RIGA IFF 2019 FILM GUIDE (ENG) by Riga International Film Festival

YOUR PERSONAL FILM GUIDE

WHAT IS THIS?

WHERE IS THIS GOING?

DO YOU FOLLOW? We reinvent the festival every year. Even when we clearly know where we want to go, the world suddenly changes its course and we must follow along. Do we catch the zeitgeist? Do you know where it all began?

Photo: Oļegs Zernovs

We show, we study, and celebrate film. We look for innovative, distinctive cinematic language and filmmakers with expressive style; we select the finest of the festival highlights in Europe and the world; and we look back at history as we explore all that contemporary film as a medium can offer us today.

Our small but brave team is building the festival based on the belief that good cinema can foster a society that is intelligent, proactive, open minded, and cohesive. We know that film can speak to the viewer in an infinite number of ways: it can be experimental, poetic, political, educational, shocking, disarming, fascinating, and sometimes even impenetrable. It is a conversation between human beings, and we wish to encourage that conversation. We want to meet you all. Follow us.

Liene Treimane Director of RIGA IFF – Curator’s view This tag marks a foreword to the film by the programme curator.

RIGA IFF TEAM

Liene Treimane Festival Director liene@rigaiff.lv

Liene Hapanioneka Print Traffic Coordinator prints@rigaiff.lv

FILM PROGRAMME

Hārdijs Cibuļskis Film Storage Manager films@rigaiff.lv

Sonora Broka Artistic Director Head of Film Programme Department sonora@rigaiff.lv Anna Zača Curator, SHORT RIGA anna@rigaiff.lv

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA Presented by Festival Artdocfest

Kristīne Simsone Curator, KIDS WEEKEND kristine@rigaiff.lv

Vitaly Mansky President of Artdocfest Festival manski@artdocfest.com

Agnese Logina Curator, SHORT RIGA: Baltic Music Video agnese@rigaiff.lv

Victoria Belopolsky Program Director of Artdocfest Festival belovik@gmail.com

Ieva Zībārte Guest Curator, ARCHITECT’S CUT

Ilze Pelnena, Ekaterina Nesterova ARTDOCFEST/RIGA project coordinators

Viktors Freibergs Guest Curator, IN TECHNO VERITAS

Paula Bērziņa, Māris Prombergs Film Distribution distribution@rigaiff.lv

COMMUNICATION Edijs Vucēns Head of Communication Department edijs@rigaiff.lv Kaspars Kursišs Head of Video Department rigaiff.lv & Social Media Content Developer kaspars@rigaiff.lv Inita Sila Media Coordinator press@rigaiff.lv

Asnāte Vasiļjeva Head of Translations Department Editor of Catalogue and Industry Guide asnate@rigaiff.lv Ilze Ella Negribe Catalogue Editor’s Assistant Laura Ziemele Film Translators’ Coordinator

Krists Kondrāts Website Developer Ervins Broks RIGA IFF Award Designer Artūrs Liepiņš RIGA IFF Audio Artist Andrejs Strokins Photographer

EVENTS Paula Bērziņa Coordinator, RIGA IFF FORUM paula@rigaiff.lv Kristīne Simsone Curator, RIGA IFF GOES VR kristine@rigaiff.lv Anna Zača Curator, BALTIC ANIMATION MEET-UP Curator, SHORT RIGA: Test Screenings anna@rigaiff.lv

Lauma Kaudzīte Coordinator, BALTIC ANIMATION MEET-UP Coordinator, SHORT RIGA: Test Screenings lauma@rigaiff.lv

Jānis Žagariņš Production Manager & Technical Supervisor zagarins@gigservice.lv

Lelde Prūse Producer of Public Events events@rigaiff.lv

Daiga Livčāne Head of Volunteer Department daiga.livcane@gmail.com

Krista Skudra Assistant to Producer of Public Events

Monta Tīģere Volunteer Coordinator

Kaspars Kondratjuks Admissions Department Supervisor

Laurent Dathie Manager of Screening Hall Administrators

Kristafers Zeiļuks Admissions, Ticket Sales & Info Centre Manager admissions@rigaiff.lv

Ernestīne Pavlova, Kristīne Pleša Admissions Centre Assistants

Aija Bērziņa Founder, Member of the Board

info@rigaiff.lv

AUDIENCE & GUEST SERVICES Jana Pakalna Head of Guest Services jana@rigaiff.lv Sandra Sarkane Coordinator of Guest Services guests@rigaiff.lv

LEGAL Elīna Grūbe Legal Advisor Financial Manager elina@rigaiff.lv

Liene Treimane Member of the Board liene@rigaiff.lv

Postal address: Baznīcas iela 8-20 Rīga, LV-1010 Latvia

CONTENTS

6 8

VENUES OPENING NIGHT

Away (dir. Gints Zilbalodis, 2019)

ARCHITECT’S CUT

SHORT RIGA

Film programme: 10

FEATURE FILM COMPETITION

Films from the Baltic Sea Region and the Nordic countries

IN TECHNO VERITAS

102

Retrospective & Research: Cinema and Technology

FESTIVAL SELECTION

104

Highlights of film festivals

NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS

Cinematic accents of Nordic countries

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

World documentary film competition

106

108

HOME MADE ANIMATED Baltic film landscape

110

NEW CANADIAN CINEMA

Glance over the ocean

BERLINALE 2019 RIGA

Current trends in German film

For those who love architecture

Short films, experimental cinema and music videos

KIDS WEEKEND

Great cinema for the whole family

SPECIAL SCREENING

Choir. Conductor. Kamēr… (dir. Emīls Alps, 2019)

SPECIAL SCREENING

The Birth of the Leopard (dir. Luigi Falorni, 2019)

SPECIAL SCREENING

The Despair (dir. Kārlis Lesiņš, 2019)

SPECIAL SCREENING

My Father the Spy (dir. Jaak Kilmi, Gints Grūbe, 2019)

SPECIAL SCREENING

Prophecy (dir. Charlie Paul, 2019)

112

RIGA IFF EVENTS

114

FRIENDS & SUPPORTERS

VENUES Splendid Palace

Kaņepes Culture Centre

One of the oldest, most opulent and beautiful cinemas in Europe. Every film screening and event held here turns into an unforgettable occasion, which is why this is where the RIGA IFF Opening event, the Feature Film Competition, film premieres, the Award ceremony, and most screenings are held. It’s also where you’ll find the Festival Information Centre!

A place where an evening can begin with a book and a cup of tea, then unexpectedly morph into active participation in a spontaneous performance. In effect, a place for inspiration, conversation, and an open mind. RIGA IFF invites viewers to come here and relax after screenings; it’s also the setting for the festival’s major film industry networking event.

K.Suns

National Film School of the Latvian Academy of Culture

Elizabetes iela 61

Elizabetes iela 83/85 A legendary cinema managed with much care that still retains the air of movie houses now long gone. Excellent films were already being shown here two decades before the birth of RIGA IFF. It’s also where special films being shown at the festival will be awaiting their just-as-special viewers.

Kino Bize

Skolas iela 15

Elijas iela 17

A building that fully comprehends the ins and outs of filmmaking: the pulling of all-nighters at film editing tables, dust motes floating in the beam of the projector, and guileless enthusiasm. It’s also where reps from various tech fields and the creative industries will have 24 hours in which to create educational content for virtual reality experiences. Short film presentations will also take place here.

