Pääru Oja (born 16 May 1989) is an

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

n stage, film, voice, and television actor.

Early life and education

Pääru Oja was born in

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

, the youngest of two sons. His father is actor

Tõnu Oja Tõnu Oja (born 4 July 1958 in Tallinn) is an Estonian actor. In 1980 he graduated from Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre. Since 2003 he has worked at the Estonian Drama Theatre. He has also played in films. His elder brother is actor and dir ...

and his older brother is Estonian Theatre Festival CEO and theatre manager Kaarel Oja, who is married to actress

Ursula Ratasepp Ursula Ratasepp (born 17 June 1982) is an Estonian stage, film and television actress. Early life and education Ursula Ratasepp was born in Tallinn in 1982. She is the older sister of actress Katariina Ratasepp (born 1986). She studied drama at ...

. His uncle is actor, director and theatre instructor

Rein Oja Rein Oja (born 26 February 1956) is an Estonian actor, film director and theatre leader. Rein Oja was born in Tallinn. He is the older brother of actor Tõnu Oja. In 1978 he graduated from Tallinn State Conservatory. In 1978-1997 he worked at Noor ...

. He attended primary and secondary schools in Tallinn before being accepted to the

Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre The Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre (''Eesti Muusika- ja Teatriakadeemia'') began as a mixed choir of the Estonia Society Musical Department (EMD) on the eve of World War I. The assembly of the Estonia Society created the Tallinn Higher Musi ...

in Tallinn, where he graduated from in 2012 under course supervisor

Elmo Nüganen Elmo Nüganen (born on date 15 February 1962 in Jõhvi) is an Estonian theatre director, film director, and actor. He has been the artistic Director of the Tallinn City Theatre since 1992. He was a graduate of the Estonian Academy of Music a ...

. Oja's diploma roles included Father of Toulon in Peter Barnes' ''

Red Noses Red Noses is a comedy about the black death by Peter Barnes (playwright), Peter Barnes, first staged at Barbican Centre, Barbican Theatre in 1985. It depicted a sprightly priest, originally played by Antony Sher, who travelled around the Buboni ...

'' (2010), Joseph Wykowski in

Neil Simon Marvin Neil Simon (July 4, 1927 – August 26, 2018) was an American playwright, screenwriter and author. He wrote more than 30 plays and nearly the same number of movie screenplays, mostly film adaptations of his plays. He has received mo ...

's '' Biloxi Blues'', and Argante in

Molière Jean-Baptiste Poquelin (, ; 15 January 1622 (baptised) – 17 February 1673), known by his stage name Molière (, , ), was a French playwright, actor, and poet, widely regarded as one of the greatest writers in the French language and world ...

's ''

The Imaginary Invalid ''The Imaginary Invalid'', ''The Hypochondriac'', or ''The Would-Be Invalid'' ( French title ''Le Malade imaginaire'', ) is a three- act ''comédie-ballet'' by the French playwright Molière with dance sequences and musical interludes (H.495, H. ...

'' (2011). Among his graduating classmates were:

Henrik Kalmet Henrik Kalmet (born 19 April 1986) is an Estonian actor, comedian, and television personality. Kalmet began his career in 2010 and has appeared as an actor on stage, television, and films. He is also a stand-up comedian and has appeared as a judg ...

Karl-Andreas Kalmet Karl-Andreas Kalmet (born on 8 February 1989) is an Estonian actor. Kalmet's parents are actor and director Madis Kalmet and diplomat and former actress Gita Kalmet (née Ränk). In 2008, he graduated from British School in The Netherlands in Th ...

Priit Pius Priit Pius (born 4 February 1989) is an Estonian stage, television, and film actor whose career began in the 2010s. Early life and education Priit Pius was born in Tallinn to Jüri and Nelli Pius (''née'' Paap). His twin brother is actor Märt ...

Märt Pius Märt Pius (born 4 February 1989)vooremaa.ee
''Rahutu hingeg ...

Liis Lass Liis Lass (born 2 April 1989) is an Estonian stage, film, and television actress. Early life and education Liis Lass was born in Põltsamaa, Jõgeva County in 1989. She graduated from secondary school at the Põltsamaa Gymnasium in 2008. Afterwa ...

