Looking for a perfect snow castle or ice building? We talk to Lapland companies about how film productions can build custom snow & ice buildings, from igloos to houses to castles.
From advertisement walls and igloos to massive snow castles and entire hotels, Lapland is the heart of snow and ice construction in northern Europe. While most of these frozen buildings have been built as attractions, such as the SnowCastle in Kemi, or accommodations, the architects and artisans who craft these frozen wonders also have experience creating custom structures for film productions, television series, promotions, advertisements and more.
We talked to Ville Haavikko from Arctic SnowHotel and Tomi Kurtakko from the Lapland Hotels SnowVillage about what’s possible and what it takes to construct a building out of frozen water.
DECADES OF EXPERIENCE
Neither Arctic SnowHotel nor Lapland Hotels SnowVillage are newcomers to the ice building game. Both companies have a long history of building igloos, hotel rooms, ice bars and more.
—I studied snow construction in the early 2000s, and my wife and I built the first SnowHotel in 2008, says Ville Haavikko, CEO for Arctic SnowHotel in Rovaniemi.
The current Arctic SnowHotel is in its 16th iteration. Their team provides industrial snowbuilding as well as ice-sculpting, from a restaurant that can host 1200 people to an ice jewelry box for a marriage proposal.
For Tomi Kurtakko, a snow and ice building professional of the Lapland Hotels SnowVillage in Kittilä, experience runs in the family.
—My first contact with snow and ice building was around the end of the last century. My father used to decorate our snowmobile rental shop every year with snow and ice structures. But in 2001, we created the first SnowVillage, with an igloo ice bar, 6 hotel rooms, an amphitheater and a souvenir marketplace—all made of snow and ice. We also made a 1 km long ice wall labyrinth that went around the whole field and parking lot.
FROM SNOWFLAKES TO SETS – HOW TO BUILD A FROZEN STRUCTURE
If you can dream it, Lapland can build it. Probably. One of the best parts of designing your own ice or snow building is that it’s your design. The pros in Lapland can create unique structures never seen before, turning snowflakes into magic. So how—and when—does it begin? Creating a snow structure requires design, planning and then maintenance to ensure that the vision drafted in the early summer is exciting and novel, yet safe and secure throughout the winter.
DESIGN
—Our designs are derived from our use of building molds. We tend to prefer round spaces because they are safest. But they also require more snow than, for example, corridors, so other snowbuilders might not use them as much. Every year, our design is based on a theme; but after 22 years, the hardest part is usually coming up with a new theme. We push for challenging ideas with lots of details in the designs, and we’re always trying to improve over previous years, says Tomi.
We push for challenging ideas with lots of details in the design.
The Arctic SnowHotel takes a different approach, tying multiple themes into their annual design.
—We provide our artistic team with creative freedom. Inspiration comes from various sources and can vary from one individual to another. Themes have included the environment and nature, emotions and experiences, culture and history, such as art history and popular culture, dreams and the subconscious, as well as technology and the modern era, says Ville.
CONSTRUCTION
With decades of experience under their belts, both teams at Arctic SnowHotel and the Lapland Hotels SnowVillage have created over the years buildings of ice and snow in every shape and size. Arctic SnowHotel keeps snow from the previous winter under cover, allowing them to create snow- and ice-related experiences, such as their first-snow track and pop-up ice bar, from the beginning of September. When winter starts in earnest, work begins on the larger structures.
—When the temperatures drop below zero, we use our snow-cannons to make snow. If we have favorable weather conditions, we’ll do it for one week straight. We like machine-made snow because it’s better suited for construction than natural snow. The snowflakes are smaller and more uniform in size, says Ville.
Not only is machine-made snow better for construction, it’s also more environmentally friendly. There’s no need to transport snow from colder regions when you can make it on the spot.
At Lapland Hotels SnowVillage, the first part of the snow is created in April, covered for the summer, and then planning begins for the next winter’s construction.