Elizabetes iela 37 A small and cozy cinema hidden in the Quiet Centre of Riga, directly across the street from a building designed by Sergei Eisenstein’s father. It is literally the Art Nouveau of Riga’s film scene, as well as the venue where the festival will screen both Baltic films and memorable short films.

Cafe Film Noir

Villa C.C. von Stritzky Aristīda Briāna iela 9

The former brewery and onetime lavish villa is a popular celebration spot where you can dance either in the courtyard or indoors among bookshelves and ornate fireplaces. One of the festival’s most spirited events will take place here – the Baltic Music Video Competition screening and after-party featuring DJs.

Elizabetes iela 61

The underground floor of Splendid Palace is a lively meeting place where film industry professionals and film buffs meet both like- and divergent-minded people via lectures, presentations and discussions.

National Library of Latvia Mūkusalas iela 3

The National Library of Latvia, also known as Castle of Light, is a subject of constant debate and one of the most noticeable buildings in the city’s skyline. It’s also where RIGA IFF will be showing its ARCHITECT’S CUT film programme, inviting viewers to direct their attention to an art form that affects everyone.

AB Dam

Zemgale suburb, Riga The city has big plans for this historical dam, but for the time being it’s a popular venue for various entertainment and cultural events. During the festival, local and international film industry representatives will meet here to discuss development of the Northern European film market.

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OPENING NIGHT

Gints Zilbalodis

AWAY

LV, 2019, 74â&#x20AC;&#x2122; For audiences age 7 and up

A boy and a little bird are traveling across a mysterious island on a motorcycle. They solve different physical and metaphysical barriers in the vast deserts, forests and lagoons while trying to escape a dark spirit and get back home. Gints Zilbalodis is a Latvian filmmaker and animator. His fascination for filmmaking began at an early age, and his dialogue-free visual storytelling enchants large audiences. He is an author of seven internationally acclaimed short films. It took three and a half years to accomplish his animation feature debut Away, which was premiered at Grand Competition â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Feature Film of the World Festival of Animated Film Animafest Zagreb and triumphed at the Feature Film Contrechamp competition of the Annecy International Animated Film Festival. Production, screenplay, animation and music: Gints Zilbalodis / BILIBABA

Splendid Palace Large hall Thursday, 17/10 19:00

FEATURE FILM COMPETITION FILMS FROM THE BALTIC SEA REGION AND THE NORDIC COUNTRIES

The selected titles are evaluated by an international jury consisting of industry experts, theoreticians, filmmakers, and representatives from the international film festival community. The RIGA IFF Feature Film Competition’s award has been designed in collaboration with artist Ervins Broks.

The winning director can share this eight-piece sculpture – a rooster poured in bronze – among the film crew. The winner also receives a monetary prize from the insurance company BALTA. The Awards Ceremony takes place on the second Saturday of the festival.

FEATURE FILM COMPETITION JURY

Rhidian Davis Curator and writer, United Kingdom

Rugilė Barzdžiukaitė Filmmaker, theatre director and artist, Lithuania

Paolo Bertolin Film programmer, writer and producer, Italy

Manages the cultural programme of the British Film Institute (BFI). He has marshalled the forces behind some of the BFI’s biggest cross-platform UK-wide seasons of retrospective film and TV. He has programmed seasons, talks, events and educational programmes across a wide range of film and media subjects at BFI Southbank; has written for a range of publications, and can occasionally be found enthusing about film for broadcast.

In her creative practice, Rugilė explores the gap between objective and imagined realities and challenges an anthropocentric way of thinking in a playful way. Her recent full-length documentary film-essay Acid Forest was awarded at the Locarno International Film Festival. She is one of the three artists representing Lithuania at the Venice Biennale of Arts with the performance-installation Sun & Sea (Marina), which won a Golden Lion for the best national pavilion this year.

In 2008, he joined the programming team of the Venice International Film Festival. This year, he also joined the selection committee of Cannes’ Directors’ Fortnight. He has worked for several international festivals and institutions, including the IFF Rotterdam, the Doha Film Institute, Locarno Open Doors, Nyon Visions du Réel, Mumbai IFF, Beijing IFF, IFF Bratislava, etc. He ventured into production with a string of Asian films, all entries in the Berlinale Competition.

Gints Grūbe Producer, film director and screenwriter, Latvia

Kristi Porila Distributor, Estonia

Gints graduated in philosophy and political science. He possesses deep knowledge in history and cinema. Has a diverse work experience in the field of media. Since founding Mistrus Media, one of the leading film companies in Latvia, he has been involved in producing such documentaries as Escaping Riga, Over the Roads, Over the River, Chronicles of Melanie, To be Continued, The Mover. Director of Larger than life, co-director of Sound that Sun makes, My Father the Spy.

Since 2013, she is working at arthouse cinema Sõprus in Tallinn as the Head of Distribution and Acquisitions of Baltic region. She also helps to organize the documentary film festival DocPoint Tallinn and comedy film festival Wilkom in Viljandi. One of the founders of Estonian Islands Film Fund (Saarte Filmifond). Kristi lives on island Saaremaa, where she works from a distance. She is a co-founder of Edukontor, a creative co-working space in the very heart of Kuressaare, island of Saaremaa.

FEATURE FILM COMPETITION

FIPRESCI* LATVIAN SECTION JURY

Ieva Augstkalna

Šarlote Līduma

Anita Uzulniece

Film critic; member of the 2017 Riga International Film Festival Youth Jury; has been selected to represent the Latvian Academy of Culture as a member of the European University Film Awards (EUFA) jury to evaluate the best European films of 2018.

Grew up in an artistic environment and early found out that the main passion is cinema. From 1996 to 2011 has regularly written for various newspapers and magazines. From 2005 to 2012 has worked for RIFF Arsenals, mainly as a programmer.

Has studied German Philology at the University of Latvia and film theory at Moscow Film Institute. Doctor of Arts. A member of several ecumenic and FIPRESCI juries of international film festivals. An organiser of the film forum And the Word Became Film. Teaches film history at RISEBA and the University of Economics and Culture. She writes film and festival reviews.

*International Federation of Film Critics

Elīna Reitere

Ieva Viese-Vigula

Film critic; co-editor of Kino Raksti magazine. Reitere’s doctoral dissertation studied narration in slow cinema. Her interests include European arthouse cinema, current trends in film theory development, and life in intercultural spaces. Nominated for the Normunds Naumanis Award for Art Criticism in 2019.

Film critic; often writes for the magazines Kino Raksti and Satori. Is especially interested in the phenomenon of auteur animation in the Latvian cinema scene, and a large part of her research has focused on the history of Latvian animation. An active member of the Latvian Animation Association.

