Samsa Media’s director Sami Sallinen is a bilingual journalist and photographer who has worked in media and communications since 1991 based in England, Eritrea and Finland.

During a seven-year stay in Eritrea (1996-2003) Sami worked for international news agencies as a journalist, photographer and videographer, and as a video producer for the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea. His work has appeared on BBC, CNN, Reuters Africa Journal and in the international press. His coffee table book Asmara Beloved is a photographic celebration of the Eritrean capital city, and he also has an archive of photo and video material from Eritrea.

In Finland, Samsa Media has worked with a wide range of public and civil society organisations, companies and publications. Recent projects include:
– Amnesty International and KIOS Foundation: Videos about human rights defenders (2019-2022)
– Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland: Videos on youth and migration from Iraq (2018)
– Finnish Red Cross 140^th anniversary: Series of history-related stories for print and social media (2017)
– Vantaa Parish diaconal work 100^th anniversary: Photographic exhibition (2015)
– Kolmiokirja: Magazine on the heroes and villains of Finnish history (2015)
– Interpedia: Video and photo exhibition on children’s lives in Nepal, also used for global education materials (2014)
– Editor-in-chief of the Historia magazine (2013)
– Producer/trainer in the video project My Helsinki by young Finnish men with a Somali background (2013)
– Coordinator of the Helsinki African Film Festival (2010-2014)

CLIENTS

Samsa Media has produced content and provided services for a wide range of clients, including the United Nations, Associated Press, Reuters, BBC World, BBC Focus on Africa, The Guardian, The Independent, Extant TV, Cornell University, Business Finland, Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland, F-Secure, Fairtrade, Finnwatch, Interpedia, KIOS, Amnesty International, R3, Kepa, Kolmiokirja, Photo RAW, Helsinki Times, Seura, Talouselämä, Helsingin Sanomat and Iltalehti.