Piret Krumm Piret Krumm (born 20 January 1989) is an Estonian actress, singer, and comedian whose career began in the early 2010s. She has performed as a stage, television, film and voice actress, as well as a jury panelist for the ''Eesti Laul'' competition ...

, Maiken Schmidt, and Kaspar Velberg.

Career

Stage

Following his graduation from the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre, Pääru Oja began an engagement at the

Estonian Drama Theatre The Estonian Drama Theatre ( et, Eesti Draamateater) is a theatre in Tallinn, Estonia. It has the role of a national theatre for Estonia. The Estonia Theatre is located next door. History The building that houses the Estonian Drama Theatre was or ...

in Tallinn, where he is still currently employed. Some of Oja's more memorable roles at the Estonian Drama Theatre to date have been: *Juhani, in

Aleksis Kivi Aleksis Kivi (; born Alexis Stenvall; 10 October 1834 – 31 December 1872) was a Finnish author who wrote the first significant novel in the Finnish language, ''Seitsemän veljestä'' ("Seven Brothers") in 1870. He is also known for his 1864 p ...

's ''

Seven Brothers 7 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 7 or seven may also refer to: * AD 7, the seventh year of the AD era * 7 BC, the seventh year before the AD era * The month of July Music Artists * Seven (Swiss singer) (born 1978), a Swiss recording artist ...

'' (2012) *Dennis Dutton, in

David Hare David Hare may refer to: *David Hare (philanthropist) (1775–1842), Scottish philanthropist *David Hare (artist) (1917–1992), American sculptor and photographer *David Hare (playwright) (born 1947), English playwright and theatre and film direc ...

's ''

The Vertical Hour ''The Vertical Hour'' is a play by David Hare (dramatist), David Hare. The play addresses the relationship of characters with opposing views on the 2003 invasion of Iraq, and also explores psychological tension between public lives and private liv ...

'' (2012) *T. Stedman Harder, in

Eugene O'Neill Eugene Gladstone O'Neill (October 16, 1888 – November 27, 1953) was an American playwright and Nobel laureate in literature. His poetically titled plays were among the first to introduce into the U.S. the drama techniques of realism, earlier ...

's ''

A Moon for the Misbegotten ''A Moon for the Misbegotten'' is a play in four acts by Eugene O'Neill. The play is a sequel to O'Neill's '' Long Day's Journey into Night'', with the Jim Tyrone character as an older version of Jamie Tyrone. He began drafting the play late in ...

'' (2012) *Silbe, in

Andrus Kivirähk Andrus Kivirähk (born 17 August 1970) is an Estonian writer, a playwright, topical satirist, and screenwriter. As of 2004, 25,000 copies of his novel ''Rehepapp ehk November'' (''Old Barny or November'') had been sold, making him the most popul ...

's ''Kevadine Luts'' (2012) *Philip, in

Lyle Kessler Lyle Kessler is an American playwright, screenwriter and actor, best known internationally for his 1983 play '' Orphans''. Career Actor Born in Philadelphia, Kessler began his career as an actor. His first professional appearance was in the Ph ...

's ''

Orphans An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...

'' (2013) *Willem, in

Tõnu Õnnepalu Tõnu Õnnepalu (born 13 September 1962), also known by the pen names Emil Tode and Anton Nigov, is an Estonian poet, author and translator. Õnnepalu was born in Tallinn and studied biology at the University of Tartu from 1980 to 1985. He bega ...

's ''Vennas'' (2014) *Billy, in

Nina Raine Nina Raine is an English theatre director and playwright, the only daughter of Craig Raine and Ann Pasternak Slater, and a grand niece of the Russian novelist Boris Pasternak. She graduated from Christ Church, Oxford in 1998 with a First in Eng ...

's ''

Tribes The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in part due to conflic ...

'' (2014) *Olav, in Mika Keränen's ''Kuldne Lurich'' (2014) *Alyosha Karamazov, in

Fyodor Dostoyevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky (, ; rus, Фёдор Михайлович Достоевский, Fyódor Mikháylovich Dostoyévskiy, p=ˈfʲɵdər mʲɪˈxajləvʲɪdʑ dəstɐˈjefskʲɪj, a=ru-Dostoevsky.ogg, links=yes; 11 November 18219 ...