FEATURE FILM COMPETITION

CURATOR’S GREETING

John Skoog

RIDGE SÄSONG

SE, 2019, 71’, sv/pl For audiences age 16 and up

Sonora Broka Artistic Director of RIGA IFF Films from the Baltic Sea region and the Nordic countries make up a creative field from which we want to see something new and unprecedented, or on the contrary, perhaps not new and unprecedented but certainly unusual and serving as expressive signature pieces. The ten entries selected for the competition are linked only by a running time qualifying them as a full-length feature film. They are documentaries or theatrical films, occasionally animated or falling under such descriptions as cinematic essay, observational cinema, poetic film, or even ‘audiovisual dream’ – basically anything that can transform a screen into a medium which allows the films and its viewers to meet. Except for perhaps the retrospective programme, the RIGA IFF Feature Film Competition is arguably the most revealing in terms of messaging the changes and moods currently manifesting in the language of cinema. Moreover, the geographical scope of the competition makes this message all the more intriguing because the films coming from countries that are culturally and historically closely linked nevertheless represent widely differing schools of film, film traditions, cinematic languages, and cinematic visions. These ten films are RIGA IFF’s reflections on tomorrow’s cinema today.

A story composed of fragments of lives lived in the periphery. Based on stories gathered and formed among the people who live in the region, it turns the setting into the film’s main character. But like shadows over the landscape, some protagonists are distinguished: Beata, a seasonal worker who comes to Sweden for the first time, Aaron, a young man with a broken heart returning to the place where he grew up, and Billie, a girl lost in her first summer vacation. It soon becomes clear how they all depend on each other, in this era where the future is obscured by man’s violent imprint on the planet. Everything in front of the camera is given equal weight, and none of the film’s parts are allowed to overshadow the others. Screenplay: John Skoog, Anna Karisinska Cinematography: Ita Zbroniec-Zajt Cast: Aron Skoog, Agnieszka Podsiadlik, Billie Åstrand, Gitt Persson Production: Erik Hemmendorff / PLATFORM PRODUKTION

This social drama is not what it may seem. The ridge is a place where power of nature, mysticism and people brought together by chance meet. Splendid Palace Small hall Tuesday, 22/10 20:30

Shahrbanoo Sadat

THE ORPHANAGE PARWARESHGHAH DK/DE/FR/LU/AF/QA, 2019, 90’, fa/ru/hi For audiences age 12 and up

In the late 1980s, 15-year-old Qodrat lives in the streets of Kabul and sells cinema tickets on the black market. He is a big Bollywood fan and daydreams himself into some of his favorite movie scenes. Until one day, the police takes him to a Soviet orphanage. While the political situation is changing in Kabul, the children want to defend their home. The director stresses that one can’t question the present if one doesn’t know the past. There are enough films about Afghanistan today – the whole world knows there is a conflict there. What interests him is to find out where all this mess actually started from. The orphanage is one of the few places in the entire country where everyone lives together, regardless of religion or ethnicity.

Kaur Kokk

THE RIDDLE OF JAAN NIEMAND PÕRGU JAAN EE, 2018, 105’, et For audiences age 16 and up

Somewhere in Estonia at the beginning of the XVIII century, after ten years of war, plague and famine, the land is swept clean of people. On one starry night, two peasants find a stranger on the seashore. He’s disheveled and comatose. They take him to the local manor lord and bring him back to consciousness. When he opens his eyes, he realizes that he can’t remember who he is or how he got there. He’s just as much a stranger to himself as to the people around him. He must come to terms with the question: Who am I? He finds himself in a bizarre world, one full of meager uncertainty and growing disorder. There are sparse hints at his past… but what do you do when there is more than one correct answer to a question?

Aistė Žegulytė

ANIMUS ANIMALIS (A STORY ABOUT PEOPLE, ANIMALS AND THINGS)

ANIMUS ANIMALIS (ISTORIJA APIE ŽMONES, ŽVĖRIS IR DAIKTUS) LT, 2018, 69’, lt For audiences age 12 and up

A taxidermist, a deer farmer and a zoology museum worker live in the surroundings where the line between reality and artificiality has almost become imperceptible. While the dead beasts compete for the most vivid posture and the most real look in their eyes, the human keeps trying to stop time and bring back life to things in which life has long been absent. In the current era of re-creation and re-design, taxidermy as a craft reflects one of the major social conflicts. Can we restore and re-create everything? Can we bring life back to something that is dead? The conflict between humans and nature, humanity and animality. The stuffed animals become the metaphor of human perception of nature, other human beings or even themselves.

Screenplay: Shahrbanoo Sadat Cinematography: Virginie Surdej Cast: Qodratollah Qadiri, Sediqa Rasuli, Masihullah Feraji, Hasibullah Rasooli Production: Katja Adomeit / ADOMEIT FILM / SAMSA FILM, LA FABRICA NOCTURNA CINÉMA, WOLF PICTURES

Screenplay: Kaur Kokk, Anti Naulainen Cinematography: Mart Taniel Cast: Meelis Rämmeld, Andres Lepik, Pääru Oja, Peeter Volkonski Production: Katrin Kissa / HOMELESS BOB PRODUCTION

The director handles different genres brilliantly and inserts Bollywood-style song and dance numbers in the most dramatic moments of the growing-up story.

Kaur Kokk continues the tradition of folk Gothic in Estonian cinema started by Rainer Sarnet, however he has given up the black-and-white conditionality.

The film gives everyone a chance to step into a documentary filmmaker’s shoes – wait, and the moment will come!

Splendid Palace Small hall Wednesday, 23/10 16:00

Splendid Palace Small hall Wednesday, 23/10 20:30

Splendid Palace Small hall Thursday, 24/10 16:00

FEATURE FILM COMPETITION

Screenplay: Aistė Žegulytė, Titas Laucius Cinematography: Vytautas Katkus Production: Giedrė Burokaitė / MENO AVILYS

Laila Pakalniņa

SPOON KAROTE

LV/LT/NO, 2019, 66’

Algimantas Puipa

Karolis Kaupinis

KITA TYLOS PUSĖ

LT, 2019, 97’, lt For audiences age 16 and up

OTHER SIDE OF SILENCE

NOVA LITUANIA

LT, 2019, 100’, lt For audiences age 16 and up

Everything here connects to everything else… Society has reached a high level of development – oil is being retrieved from subterranean depths, transported to processing plants, turned into plastic, transported to another plant, where it acquires the shape of a spoon, transported to convenience stores, where we buy it, and is then soon tossed into the trash. Filmed in many countries, this black and white composition-based story about global phenomena is depicting what is a real film in understanding of the director. The only continent where screenings of the unique films made by Laila Pakalniņa haven’t been held yet, is Antarctica, as they have been selected for almost all of the A-class festivals in the world. Screenplay: Laila Pakalniņa Cinematography: Gints Bērziņš Production: Laila Pakalniņa / HARGLA COMPANY / JUST A MOMENT, MECHANIX FILM

Einar and Kasparas are brothers, similar, but still very different people. They did not see each other for all eternity, though their house was separated by the river. Everyday they watch each other from afar, know when anyone is burning the oven, going to bed and so on. This simple but intriguing story follows two brothers, Olaf and Hader. In their youth they both loved the same woman named Mina who was one brother’s wife and the other’s mistress. A child born from this love, Lars, died and both brothers were to blame. In his works, Algimants Puipa usually concentrates on adaptations of domestic literature, and on expressing the mentality of Lithuanian fishermen and rural people. Screenplay: Jonas Cornell Cinematography: Algimantas Mikutėnas Cast: Juozas Budraitis, Viktorija Kuodytė, Povilas Stankus Production: Uljana Kim / STUDIO ULJANA KIM

Year 1938. While the young Lithuanian state celebrates twenty years of independence, the situation in Europe is becoming increasingly tense, and a new war looms on the horizon. Geographer Feliksas Gruodis comes up with a novel solution to the situation: he proposes creating a backup Lithuania overseas, a place where the country’s inhabitants could move in case of danger. All he needs is support for his idea from the political elite. Using a restrained cinematographic style, the director is trying to make a historic allegory that mirrors current impotence in front of (non?) coming political threats. Two lonely men dream about the all-saving solution even if both know nothing‘s going to work at the end. Screenplay: Karolis Kaupinis Cinematography: Simonas Glinskis Cast: Aleksas Kazanavičius, Vaidotas Martinaitis, Valentinas Masalskis, Rasa Samuolytė Production: Marija Razgutė / M-FILMS

An industrial symphony where the production cycle of a spoon is freely matched to the framing.

