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NEWS Stairway to Heaven
Actors Mait Malmsten and Harriet Toompere are a couple both off-screen and on-screen.
Stairway to Heaven
Writer and film director Mart Kivastik has written a screenplay based on his novel Stairway to Heaven, and is also the director of the film (of the same title) in production scheduled to be completed by late autumn 2022.
By Maria Ulfsak Photos by Manfred Vainokivi
According to the filmmakers, Stairway to Heaven is a story about time and music, friendship, love, death, life in the present day and in the 1970s, and the years of childhood. The protagonist of the film is middle-aged man named Uu. Uu’s old friend, an artist, confides a secret to Uu on his deathbed. He tells Uu how one can travel back in time. Uu is an engineer and he does not believe in miracles, but this trick really works. It feels great to be in the past, there is an eternal summer and Procol Harum, long hair, girls, and Jenkki chewing gum. In real life it’s autumn, Uu’s friends are all middle-aged and bored, all the girls are married, and Uu’s father is sick. Finally Uu has to decide where to stay or how to go on with his life. The author of the tragicomic story has stated that his purpose is to find answers to the question concerning the time given to a man – and whether a
Director Mart Kivastik (on the right) and cinematographer Rein Kotov.
The first shooting period of Stairway to Heaven took place during the summer of 2021.
during his travels in time,” explains Lepp.
For her as producer, it was namely the atmosphere, emotion, and the idea of the story that made her want to collaborate with director Mart Kivastik for the first time. The producer says that the COVID-19 pandemic did not cause any problems during the first filming period that took place in summer 2021. She comments: “So far, the most complicated part of the filming has been the large outdoor scenes since the streets, squares and sites had to have the appearance of those in the university town of the Soviet era in 1970s. This was a challenge both for the artists’ team as well as the organizing team. The filming has been successful so far, but we have no idea what will happen in late autumn when we will film the protagonist in his middle-age years surrounded by his aging friends, burdened with bitterness and bald heads, while being constantly reminded of old age and death.”
Among the crew of Stairway to Heaven is cinematographer Rein Kotov, and production production designer Pille Jänes, the producers are Marju Lepp and Manfred Vainokivi from Filmivabrik. The leading actors of the film are Mait Malmsten, Harriet Toompere, Timotei Sammul, Taavi Teplenkov, Rita Raave, Ivo Uukkivi, and others.
The budget of Stairway to Heaven is a bit more than 900,000 euro; among the supporters are the Estonian Film Institute, Cultural Endowment of Estonia, Tartu Film Fund, and private supporters. EF
middle-aged man facing aging is still able to enjoy life.
Marju Lepp from Filmivabrik is the producer of the film. She says that on one hand, Stairway to Heaven is a generation film since the majority of the film is set in the protagonist’s childhood in the 1970s. “I come from the same generation as the director – and the film actually depicts this period – including childhood, music, fashion, sports camps, etc. of that era. And yet, it is not a film about one generation, but a human story about friendship, death, and love. The emphasis is not that much on memories but on enjoying every small moment and feeling gratitude for the little things that make one’s life worth living. This is the understanding the protagonist acquires