's ''

The Brothers Karamazov ''The Brothers Karamazov'' (russian: Братья Карамазовы, ''Brat'ya Karamazovy'', ), also translated as ''The Karamazov Brothers'', is the last novel by Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. Dostoevsky spent nearly two years writing '' ...

'' (2015) *Young Actor, in

Michel Houellebecq Michel Houellebecq (; born Michel Thomas, 26 February 1956 or 1958) is a French author, known for his novels, poems and essays, as well as an occasional actor, filmmaker and singer. His first book was a biographical essay on the horror writer ...

's '' The Map and the Territory'' (2015) *Boy, in Tõnu Õnnepalu's ''Mäed'' (2016) *Nikolai Ivanov, in

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

's '' Ivanov'' (2017) *Piiri Leo, in

Madis Kõiv Madis Kõiv (5 December 1929, Tartu, Estonia – 24 September 2014, Tartu, Estonia) was an Estonian writer, philosopher and physicist. Education Kõiv attended school in Tartu after the second World War, graduating in the early 1950s with a d ...

and Aivo Lõhmus' ''Põud ja vihm Põlva kihelkonnan nelätõistkümnendämä aasta suvõl'' (2019) Oja has also appeared performed as Franz in Jaan Kruusvall's at the Saueaugu Theatre in Ohtla in 2011, and as Alexander Herzen in

Tom Stoppard Sir Tom Stoppard (born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...

's ''

The Coast of Utopia ''The Coast of Utopia'' is a 2002 trilogy of plays: ''Voyage'', ''Shipwreck'', and ''Salvage'', written by Tom Stoppard with focus on the philosophical debates in pre-revolution Russia between 1833 and 1866. It was the recipient of the 2007 Ton ...

'' at the

Tallinn City Theatre Tallinn City Theatre ( et, Tallinna Linnateater) is a repertory theatre located in the medieval old town of Tallinn, Estonia. Tallinn City Theatre was established in 1965 as Estonian SSR State Youth Theatre. In 1992, after the reindependence of ...

in 2013.

Film

Pääru Oja's first film appearance was in the role of Kristjan in the 2010 short ''Ei oska filmi teha'', directed by Hardi Keerutaja and featuring Mikk Jürjens and Viire Valdma. Over the next few years, he appeared in a number of other film shorts. In 2013, he made his feature-length film debut in the small role of Evaristus in the

René Vilbre René Vilbre (born 17 May 1970 in Rakvere) is an Estonian film director René Vilbre has received the Children's Film Prize of the Nordic Film Institutes at the Lübeck Nordic Film Days in 2005 and the Don Quixote Award - Special Mention at th ...

directed children's fantasy film ''Väikelinna detektiivid ja valge daami saladus''. In 2015, Oja appeared as Sanitar Elmar 'Säinas' in the

directed war film ''

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...

'' for Matila Röhr Productions (MRP) and

Taska Film Taska Film sometimes credited as Taska Productions (owned by Kristian Taska) is an Estonian film production company responsible for producing the number 1 Estonian box office hit during the last decade: '' Names in Marble''. '' Candles in the Da ...

. Set in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, the film is shown through the eyes of Estonian soldiers who had to choose sides and thus fight against their fellow countrymen. It was selected as the Estonian entry for the

Best Foreign Language Film This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

at the

88th Academy Awards The 88th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2015 and took place on February 28, 2016, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, 5:30 p.m. PST. Du ...

but it was not nominated. The following year, he appeared as Siim in the

Toomas Hussar Toomas Hussar (born 1 May 1962 in Tallinn) is an Estonian actor, film and theatre director, playwright and dramaturge. From 1986 to 1988 he studied at Tallinn State Conservatory in acting et, näitlemine speciality. Selected filmography * 1994 ...

directed political thriller ''Luuraja ja luuletaja'', starring

Jan Uuspõld Jan Uuspõld (born 14 December 1973) is an Estonian stage, television, radio and film actor and musician. Early life and music career Jan Uuspõld was born in Tallinn, the eldest of three sons of Ingar and Heidi Uuspõld. His mother is an accou ...