Almost Biblical motives in the film by the Lithuanian film classic. A parable about brothers and silence, as heavy as the flooded nearby plains.

Visually refined neo-retro. Its seemingly classic form allows you to give your full attention to the actors’ performances and character psychology.

Splendid Palace Small hall Thursday, 24/10 18:00

Splendid Palace Small hall Thursday, 24/10 20:30

Splendid Palace Small hall Friday, 25/10 16:30

FEATURE FILM COMPETITION

Yrsa Roca Fannberg

THE LAST AUTUMN SÍÐASTA HAUSTIÐ IS, 2019, 78’, is For audiences age 12 and up

Martti Helde

Paweł Ziemilski

SKANDINAAVIA VAIKUS

PL/IS, 2018, 61’, pl For audiences age 12 and up

SCANDINAVIAN SILENCE

IN TOUCH

EE/FR/BE, 2019, 75’, et For audiences age 16 and up

According to legend, at the beginning of the world once again there was neither sand nor sea, neither soothing waves nor billowing meadows, neither playful winds nor sky, only a gaping abyss. The nothingness receded, and there at the edge of the world Iceland emerged. A man and a woman traveled with their livestock to take up residence on the island’s farthest cape – beyond which there is only the inhospitable Arctic Ocean. Autumns came and autumns went... Úlfar, the last in a long line of farmers, lives with his wife here. Next autumn farming will cease and all the sheep will be gone, but the landscape pushed up against the Arctic ocean will continue to tell about that one Last Autumn at the end of the world. Screenplay: Yrsa Roca Fannberg, Elín Agla Bríem Cinematography: Carlos Vásquez Méndez Production: Hanna Björk Valsdóttir / AKKERI FILMS, BITI APTAN BÆÐI

A brother and sister set out across a silent winter landscape, but after years apart they have difficulty communicating. Tom begins to talk of their past and a violent act, the consequences of which have stayed with them to this very day. This minimalist study of a difficult sibling relationship presents three versions of the same story, asking whether time can heal the wounds of the past. An exceptional cinematic journey. Filmed from different perspectives, the movie revels in long sections in which one character speaks while the other stays silent. The viewer is not only engaged throughout the story by the impressive camera work and outstanding music, but also by the pure cinematic approach, powerful script and original narrative. Screenplay: Martti Helde, Nathaniel Price Cinematography: Erik Põllumaa, Sten-Johan Lill Cast: Rea Lest, Reimo Sagor Production: Elīna Ļitvinova / THREE BROTHERS / ARP SÉLECTION, MEDIA INTERNATIONAL

A story of people from a little Polish village. It is located in Masuria, area often referred to as The Land of Thousand Lakes. Around 400 people from this village have emigrated to Iceland since the 80’s and nobody has returned. Those who stayed behind are hoping for the reunion. But by now their children and grandchildren are settling into new lives on the other side of Europe. The distance separating them is great and the journey is expensive, so they don’t get to hug each other very often. The best alternative is intensive contact by Skype. The director brings together these fractured families, if only visually, using inventive projection and montage techniques to suggest physical contact. A film about a new reality, homesickness and love. Screenplay: Paweł Ziemilski, Łukasz Długołęcki, Haukur Margeir Hrafnsson Cinematography: Filip Drożdż Production: Łukasz Długołęcki, Haukur Margeir Hrafnsson / NUR / JOIN MOTION PICTURES, TVP, MX35, OXYMORON, WIDOK

A meticulous and loving portrait of the strong Islandic tradition of sheep-farming on the backdrop of majestic landscapes reminds of a slideshow from a trip to the North.

A technique that resembles an audition is an apt dramatic tool to play something intolerably painful.

The director has found a restrained, sensitive and emotionally stunning way to visualize longing and separation of families.

Splendid Palace Small hall Friday, 25/10 19:00

Splendid Palace Small hall Friday, 25/10 21:00

Splendid Palace Small hall Saturday, 26/10 16:30

FEATURE FILM COMPETITION

IN TECHNO VERITAS RETROSPECTIVE & RESEARCH: CINEMA AND TECHNOLOGY

The festival’s traditional section of retrospective and research IN KINO VERITAS has transformed into IN TECHNO VERITAS, as it is focusing on the interaction between society and technologies in the selected works of classic filmmakers this year. These cinematic marvels have amazed and inspired several generations of cinefiles and film professionals already.

Films that depict concerns and issues that have gained major importance since the time of their making. Films that offer to confront one’s fears head-on and to escape in hopeful visions. An alien visitor says brilliant words in one of these works: “I’m impatient with stupidity. My people have learned to live without it.”

OPENING

IN TECHNO VERITAS

Stanley Kubrick

2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY GB/US, 1968, 149â&#x20AC;&#x2122;, en/ru For audiences age 16 and up

A black monolith with an ability to advance species is found in prehistoric times. Millions of years later, a monolith identical to the one encountered by the ape-men is found under the surface of the Moon. This lunar artifact sends a radio signal, and humans call it Tycho Magnetic Anomaly One. Soon a spacecraft is bound for Jupiter. HAL 9000, the shipâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s computer with a human personality, reports the imminent failure of an antenna control device. As no failure is found, the astronauts agree to disconnect the computer. Even though it takes sacrifices, the captain of the spacecraft reaches Jupiter, spots another monolith orbiting the planet, and enters StarGate... Stanley Kubrick leaves the ending open to interpretation. The role of dialogues is for the most part granted to the music in this iconic masterpiece. The film won an Oscar for best visual effects and was nominated for three other Academy Awards, as well as received three British Academy Film Awards. Screenplay: Stanley Kubrick, Arthur C. Clarke Cinematography: Geoffrey Unsworth Cast: Keir Dullea, Gary Lockwood, William Sylvester, Daniel Richter Production: Stanley Kubrick / MGM, STANLEY KUBRICK PRODUCTIONS

