The eighth season of our four-time Golden Venla Award winner lifestyle series Eränkävijät, a long-running hit among the viewers, is currently airing on the Finnish Public Service Media Company Yle. The series has not only made NTRNZ media what we are today. It has also had a big influence on the relationship many Finns have with nature today.
Scaling programme brands across platforms is part of NTRNZ media’s and Yle’s joint concept development and marketing: in addition to domestic and international TV series, Eränkävijät content has also been turned into books, an online store, a YouTube series and a podcast.
The Eränkävijät series is about Finnish wilderness culture in modern-day Finland. It has opened up hunting as a way of life to the general public, and has sought to communicate the message of responsible wilderness lifestyle and the well-being of nature. It is important that we are able to bring these issues up in as many different media as possible.
Teemu Hostikka, Executive producer
Books and fan products from the online shop
The Eränkävijät series has inspired historian and non-fiction writer Mika Kulju to write two books. The Eränkävijät book takes fans behind the scenes and the cameras: the TV series’ favourite characters tell funny and touching stories about their own experiences and the filming of the TV series. The second non-fiction book, Eränkävijät: Eräkoiria ja koiraihmisiä, focuses on our four-legged friends and in particular, the show’s most beloved character, Äijä the dog. The book includes memorable treks, wonderful stories and advice on how to enjoy the great outdoors with your dog.
In addition to the books, official Eränkävijät products are available in the Eränkävijät online shop. Fans of the series can get their hands on Äijä-embroidered towels, ecologically produced in Finland by Jokipiin Pellava, Eränkävijät products for shaving and trimming, and accessories for a wilderness experience with style. The shop also sells official logo shirts and beanies. Great Christmas gift ideas!
Click to shop (in Finnish)More wilderness tales on YouTube and a podcast
In our YouTube series, Eränkävijät – tarinoita Muotkatunturin erämaasta, 27-year-old digital marketer Samu Hurskainen spends an indefinite sabbatical in the Inari wilderness area. The episodes have thousands of views, and the content appeals to younger people as well. The series provides concrete tips, especially for the Muotkatunturi area, but Samu’s adventures are inspiring for anyone.
In the Eränkävijät podcast, the duo Manu Soininmäki and Jaakko Pohjoismäki, familiar from the TV series, travel around Finland in a camper van to find out about the current state of wilderness culture in interviews with Finnish celebrities. Together with the guests, the pair explores wilderness culture, nature, hunting and fishing, game management and nature conservation from surprising perspectives – with their somewhat reckless sense of humour.
The series has been around for eight years now, and the Eränkävijät brand is currently being consumed more than ever before. It's crazy to think that the 10-year-old kids who fell in love with the first season are now adults.
Teemu Hostikka, Executive producer
NTRNZ media is a creative agency focused on content production, whose values are based on the pure nature of the North. The company is best known for its four-time Golden Venla award-winning Eränkävijät TV series, its international version Love of the Wild and the internationally acclaimed war history documentary series Untold Arctic Wars. In 2022, NTRNZ media was an Agency of the Year finalist.
NTRNZ media’s Eränkävijät and its international version Love of the Wild, produced for Finnish Public Service Media Company Yle, have four Golden Venla Awards and 13 nominations. The series have been sold to dozens of countries and viewed by millions of people around the world. Eränkävijät is one of Yle Channel 1’s most-watched TV series.
