Latvian films at the Warsaw Film Festival 2026

On Friday, October 9, the Warsaw International Film Festival begins, and Latvia will be very impressively represented this year – in two main competition programs, two out-of-competition screenings, co-production market project selection, and even a film criticism master workshop. 

The Warsaw Film Festival, which is being held for the 42nd time this year, is a significant A-class festival on a European scale, proud to have revealed many currently famous names in the film world. Perhaps Latvia's connection to this festival can also be considered significant, as in 2022 Latvian cinema gained recognition in Warsaw by receiving three major awards, including two films at once – Best Director Award to Viesturs Kairišs for January / Janvāris (2022), and Linda Olte's film Sisters / Māsas (2022) receiving the main prize in the Competition 1-2 competition and the award for Best Debut in Eastern Europe. Even more symbolically, both directors are returning to Warsaw this year with their upcoming films – Linda Olte's second feature film The Child / Bērns, is selected for the main international competition showcase, where it will have its world premiere, while Viesturs Kairišs Ulya / Uļa is included in the Free Spirit program, emphasizing artistic exploration and the presence of a creative spirit in their works.

In Competition 1-2, which selects directors' debuts and second films, is one of the most important launch platforms for young directors on a European scale, and this year Latvia is represented in this competition by Reinis Kalviņš with his second feature film The Bog / Klajumā aiz meža. The film will have a world premiere, followed by a national premiere in Latvia on October 22  as part of the Riga IFF program.

An important program at the Warsaw Film Festival is Animus. Cinema of values, which selects films on socially significant themes and moral courage, describes this program as "a space where filmmakers are not afraid to ask complex questions and address deeply important issues." In this program, Dzintars Dreibergs' feature film Escape Net / TTT. Leģendas dzimšana will have its international premiere. 

Two international co-productions have also been selected for the festival, created with the participation of Latvian film professionals. The main competition includes a co-production of the three Baltic countries, the feature film Dice-Ching-o-Mat by Lithuanian director Kristijonas Vildžīūnas, in which the Latvian side is represented by chief cinematographer Jurģis Kmins and the film studio Locomotive, while the Free Spirit program  will feature the very well-known Estonian director Jaks Kilmi's comedy Dirt in Your Face, created incollaboration with the Latvian studio Film Angels Production, with the film editing directed by Andris Grants.

Within the framework of the Warsaw Festival, film industry events also take place, bringing together professionals from all over Europe and the world, and  among the 16 selected projects in the Co-Production Forum section is director Dzintars Dreibergs' next project – the feature film Brothers' War / Brāļu karš. Meanwhile, in the prestigious film criticism master workshop The 21st FIPRESCI Warsaw Critics Project, amongst only six young film critics from Central and Eastern Europe, Latvia's representative Elizabete Didža will participate.