Splendid Palace Large hall Tuesday, 22/10 20:30

IN TECHNO VERITAS

CURATOR’S GREETING

Viktors Freibergs RIGA IFF Guest Curator, IN TECHNO VERITAS Film theoretician The films by the four directors included in the programme can be characterized by two major themes: the impact of artificial intelligence and new technologies on the perception of reality by the individual, and here one can certainly make a reference to Jean Baudrillard’s widely recognized theory on simulation and simulacra according to which, put in oversimplified terms, humanity has been living for a long time in reality created by media that has no reference to the actual world. Films that represent the impact of these technologies on an individual, use these technologies by themselves to achieve the goal. That refers also to Stanley Kubrick’s film 2001: A Space Odyssey. It is not only about a computer that has taken over the control of a spaceship, but Kubrick is also one of the first directors who in the distant year of 1968 used computer technology in one of the episodes. It is the famous Star Gate scene. In order to create for the audience the feeling that they are flying through space at an incredible speed, Kubrick used the so-called slit scan technology, but since the size of computers was huge at the time, with limited possibility of using them in film, this is the only (hopefully I am not wrong) scene where computer generated images are created. Another theme of the programme concerns the aliens as saviours who have arrived upon the Earth to avert the possible consequences of the Cold War, thus a science fiction film becomes a metaphor, and unlike classical representation of aliens as aggressors and conquerors; in Robert Wise’s film The Day the Earth Stood Still, Klaatu has arrived on our planet to prevent destruction of civilization. Some critics see some affinity between him and Christ but that remains to be interpreted by the spectators themselves. Another essential theme of the programme is a total control over an individual and totalitarianism, which in his film Brazil is not interpreted by Terry Gilliam merely as a political system, for him totalitarianism includes also bureaucratic machinery that literary destroys an individual. Undeniably, the film has certain affinity with George Orwell’s novel 1984. Somewhat similar thematically (but not stylistically) is also David Cronenberg’s film Videodrome: media, quoting freely one of the characters of the film, are the means of constructing reality, they become like retina of the human eye, replacing direct perception of the world.

Robert Wise

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL US, 1951, 92’, en/fr/hi/ru For audiences age 12 and up

An alien Klaatu and a large humanoid robot Gort land on Earth. Since human beings have developed atomic power and initiated atomic tests, people of the other planets have become concerned for their own safety. It takes sacrifices to pass on their message: “There must be security for all, or no one is secure. Now, this does not mean giving up any freedom, except the freedom to act irresponsibly. We have an organization for the mutual protection of all planets and for the complete elimination of aggression. It is no concern of ours how you run your own planet, but if you threaten to extend your violence, this Earth of yours will be reduced to a burned-out cinder. Your choice is simple: join us and live in peace, or pursue your present course and face obliteration.” Based on the Harry Bates’ science fiction short story “Farewell to the Master” (1940), the screenplay was written by Edmund Hall North, a former army officer, in response to the proliferation of nuclear weapons during the Cold War.

Terry Gilliam

David Paul Cronenberg

GB/US, 1985, 142’, en For audiences age 18 and up

CA, 1983, 87’, en For audiences age 18 and up

BRAZIL

“Mistake? We don’t make mistakes,” can be viewed as a slogan of the government in a retro-futuristic world led by monstrous bureaucracy and busy with the fight against terrorism. An employee at the Ministry of Information spends his days in a gloomy nightmare and nights – in vivid dreams where, at the tune of the uplifting samba melody Brazil, he is a winged warrior saving a damsel in distress. The woman of his dreams turns up in real life as an enemy of the state. In the name of love and justice, he should revolt against the system... The director refers to this dystopian satire as the second of the film trilogy, including Time Bandits (1981) and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1989). They share a related theme about the craziness of an awkwardly ordered society and the desire to escape it through whatever means possible. The work that reflects on the contemporary iron cage, a concept introduced by sociologist Max Weber, is named as one of the greatest British films of all time.

VIDEODROME

Many feel the lure of watching horrific things. Desiring a larger audience, the director of a sleazy cable TV station goes in search of something truly gruesome to broadcast. He finds what he’s looking for in the pirated reality show Videodrome in which people are savagely tortured and killed. It is eventually revealed that a signal has been worked into the broadcast that causes a lethal brain tumour and reality-altering hallucinations to develop in those who watch it. The purpose of this innovative instrument of mass murder is to rid the world of people so morally degenerate as to watch something of the sort. Media-based mind control, surreal body mutations, sadomasochistic sex, the dulling of over-stimulated senses and emotions, the power of technology, conspiracies... Yet the most terrifying aspect of this late XIX century work are the prophetic scenes and messages that depict Cronenberg’s fascination with the work of Canadian philosopher Herbert Marshall McLuhan on media theory.

Screenplay: Edmund Hall North Cinematography: Leo Tover Cast: Michael Rennie, Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe, Sam Jaffe Production: Julian Blaustein / 20TH CENTURY FOX

Screenplay: Terry Gilliam, Tom Stoppard, Charles McKeown Cinematography: Roger Pratt Cast: Jonathan Pryce, Robert De Niro, Katherine Helmond, Ian Holm Production: Arnon Milchan / EMBASSY INTERNATIONAL PICTURES

Screenplay: David Paul Cronenberg Cinematography: Mark Irwin Cast: James Woods, Sonja Smits, Deborah Harry, Peter Dvorsky Production: Claude Héroux, Pierre David, Victor Solnicki / FILMPLAN INTERNATIONAL, GUARDIAN TRUST COMPANY

Splendid Palace Large hall Thursday, 24/10 17:00

Splendid Palace Large hall Saturday, 26/10 21:30

K.Suns Sunday, 27/10 18:00

IN TECHNO VERITAS

FESTIVAL SELECTION HIGHLIGHTS OF FILM FESTIVALS

Before the international film award season begins, FESTIVAL SELECTION offers a look at some of the finest films being made in Europe and the world. We’ve selected twelve films that have recently won or have a high potential to win prestigious jury awards and expert acclaim, i.e. an echoing of the Sundance, Berlin, Cannes, Venice and Toronto film festivals. It’s a selection featuring both promising, young directors and directors who have already secured their place in film history, and is well suited to both cinema novices

and seasoned film buffs. Included in the lineup: British social cinema master Ken Loach’s tribute to the working class; an experiment in an eccentric criminal comedy by Corneliu Porumboiu, one of the biggest names of the Romanian New Wave; the unique world of Agnès Varda’s feminism and cosy cats; and a challenging view of liberty by Albert Serra. The programme is a vivid confirmation of the potential and ability of non-mainstream cinema to still say something new, or at least in a new way.

Corneliu Porumboiu

Nadine Labaki

Agnès Varda, Didier Rouget

LA GOMERA

CAPHARNAÜM

VARDA PAR AGNÈS

RO/FR/DE, 2019, 97’, ro/en/el silbo For audiences age 18 and up

LB/US, 2018, 123’, ar For audiences age 12 and up

FR, 2019, 115’, fr/en For audiences age 12 and up

Not everything is as it seems for Cristi, a police inspector in Bucharest who plays both sides of the law. Embarked by the beautiful Gilda on a high-stakes heist, both will have to navigate the twists and turns of treachery and deception. A secret ancestral whistling language spoken on the Spanish island of La Gomera might just be what they need to pull it off.

Capharnaüm recounts the journey of 12-year-old Zain, who decides to sue his parents for having brought him into this world when they can’t raise him properly, even if only to give him love. It’s a symbolic gesture in the name of all the children who, having not chosen to be born, should be able to demand from their parents a minimum of rights. Zain has no documents and so, in the legal sense, he doesn’t exist. The trial provides the frame through which his story unfolds.

