Latvia at the anniversary year of the Tallinn Film Festival

On Friday, November 6, the only A-class festival in Northern Europe, Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF) will begin. This year, it grandly celebrates the 30th anniversary of the festival and the 25th anniversary of the industry section Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event. It is symbolic that the Baltic states have been placed at the centre of the anniversary events, which is why Latvia's participation in this year's festival is especially extensive – nearly twenty films in various competitions and programs, as well as several upcoming projects and professional participation in industry events.

The Tallinn Film Festival is one of the largest film industry events in Northern Europe; this year's program includes 230 feature-length films and 259 short films from 87 countries, offering audiences 107 world premieres and 47 international film premieres. Last year, the festival reached a record for audience interest – it was attended by nearly 95,000 moviegoers and about 2,000 accredited guests from 84 countries, with films shown at 894 screenings. This year, the festival takes place November 6 - 22 in Tallinn and Tartu, with the film industry section Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event from November 9 - 20.

Latvia will be in the spotlight on the very first evening of the festival, as the opening film is director Viesturs Kairišs's feature film Ulya; symbolically, it is also a co-production of all three Baltic states, which is given special significance at this anniversary festival. 

Traditionally, the largest selection of Latvian films is found in the Baltic Film Competition, which this time features three feature films by directors already in high demand at European festivals – Linda Olte's The Child, Reinis Kalviņš's The Bog, and Kristiāna Riekstiņa's Kingpins. Among the 12 films, there are also three films in co-production with Latvia – Estonian Dirt in Your Face (featuring the Latvian studio Film Angels Studio), Lithuanian Dice-Ching-O-Mat (Latvia represented by Lokomotīve Studio), and Greek The Flaw (Mima Films studio).

This year, the Tallinn Festival's film are structured into approximately 40 programs, 17 of which are organized as competition showcases in various formats and across different age groups – alongside seven main competitions selecting feature films and documentaries, the festival also has animation and short film competitions for various age groups. Within this complex casting structure, many Latvian films and co-productions have also found their place, nearly 20 films of varying lengths and eras – for example, in the restored classics program Old Gold, alongside films by Lucino Visconti and other world-renowned directors, the legendary documentary The Crossroad (1988) by director Ivars Seleckis will also be shown.

From November 9 - 22, the Tallinn Festival's film industry events section, Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, will take place, focusing on upcoming film projects at various stages of film readiness. Filmmakers seek potential partners, distributors, and festival curators during different industry events. Film professionals meet for various discussions, conversations, workshops, film market screenings, and other industry events important to industry professionals. In this section as well, the participation of Latvian film professionals is planned to be significant.

One of the most important sections of industry events is the project presentation Works in Progress, where film professionals are introduced to films during production or post-production. Of the five projects selected this year for the Baltic Event Works in Progress section, two are upcoming Latvian films –  director Elza Gauja's tragicomedy Marry Then Die, produced at VFS Films, and director Gatis Ungurs' debut The Burlaks (studio Sunday Rebel Films). 

In the co-production market section Baltic Event Co-production Market,  director Dace Pūce and producer Elīna Jozauska will present the feature film project Hide and Seek, while director Toms Harjo and producer Līva Vernere will present feature film In the Truths, currently in progress at VFS Films

In the almost ready-made film section Baltic First Look Screenings, professionals will be introduced to upcoming studio projects by director and producer Matīss Kaža and producer Alise Ģelze, while for the Script Pool section, which focuses on projects at the script stage, the Latvian project The Gravegiven has been selected, with young directors Kaspars Marhlevičs and Ivo Skanstiņš working on it together with producer Gunda Bergmane.

A separate platform for educating and developing young talents is Discovery Campus, whose seven sections select young talents from various professions. Latvia is represented there this year by producers Nora Luīze Semjonova and Kristina Verdo, cinematographer Kristians Robalds, festival and management representatives Lauma Kaudzīte and Marta Luīza Treimane, while Eduards Johansons is selected for the Black Night Stars.

On Thursday, November 19, within the framework of the industry section Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event, a presentation of the Baltic countries' film centers will take place, attended by NKC representatives Dita Rietuma and Inga Blese. Later that day, an event organized by the Creative Europe MEDIA offices is also planned – the MEDIA offices of the Baltics, Nordics, and France will organize a networking event attended by 35 producers (including four from each Baltic country), eight MEDIA office representatives from various countries, and representatives of nine film funds responsible for film production matters. The Latvian representatives working on their projects at this event and seeking cooperation partners from France and the Nordic countries will be producers Alise Ģelze, Kristele Pudāne, Guntis Trekteris, and Uldis Cekulis.

The National Film Centre also regularly participates in preparing the release of the Baltic Film magazine, created in cooperation with the film institutions of the Baltic states, specifically for the Tallinn festival. This time, the themes of the Latvian film industry are represented by an interview with Viesturs Kairišs, director of the feature film Ulya, and a description of three directors whose films have been selected for the Baltic Film Competition – Linda Olte, Reinis Kalviņš, and Kristiāns Riekstiņš. A separate description is dedicated to the legendary documentary film classic Ivars Seleckis, while Latvian films are also mentioned in Lithuania's thematic reports on the latest co-productions and the history of collaboration among Baltic filmmakers.

Magazine online: https://www.nkc.gov.lv/en/magazines