—We fire up our snowcannons in October, and we uncover the snow from last spring, spreading it throughout the building area. Then we cover molds with snow, wait a while and remove the mold. Then comes the ice, electricians and carvers to turn our igloo into a fairytale. We repeat this method about 50 times, says Tomi.
Different people and teams in Lapland have been designing and building snow structures for decades. And rather than seeing snow as a limiting factor, the designers and builders relish the challenge to build new, exciting structures every year.
We are limited only by the laws of physics.
—We are limited only by the laws of physics. Snow behaves differently in construction compared to traditional materials like concrete or steel. Snow tends to shift under pressure, and even a large ice beam can bend when sufficiently loaded. Snow structures also compact under their weight over time. Maintenance is crucial in snow construction, and safety is the top priority in all design, says Ville.
The Lapland Hotels SnowVillage also emphasizes safety, creating roofs from flipped catenaries, and all their statues have heavy bases to prevent tipping over.
VINTAGE ICE
As any child who has built a fort in winter knows, snow is a fine building material. But in Lapland, we also create structures out of ice. Most ice is collected during the previous spring. Arctic SnowHotel stores hundreds of tons of ice over the summer and autumn in some of Lapland’s biggest freezers cooled by solar power. They like to call it “vintage ice.”
At the SnowVillage, they do lots of preparation and pre-cutting, because the best ice is formed in free-flowing rivers.
—Sometimes we do just a rough form for artists to carve; other times we build up an ice structure that itself is a stunning monument. There are so many ways to build things from ice, and the work phases depend on the design of the structure, says Tomi.
When a production orders an ice structure built, both Arctic SnowHotel and Lapland Hotels SnowVillage emphasize planning and safety.
— Our responsibilities include the practical execution of the project and, if desired, maintenance. Longer lasting snow structures require maintenance because they are often affected by settling, wind, sun, snowing, temperature fluctuations, and wear and tear from customer use. Additionally, the order may include the dismantling of snow structures and clearing the area when necessary, says Ville.
Tomi adds: Ice is a heavy and slippery material. It requires certain work methods to be safe. One of our responsibilities is conveying that information to the client, so they know how to assess the conditions of the structure, especially during any warm and/or sunny weather while the installation is up.
DISCREET PARTNERS
We asked Arctic SnowHotel and Lapland Hotels SnowVillage for examples of past work (beyond their public, tourist-facing structures). Both confirmed they had done past work for clients, including logos, structures, public displays, art pieces and more, but due to confidentiality agreements, could not give us any details or photos . Arctic SnowHotel mentioned that they’ve lent their expertise to documentaries, promotional videos, reality shows, as well as several music videos.
PRODUCTION VALUES
Filming inside snow and ice buildings might hold a few pleasant surprises for your production. If you’ve ever been outside on a snowy day, you know how well snow absorbs sound. The same holds true inside a building made of snow. The walls don’t reflect sound the same way concrete or drywall does. It’s a sound all its own.
Another aspect of filming inside frozen structures you may not have realized is the warmth; the temperature inside ice and snow buildings stays constant and is often warmer than the outdoor temperature. In January and February, when it can reach as low as -40 °C, that can be a lifesaver. Cameras, batteries and human fingers don’t tend to play well in extreme cold.
Of course, you don’t always have to plan and create your own snow or ice construction. Arctic SnowHotel was featured in the reality show, The Bachelor. Lapland Hotels SnowVillage made headlines worldwide with its Game of Thrones-inspired buildings in 2017 and 2018. They have also provided an icy playground for numerous Red Bull promotional videos . Lucky Ranch Igloos in Pyhä was recently featured in Netflix’s Amazing Vacation Rentals. The list goes on and on.
Every year, there are igloos, hotel rooms, saunas, castles and villages that pop up across Lapland, and the process of filming there is similar to any other location. (Except you’ll probably need to wear a coat indoors.) Public snow construction is usually finished by December, when the weather stays cold enough that there’s little risk of melting. Once a building is constructed, they usually stay up until April.