Whether in front of the camera or behind it, Agnès Varda is a visual storyteller who eschews convention and prescribed approaches to drama. Together with some of her fellow travelers, she takes the audience on a journey through her world of unorthodox images. She offers insights into her oeuvre, using excerpts from her work to illustrate – more associatively than chronologically – her artistic visions and ideas.

THE WHISTLERS

The characters here are caught up in a world dominated by strong opinions, where everyone wants to impose their point of view on others: it’s a permanent power play. In a dark world where everything must be negotiated, genuine communication functions better through a secret language that enables – for those who master it – the ability to extract oneself from the control of very tense human relationships, to be able to preserve a kind of sincerity. The music in this dark comedy is ranging from Carl Orff to Iggy Pop. Screenplay: Corneliu Porumboiu Cinematography: Tudor Mircea Cast: Vlad Ivanov, Catrinel Marlon, Rodica Lazăr, Antonio Buíl Production: Patricia Poienaru, Marcela Ursu / 42 KM FILM, LES FILMS DU WORSO, KOMPLIZEN FILM / FILM I VÄST The Romanian New Wave director tries his hand in crime comedy, deftly playing with clichés and mixing techniques of crime shows with almost Bondesque elements. Splendid Palace Large hall Friday, 18/10 17:00 Splendid Palace Large hall Monday, 21/10 21:30

CAPERNAUM

VARDA BY AGNÈS

This film that won numerous prizes is a fiction, all the elements of which the director has lived and witnessed while she was researching. Nothing is fantasy or imagined. The dark world where the characters move, is symptomatic of an era, and the fate of every big city in the world. Nadine Labaki is convinced that films can, if not change things, at least help to open up a debate, or make people think. Screenplay: Jihad Hojeily, Michelle Keserwany Cinematography: Christopher Aoun Cast: Kawthar Al Haddad, Boluwatife Treasure Bankole, Nadine Labaki, Zain Al Rafeea Production: Michel Merkt, Khaled Mouzanar / BOO PICTURES Co-production: MOOZ FILMS

She tells us: “In 1994, with a retro at the French Cinémathèque, I published a book entitled Varda by Agnès. 25 years later, the same title is given to my film made of moving images and words, with the same project: give keys about my body of work. I give my own keys, my thoughts, nothing pretentious, just keys. I’ve made a wide variety of films in my life. So I need to tell you what led me to do this work for so many years. Three words are important to me: Inspiration, creation, sharing...” Screenplay: Agnès Varda Cinematography: François Décréau, Claire Duguet, Julia Fabry Cast: Agnès Varda, Sandrine Bonnaire, Hervé Chandès, Nurith Aviv Production: Rosalie Varda / CINÉ TAMARIS / ARTE FRANCE, HBB26, SCARLETT PRODUCTIONS

Nadine Labaki is the only internationally recognised Lebanese female film director. Her films are about the state of women, children and other less protected social groups in Lebanese society.

An exclusive chance to listen to the life-long experience of the French cinema legend in her own narration illustrated by clips from her iconic films.

Splendid Palace Small hall Friday, 18/10 18:00

Splendid Palace Large hall Saturday, 19/10 16:30

FESTIVAL SELECTION

Joanna Hogg

Bong Joon-ho

THE SOUVENIR

PARASITE GISAENGCHUNG

GB, 2019, 115’, en For audiences age 18 and up

London in the early 1980s. “We don’t know what the inner machinations of their minds are, or their heart. But that’s what we want to know when we go and see a film... We wanna see life as it is experienced,” points out a pretentious, mysterious stranger that has charmed the young film student Julie. As a balancing force to this consuming love affair, she is enchanted by her namesake, heroine of J. J. Rousseau’s novel, in the J. H. Fragonard’s painting The Souvenir. Feelings seek sources that assert their superiority over rational moral principles, and, as Rococo is embodied in a refined intimacy, it is a classical instrument to veil one’s confusion in the insecure world full of suffering. This dark relationship drama made by the British director of auteur cinema has autobiographical origins. The leading female roles are played by Honor Swinton Byrne and her mother, Tilda Swinton.

Ken Loach

SORRY, WE MISSED YOU

KR, 2019, 131’, ko For audiences age 16 and up

GB/FR/BE, 2019, 100’, en For audiences age 16 and up

Ki-taek’s family of four is close, but fully unemployed, with a bleak future ahead of them.The son Ki-woo is recommended by his friend, a student at a prestigious university, for a well-paid tutoring job, spawning hopes of a regular income. Carrying the expectations of all his family, Ki-woo heads to the Park family home for an interview. Arriving at the house of Mr. Park, the owner of a global IT firm, Ki-woo meets Yeon-kyo, the beautiful young lady of the house. But following this first meeting between the two families, an unstoppable string of mishaps lies in wait.

Ricky, Abby and their two children live in Newcastle. They are a strong family who care for each other. Ricky has skipped from one labouring job to another while Abby, who loves her work, cares for old people. Despite working longer and harder they realise they will never have independence or their own home. It’s now or never; the app revolution offers Ricky a golden opportunity. He and Abby make a bet. She sells her car so Ricky can buy a shiny new van and become a freelance driver, with his own business at last. The modern world impinges on these four souls in the privacy of their kitchen; the future beckons.

This film resists categorization and doesn’t fit into any established genre. It is a mix of black humor, social commentary, satire, and suspense – all the characteristic tools of Bong Joon Ho in his trademark questioning of the state of today’s society. ‘Parasite’ unanimously won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes film festival.

Screenplay: Joanna Hogg Cinematography: David Raedeker Cast: Honor Swinton Byrne, Tom Burke, Tilda Swinton Production: Luke Schiller, Joanna Hogg / JWH FILMS, BBC FILMS, BRITISH FILM INSTITUTE, SIKELIA PRODUCTION

Screenplay: Bong Joon Ho, Han Jin Won Cinematography: Hong Kyung Pyo Cast: Song Kang Ho, Lee Sun Kyun, Cho Yeo Jeong, Choi Woo Shik Production: Kwak Sin Ae, Moon Yang Kwon / BARUNSON E&A

Joanna Hogg’s film is as multi-layered as one cares to discover – it has references to her own youth in the 1980’s London as well as hidden messages of art history and philosophy.

You can watch this film both as an exciting story about a family of masterful impostors and a sad tale of worlds that would have never met if not for a fateful coincidence.

