Moomins’ queer creator Tove Jansson shares characters for first time in exclusive clip from biopic
The late author and artist was widely known for her romantic relationships with women
Words: Jamie Tabberer; pictures: Aurora Studios/Wiki
Moomins creator Tove Jansson is the subject of a new critically-acclaimed Finnish biopic – and we have an exclusive clip of the movie, out in UK cinemas today.
Tove, out today, traces the birth of the Moomins – a family of trolls who inexplicably resemble hippopotamuses – who were first introduced by Jansson in a 1945 book.
They went on to become a cultural phenomenon, encompassing picture books, comics, TV shows and films, and remain popular to this day.
As well as her artistic achievements, Jansson, who was born in 1914 in Helsinki and died in 2001 at the age of 86, is widely remembered for her romantic relationships with women.
“Those are special”
In our intimate, quietly emotive clip, Jansson shares her initial Moomins sketches with someone (seemingly a love interest, given the scene’s tension) for the first time.
“How did you think of all this?” the woman asks Jansson, played by Alma Pöysti.
“It’s just scrawl – it distracts me from my work,” she replies, surrounded by her paintings, before becoming embarrassed when her guest tells her: “They look quite mad.”
“[Your paintings] are nice,” she adds. “But those are special.”
Tove, which is out on digital download on July 26, currently boasts a 92% ‘Fresh’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Tove is in cinemas 9 July 2021.
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