pm to 6.45pm, where you'll learn the rumba-bolero. The lesson is included in the ticket price.

Tickets: €10/15.

Night of the Arts is a city-wide celebration created by the people of Helsinki and forms part of the Helsinki Festival. Head out in the evening and you'll stumble across hundreds of events throughout the city, from open houses and exhibitions to live music and performance art. Browse the full programme and plan your evening – or simply let the city surprise you.

Free entry to events.

The 37th edition of Espoo Ciné opens on Friday 21 August. Films and events take place in cinemas across Espoo and Helsinki, including historic venues such as Kino Tapiola, Cinema Orion and Bio Rex Lasipalatsi. The programme, released on 30 July, has a strong focus on themes of minorities and representation.

Multi-ticket passes are available, while individual screening tickets go on sale on 4 August.

Uusinta Ensemble celebrates the release of its new album dedicated to the music of Japanese-Finnish composer Mioko Yokoyama. The programme includes the captivating, Teosto Prize-winning Mineralization (2023), alongside Game of Metal for prepared piano and There are always flowers, an ensemble work about hope written during the pandemic. Yokoyama’s music combines crisp rhythms and finely controlled timbres with an imaginative, playful approach to contemporary classical music. A more intimate and avant-garde option for Sunday evening at 7pm. Tickets €20