Splendid Palace Large hall Saturday, 19/10 19:00

Splendid Palace Large hall Saturday, 19/10 21:30

FESTIVAL SELECTION

Films made by Ken Loach have won numerous awards, he has received Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival twice already – for The Wind That Shakes the Barley in 2006 and I, Daniel Blake in 2016. This drama was screened at the Official Selection of the Cannes Film Festival 2019 – Competition. Screenplay: Paul Laverty Cinematography: Robbie Ryan Cast: Debbie Honeywood, Kris Hitchen, Katie Proctor, Rhys Stone Production: Rebecca O’Brien / SIXTEEN FILMS, WHY NOT PRODUCTIONS, WILD BUNCH, LES FILMS DU FLEUVE, BBC FILMS, BFI A social drama that surprises with an unusual lighteness. Splendid Palace Large hall Sunday, 20/10 17:00

Robert Eggers

THE LIGHTHOUSE US, 2019, 110’, en For audiences age 18 and up

A remote island off the coast of New England in the late XIX century. Two lighthouse keepers, trapped and isolated due to a seemingly never-ending storm, engage in an escalating battle of wills, as tensions boil over and mysterious, mythological forces loom all around them. A bellowing foghorn, stinging wind, and crashing waves of the Atlantic Ocean... “Nothing good can happen when two men are left alone in a giant phallus,” remarks the director. The second feature film of Robert Eggers (The Witch, 2015) – widely known for his meticulous craft and detail in every scene – is a psychological horror drama. It was shot on black-and-white 35mm film. The film’s aesthetics was built through works of literature, painting, music, and historical documentation.The Lighthouse made its debut at the Directors’ Fortnight of the Cannes Film Festival, earning a best movie honor from the FIPRESCI. Screenplay: Robert Eggers, Max Eggers Cinematography: Jarin Blaschke Cast: Willem Dafoe, Robert Pattinson Production: Youree Henley, Lourenço Sant’ Anna, Rodrigo Teixeira, Jay Van Hoy / A24, NEW REGENCY PICTURES, RT FEATURES A film that restarted the entire auteur cinema of 2019. A booming, dark and mystic trip into the subconscious of two New England’s seadogs engages all one’s senses. Splendid Palace Large hall Sunday, 20/10 19:00

Nadav Lapid

Albert Serra

SYNONYMS

LIBERTÉ

SYNONYMES

FR/ES/PT, 2019, 132’, fr/de/it For audiences age 18 and up

FR/IL/DE, 2018, 123’, fr/he/en For audiences age 16 and up

Armed with a pocket-sized French dictionary and committed to change his national identity, a young Israeli comes to Paris. An unfortunate incident turns into an incredible luck: two wealthy Parisians rush to take care of him as they are eager to add some spice to their life. He wants to get away from his “lamentable, obscene, repugnant, odious, nasty, sordid, mean-spirited... “ homeland. If only expectations would correspond to reality. If only both people and countries wouldn’t practise affection-rejection relationships. This tragicomic and largely autobiographical story endeavors to reveal the feelings experienced by the director himself and the protagonist when they walked the streets of Paris. Nadav Lapid is a recipient of the French Order Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres. Synonyms received the Golden Bear and the prize of the FIPRESCI at the Berlin Film Festival. Screenplay: Nadav Lapid, Haïm Lapid Cinematography: Shaï Goldman Cast: Tom Mercier, Quentin Dolmaire, Louise Chevillotte, Uria Hayik Production: Saïd Ben Saïd, Michel Merkt / SBS FILMS / PIE FILMS, KOMPLIZEN FILM, ARTE FRANCE CINÉMA The hot-tempered and incongruous protagonist arriving in Paris from Israel seems to have travelled in time from the French nouvelle vague. An uncomfortable commentary on conceited charity. Splendid Palace Large hall Sunday, 20/10 21:30 Splendid Palace Large hall Friday, 25/10 21:30

Shortly before the French Revolution, the aristocrats expelled from the puritanical court of Louis XVI seek the support of the legendary Duc de Walchen, German seducer and freethinker. They aim to export libertinage – an extreme hedonism that rejects moral boundaries and authorities. But moreover – to find a safe place to pursue their errant games, where the quest for pleasure no longer obeys any laws. And they find themselves in a dark forest clearing... Bodies, impulses, desire. The libertines craved liberty. The film is asking what it is that this liberty leads to, which absence? And is this absence bearable? Serra wants the film to physically impact the viewer and produce the type of stunned state you can be in when you walk out of a night club in the early hours of the morning. When you can no longer distinguish what you’ve seen from what you’ve heard or what you’ve imagined. Screenplay: Albert Serra Cinematography: Artur Tort Cast: Helmut Berger, Marc Susini, Iliana Zabeth, Laura Poulvet Production: Pierre-Olivier Bardet, Joaquim Sapinho, Albert Serra, Montse Triola / IDÉALE AUDIENCE, ROSA FILMES, ANDERGRAUN FILMS / LUPA FILM The director challenges the audience to overcome their philistine prudery and get a unique cinematic experience. Splendid Palace Large hall Wednesday, 23/10 21:30

FESTIVAL SELECTION

Kantemir Balagov

Olivier Assayas

ДЫЛДА

DOUBLES VIES

RU, 2019, 137’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

FR, 2018, 108’, fr For audiences age 18 and up

IE/GB, 2019, 90’, en For audiences age 12 and up

Leningrad in autumn of 1945. World War II has devastated the city, demolishing its buildings and leaving its citizens in tatters, physically and mentally. Although the siege – one of the worst in history – is finally over, life and death continue their battle in the wreckage that remains. Two young women search for meaning and hope in the struggle to rebuild their lives amongst the ruins.

Alain, a successful Parisian publisher struggling to adapt to the digital revolution, has major doubts about the new manuscript of Léonard, one of his longtime authors – another work of autofiction recycling his love affair with a minor celebrity. Selena, Alain’s wife, a famous stage actress, is of the opposite opinion.

Writer and musician PJ Harvey and award-winning photographer Seamus Murphy, hatched a collaboration. Seeking first-hand experience of the countries she wanted to write about, Harvey accompanied Murphy on some of his worldwide reporting trips, joining him in Afghanistan, Kosovo, and Washington DC. Harvey collected words, Murphy collected images.

BEANPOLE

NON-FICTION

It was important for the director to show the consequences of war through people’s faces, eyes, physiques, bodies, not just through abandoned or destroyed buildings. His main inspiration for this film was the book The Unwomanly Face of War by the Nobel prize laureate Svetlana Alexievich. The producer believes that Balagov’s true strength comes from his realization of the drama and cruelty of life and his deep affection and empathy towards the people who are trying to overcome terrible obstacles. Screenplay: Kantemir Balagov, Aleksandr Terekhov Cinematography: Ksenia Sereda Cast: Viktoria Miroshnichenko, Vasilisa Perelygina, Andrey Bykov, Igor Shirokov Production: Alexander Rodnyansky, Sergey Melkumov / NON-STOP PRODUCTION, AR CONTENT A subject the society would rather avoid discussing – women that have experienced war while serving in the army. Splendid Palace Large hall Friday, 25/10 19:00 Splendid Palace Large hall Sunday, 27/10 21:00

As stated by the director, the digitalization of our world and its reconfiguration into algorithms is the modern vector of a change that confuses and overwhelms us. Digital economy infringes rules and often laws. Moreover, it questions what seemed solid and granted in society. Yet, it dissolves on mere contact. This film does not attempt to analyze workings of the new economy, but rather to observe how those questions shake us, personally, emotionally, and sometimes humorously. The film was selected for the Official Competition at the 75th Venice International Film Festival. Screenplay: Olivier Assayas Cinematography: Yorick Le Saux Cast: Guillaume Canet, Juliette Binoche, Vincent Macaigne, Nora Hamzawi Production: Charles Gillibert / VORTEX SUTRA, ARTE FRANCE CINEMA, PLAYTIME

Seamus Murphy

A DOG CALLED MONEY

Back home, the words become poems, songs, then an album, which is recorded in an unprecedented art experiment in London. In a specially constructed room behind one-way glass, the public are invited to watch the 5-week process as a live sound-sculpture. Seamus Murphy transposes Harvey’s search for inspirational material and her intimate creative process into an impressively poetic montage. Screenplay and cinematography: Seamus Murphy Cast: Polly Jean Harvey Production: Isabel Davis, Katie Holly, James Wilson, Seamus Murphy / BLINDER FILMS / PULSE FILMS, JW FILMS

This film has been described as très français. The right choice for connoisseurs of cinema and culture of the Old Europe.