. In 2017, it was announced he would appear in the Kaur Kokk directed period drama ''Põrgu Jaan''. In 2018, he appeared as the title character in the Ari Alexander Ergis Magnússon directed Icelandic-Estonian drama ''Mihkel'' opposite

Tómas Lemarquis Tómas Lemarquis (born 3 August 1977) is an Icelandic– French actor. Early life Lemarquis was born in Reykjavík, the son of an Icelandic mother and a French father, Gérard Lemarquis, who is a schoolteacher. His most distinguishing physical ...

and as the character Ott in the Siim Tamm directed drama-thriller ''Hölma All''. In 2020, Oja had a starring role as Rupi in the

Veiko Õunpuu Veiko Õunpuu (born 16 March 1972, in Saaremaa) is an Estonian film director and screenwriter who is best known for his artistic movies '' Autumn Ball'' (''Sügisball'', 2007) and ''The Temptation of St. Tony'' (''Püha Tõnu kiusamine'', 2009). ...

directed joint Estonian-Finnish comedy crime-drama '' Viimased'', shot on location in Lapland. The film was selected as the Estonian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the

93rd Academy Awards The 93rd Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored films released from January 1, 2020, to February 28, 2021, at Union Station in Los Angeles. The ceremony was held on April 25, 2021 ...

. The same year, he appeared in the role of Peeter Parik in the Margus Paju directed World War II spy film '' O2''. In 2023, he appeared as Ivo in the Ergo Kuld directed comedy film ''Suvitajad''. Oja has also worked as a voice actor, dubbing foreign animated films into the

Estonian language Estonian ( ) is a Finnic language, written in the Latin script. It is the official language of Estonia and one of the official languages of the European Union, spoken natively by about 1.1 million people; 922,000 people in Estonia and 160,0 ...

. In 2013, he lent his voice to the Estonian dubbing of the Canadian-American 3D computer animated science fiction-comedy film ''

Escape from Planet Earth ''Escape from Planet Earth'' is a 2013 computer animated comedy-adventure science fiction film produced by Rainmaker Entertainment and distributed by The Weinstein Company in the United States and Entertainment One in Canada, directed by Cal Bru ...

'' (Estonian: ''Põgenemine planeedilt Maa'').

Television

Between 2014 and 2015, Pääru Oja had a recurring role as Markus Heng on the popular TV3 comedy-crime series ''

Kättemaksukontor ''Kättemaksukontor'' (English: ''Revenge Office'') is an Estonian comedy-crime television series. In the series, a group of women have the organization called "Kättemaksukontor". This organization helps to solve murder cases for the police. The ...

''. In 2018, he began a starring role as Alex in the TV3 crime series ''Lõks''. In 2020, he had a recurring role as Matti in the Finnish television crime series ''Cold Courage''. In 2021, Oja was cast as the character Arne Gormsson in the

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

historical action-fiction drama television series '' Vikings: Valhalla''.

Radio

In 2016, Pääru Oja was one of 77 Estonian actors to honor the 400th year of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's death with the radio series "154 Sonnets of William Shakespeare" on

Estonian Public Broadcasting Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also * ...

stations Vikerraadio, Klassikaraadio, and Raadio 2. All sonnets were translated into the Estonian language by Harald Rajamets and each actor recited a sonnet daily.

Personal life

Pääru Oja currently resides in Tallinn. He is a jazz and flamenco guitarist and often performs sets with fellow guitarist Indrek Kruusimaa at venues in Estonia.Estonian Music Festivals
''Sõru Jazz kutsub taas! 16. -19. juuni 2016'' Retrieved 12 February 2017.

Recognition

Shooting Stars Award The Shooting Stars Awards are presented annually by the pan-European network organization European Film Promotion (EFP) to emerging actors from Europe. "Shooting Stars" is an initiative of the EFP for the international promotion and networking of p ...

(2020) * Suur Ants, Estonian Drama Theater Colleague Award for Best Actor (2015) * Crystal Shoe Award (2014)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oja, Paaru 1989 births Living people Estonian male stage actors Estonian male film actors Estonian male television actors Estonian male voice actors 21st-century Estonian male actors Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre alumni Male actors from Tallinn