In an article for Image magazine the writer and journalist Juha Itkonen describes Jörn Donner as a “Swedish-speaking Finn and an upper class European in a small and provincial northern country.” Itkonen writes that Donner also possesses characteristics that are compatible with the Finnish national identity, such as gruffness, irritability, obstinacy, and “nearly manic persistence and a working pace beyond belief.”

Jörn Donner’s career is truly staggering. Not only has he been an author and a film director but also a Member of the Finnish and European Parliament as well as a diplomat.

Writing, however, rises above all else. Donner says that his writing has always been motivated by solitude.

“I began writing the moment I picked up a pen, and I have been writing for 70 years now with no intention of stopping. It is part of my nature. Words are the mark we leave behind.”

Donner began his career as a writer in his teens, and his film career followed directly in its wake: he directed his first short film when he was 21. A mere three years later he was involved in founding the Finnish Film Archive, and when he was 30 he won the prize for best directorial debut at the Venice Film Festival. Donner is also remembered for having accepted the Academy Award as the producer of Fanny and Alexander on director Ingmar Bergman’s behalf. The film won the award for Best Foreign Language Film in 1983.

Donner’s artistic contributions are extremely varied. He has written around 60 books and directed and scripted over 20 films. He has produced films, edited a magazine, made documentaries, written thousands of reviews and columns, and worked in the film and travel industries. In the 1970s he was the Director of the Swedish Film Institute, and in the 1980s he was the Chairman of the Board of the Finnish Film Institute.

On top of all this, Donner has been a Member of the Finnish Parliament, a diplomat and a Member of the European Parliament. However, he does not seem to regard his political career as highly as his artistic endeavours. Unlike politics, writing and directing are individual pursuits:

“In politics you are a face in the crowd, unless you are a cabinet minister.”

Donner does not want to name his best moments as a politician, but he does mention his involvement when Finland joined the European Union: “it was a historical change, one of many.”

In a list of Finnish intellectuals, Donner’s name is usually included. But how does the man himself feel about being named as one of the intelligentsia?

“I have not chosen to be part of the intelligentsia. I have an interest in the world, I have travelled to over a hundred countries and I have been involved in politics. I have been a cultured person.”

“But it won’t do much good,” Donner adds. “When it is all said and done we are all going to die.”

Donner does not see his educational background as having played a significant role in establishing himself as an intellectual:

“Of course I have an eclectic, varied background.”

But words remain. Donner’s next book, which is about Sweden, is to be published in October.

“In 1973 I published a book about Sweden. The new book is in a way Sweden revisited, a journey in a foreign country. It will be the last of my current projects to be completed. As yet, there are no concrete plans for what will come next.”

The book has been in the making for some time, but the schedule has been muddled by Donner’s other engagements. He has served as a Member of Parliament, directed the film Armi elää! (‘Armi Lives!’) about Armi Ratia, the founder of Marimekko, and written the book Pikku Mammutti (‘The Little Mammoth’), which was published in the spring of 2015.

“When this book is finished I feel I can take some time off and think about what to do next. That is why I am spending time in the country and seldom visit Helsinki.”