The film is set in a dystopian future marked by chaos and natural disasters and tells the story of the world's last peaceful island. A woman arrives on this tranquil island, fleeing a collapsing world, where a voice on an old radio draws her into a mystery that connects the past and the present.

The Island in the making

Writer-director Aleksandra Czenczk reflects:

“The Island” is a film about hope. About whether peace can still exist somewhere in a world that feels like it's falling apart.

We all feel it. The wars, the uncertainty, the sense that things are getting worse and nobody knows how to stop it. I felt it very strongly watching the everyday news and living in a big city. And making this film was my way of trying to find some peace, for myself, and maybe for anyone watching it.

I spent a month at an artist residency in the Åland Islands at the Eckerö Post & Tullhus in July 2025. I arrived in Åland with a concept, but not a finished script. I went there wanting to escape from the stressful world. And what I found, the silence, the nature, the sound of birds and the openness of the local people, slowly shaped into this film. There were so many unexpected moments and coincidences along the way that I genuinely started to feel like the island wanted me to make it. In an almost spiritual way. Like it had a story it needed to tell.

During a few beautiful summer days we filmed it with a tiny crew and a lot of help from the local people who became an inherent part of the film. The film uses real archival material to connect the past and the present. I interviewed the local people as well and did a lot of research to discover past stories from Åland that I fictionalised. I realised that Åland Islands has a history of strong community and I wanted that to be part of the story. I wanted the film to feel real but also magical. Because that's what hope actually feels like when you find it somewhere you didn't expect.

I was also so lucky to find the old Rödhamn radio station as a location. Seeing this place for the first time on a recce was so inspiring that it captured my imagination completely. Then we found the attic at Rödhamn that had almost complete set design ready for the film. It was as if it was meant to be.

My character’s journey is also my journey. Arriving somewhere unfamiliar and discovering that telling stories might be one of the most powerful things we can do.
Since we filmed, the world has only become more troubled. That makes me sad, but it also makes me more certain that this film needed to exist.

I’d like to thank the island and everyone who helped us in making this film! I will always remember this magical summer at Rödhamn.