Documentary backdrop image for Soap Fever (2026)

Documentary backdrop image for Soap Fever (2026)

202678 minPGdocumentary

Soap Fever

202678 minPGdocumentary

The debut of The Bold and the Beautiful in Finland during the 1990s recession drew a large and devoted audience, providing an escape from economic hardship.

Genres

Director

Synopsis

The debut of The Bold and the Beautiful in Finland during the 1990s recession drew a large and devoted audience, providing an escape from economic hardship.

People

Inka Achtédirector

Inka Achtéwriter

Anne-Mari Alajuumacast

Jussi Jäntticast

Hanna Pitkänencast

Synopsis

With the Soviet Union’s dissolution dragging down the economy of neighboring Finland, the Scandinavian country was plunged in a period of protracted recession. And with no recovery in sight, a soap opera offered Finns a respite from the grim reality; the debut of The Bold and the Beautiful on television quickly amassed a vast and dedicated following, whereas the arrival of American idols in the country, on tour, elicited unprecedented frenzy.

Comments

What are people saying?

Play More Like This

Sweden is Swimming Against the Financial Tide (2016)

Sweden is Swimming Against the Financial Tide

Sweden's economic resilience during the European debt crisis highlights how effective austerity measures, combined with public trust and transparency, can foster growth.

Sweden is Swimming Against the Financial Tide

The Lost U-Boat Wreck At The Bottom Of The Baltic Sea (2018)

The Lost U-Boat Wreck At The Bottom Of The Baltic Sea

The episode begins with the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff and dives to the wreck Steuben.

The Lost U-Boat Wreck At The Bottom Of The Baltic Sea

What makes us happier? - The formula for happiness (2026)

What makes us happier? - The formula for happiness

In Finland, where the United Nations' "World Happiness Report" ranks citizens as the happiest for eight consecutive years, actress Meri Koivisto explores the factors contributing to this phenomenon.

What makes us happier? - The formula for happiness

Finland: How is the Country of Happiness Dealing With the Russian Threat? (2023)

Finland: How is the Country of Happiness Dealing With the Russian Threat?

Finland is the happiest country in the world, facing the Russian threat with resilience.

Finland: How is the Country of Happiness Dealing With the Russian Threat?

Explore Soap Fever

Trailer People FAQ

Browse more like this

What makes us happier? - The formula for happiness (2026)

What makes us happier? - The formula for happiness

In Finland, where the United Nations' "World Happiness Report" ranks citizens as the happiest for eight consecutive years, actress Meri Koivisto explores the factors contributing to this phenomenon.

What makes us happier? - The formula for happiness

No digital watch option in your country

Finland: How is the Country of Happiness Dealing With the Russian Threat? (2023)

Finland: How is the Country of Happiness Dealing With the Russian Threat?

Finland is the happiest country in the world, facing the Russian threat with resilience.

Finland: How is the Country of Happiness Dealing With the Russian Threat?

No digital watch option in your country

Disco and Atomic War (2009)

Disco and Atomic War

2009•1h18m•★5.4TMDB

A boy in communist Estonia illegally watches Finnish television, thanks to his father's homemade converters for Soviet TV sets.

Disco and Atomic War

Intervision Song Contest - schlager i kalla krigets skugga (2022)

Intervision Song Contest - schlager i kalla krigets skugga

2022•59m•★9.0TMDB

The 1980 Intervision Song Contest in Poland coincided with the Gdansk shipyard strikes, a key moment in the struggle for workers' rights.

Intervision Song Contest - schlager i kalla krigets skugga

Don't Tell Daddy (1994)

Don't Tell Daddy

1994•59m•★8.0TMDB

Eighteen-year-old Irma and other young women from Estonia are lured to Finland, where many end up performing striptease.

Don't Tell Daddy

Soap Life (2013)

Soap Life

2013•1h7m•★2.0TMDB

Over 70 interviews with actors, producers, and fans reveal the reasons behind the decline of daytime soap operas in American television.

Once Upon a Recession (2024)

Once Upon a Recession

Over 400,000 people were unemployed in Finland during the early 1990s recession, leading to nearly 200,000 bankruptcies in a population of about 5 million.

Once Upon a Recession

The Story of Soaps (2020)

The Story of Soaps

2020•2h•★7.0TMDB

Over three decades, female creators transformed daytime television, establishing soap operas as a dominant force in the entertainment industry.

The Story of Soaps

Soap Opera of a Frozen Filmmaker (2007)

Soap Opera of a Frozen Filmmaker

Seven episodes of cinematic diaries reveal the struggles of an anonymous filmmaker who faces constant rejection in his pursuit of creating art.

Soap Opera of a Frozen Filmmaker

Collapse: The Dissolution of the Soviet Union (2021)

Collapse: The Dissolution of the Soviet Union

2021•52m•★8.5TMDB

In August 1991, the Soviet Union officially dissolved, following a failed coup and a series of ineffective reforms that destabilized the state.

Collapse: The Dissolution of the Soviet Union

Sandarmohin suru (2022)

Sandarmohin suru

Twelve Finns learn about the fates of their relatives lost during The Great Purge in Soviet Carelia nearly 100 years after the events.

Sandarmohin suru

Operation Alaska (2017)

Operation Alaska

2017•1h5m•★5.3TMDB

Between 1940 and 1944, American officials proposed evacuating Finnish citizens to Alaska due to fears of a Soviet invasion.

Operation Alaska

Browse more by Inka Achté

View all films →

Boys Who Like Girls (2018)

Boys Who Like Girls

2018

Forgetting Lenin (2024)

Forgetting Lenin

2024

Golden Land (2022)

Golden Land

2022

Is this your film?

If you made this film or hold the rights to it, we'd like to talk. We can license it and pay you a share of what it earns.

License it with us →