Something intriguing – these travel notes let you in on the moments when material for classic music documentaries emerges.

Splendid Palace Large hall Saturday, 26/10 19:00

Splendid Palace Large hall Sunday, 27/10 19:00

FESTIVAL SELECTION

NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS CINEMATIC ACCENTS OF NORDIC COUNTRIES

Nordic cinema perhaps comes closest to our understanding of the pace, vibrancy, mood and humour of cinema. Its uniqueness consists of series of inconceivable and unpredictable contrasts and contradictions. Elements that make up the classic image of northern Europe – cool light, blue-green reflections of ice, solitude, and terse communication – are key in the work of Roy Andersson, the most internationally renowned Swedish film director of auteur cinema. The protagonists of J-P Valkeapää’s film find solace in Finland’s cold nights and in the BDSM kink dungeon, whereas the lioness in

Norwegian director Vibeke Idsøe’s film proudly combs her mane before she heads out to conquer the world. Whether it is dreaming of Murakami, listening to a giant frog, or challenging the patriarchal codes of Georgian national dance, Nordic cinema has it all! The lineup of current films featured in the NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS programme has traditionally been selected in co-operation with the embassies of Norway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland, as well as with the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Office in Latvia and the Danish Cultural Institute in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

OPENING

NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS

J-P Valkeapää

DOGS DON’T WEAR PANTS KOIRAT EIVÄT KÄYTÄ HOUSUJA FI/LV, 2019, 105’, fi For audiences age 18 and up Breaking out of the emotional numbness that has overwhelmed Juha after his wife drowned, trapped in a fishing net, is liberating and dangerous at the same time. He accidentally stumbles into an environment where his ever-growing addiction to suffocation, a relief from the throes of his suffering, is satisfied by dominatrix Mona. In the neon-lit dungeons the respected heart surgeon is just a dog... The sweet pain of being – in love, loss, perversion and dignity. The visually impressive story provokes both gales of laughter and reflections on the mysterious ways of overcoming the blows of life. The Finnish director is familiar with the depths of darkness that the main character (Pekka Strang, Tom of Finland) has to escape, having himself battled depression for more than ten years. Screenplay: J-P Valkeapää (idea by Juhana Lumme) Cinematography: Pietari Peltola Cast: Pekka Strang, Krista Kosonen, Ester Geislerová, Ilona Huhta Production: Aleksi Bardy, Helen Vinogradov / HELSINKI-FILMI / Aija Bērziņa, Alise Ģelze / TASSE FILM

To find light in darkness, solace – in pain. Finland is a land of contrasts, Valkeapää – an expert on the darkest facets of human soul. Splendid Palace Large hall Friday, 18/10 19:00

NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS

Roy Andersson

ABOUT ENDLESSNESS OM DET OÄNDLIGA SE/NO/DE/FR, 2019, 76’, sv For audiences age 16 and up

A reflection on human life in all its beauty and cruelty, its splendour and banality. We wander, dreamlike, gently guided by a Scheherazade-esque narrator. Inconsequential moments take on the same significance as historical events: a couple floats over a war-torn Cologne; on the way to a birthday party, a father stops to tie his daughter’s shoelaces in the pouring rain; teenage girls dance outside a cafe; a defeated army marches to a prisoner-of-war camp. The director has developed such a genuinely distinctive and original way of making films that his works qualify as a genre of their own. Simultaneously an ode and a lament, this film presents a kaleidoscope of all that is eternally human, an infinite story of the vulnerability of existence. Screenplay: Roy Andersson Cinematography: Gergely Pálos Cast: Martin Serner, Ania Nova, Lisa Blohm, Magnus Wallgren Production: Pernilla Sandström / ROY ANDERSSON FILMPRODUKTION AB / 4½, ESSENTIAL FILMPRODUKTION, SOCIÉTÉ PARISIENNE DE PRODUCTION First Bergman, now Andersson – the vision of these great artists creates our views on the daily life of Swedes, their ups and downs. The world of Andersson’s films remains unchanged – its bluish green hues remind of submerged photos and it is inhabited by touching losers. Splendid Palace Large hall Friday, 18/10 21:30 Splendid Palace Large hall Tuesday, 22/10 16:30

Emil Næsby Hansen

Nitesh Anjaan

THE TWO OF US

DREAMING MURAKAMI

SKJOLD & ISABEL DK, 2018, 62’, da For audiences age 16 and up

DK, 2017, 58’, da/ja/en For audiences age 12 and up

A summer in Copenhagen. Skjold and Isabel are no longer lovers, but they will always be each other’s first love. We are thrown directly into the midst of their break-up in a whirlwind of conversations, fights and happy moments. It is a vulnerable and confusing time for the two teenagers, trying to define what they are as a couple and as individuals. This feature documentary debut of the director is a celebration of youth, love, beauty and the city. It took six months from the time he first met the couple until he turned on the camera. Hansen admits: “We had a lot of things in common. When I was that age, I was seeking out everything nervy and edgy, exciting and cool as well. We shared the same appetite and anarchic approach to our surroundings.” Screenplay: Emil Næsby Hansen Cinematography: Emil Næsby Hansen Production: Emil Kramhøft Dinsen / WERGELAND FILM

Mette Holm has been translating the work of Japanese author Haruki Murakami into Danish for many years. While she struggles to find the perfect sentences capable of communicating what the solitary, daydreaming characters are trying to tell us, the boundary between reality and fiction begins to blur. A twometer-tall frog shows up at an underground station in Tokyo, determined to engage the translator in its fight against the gigantic Worm, which is slowly waking from a deep sleep, ready to destroy the world with hatred. With this film, the director wishes to thank the literary translators for their difficult and important art, as in this murky mirror of life, translation offers the clarity to see ourselves reflected in the stories of others. Screenplay: Nitesh Anjaan Cinematography: Agabi Triantafillidis Cast: Mette Holm Production: Pernille Tornøe Frederiksen, Signe Byrge Sørensen / FINAL CUT FOR REAL

Danish films for young people are characterized by very authentic feel of the tumultuous and intense period in one’s life.

Translator as a medium, decoder, creator and servant – what does it mean to live in Murakami’s world?

K.Suns Saturday, 19/10 18:30

Kino Bize Sunday, 20/10 16:00

NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS

Hlynur Pálmason

Levan Akin

A WHITE, WHITE DAY

AND THEN WE DANCED

HVÍTUR, HVÍTUR DAGUR

Erik Poppe

THE KING’S CHOICE KONGENS NEI

SE/GE/FR, 2019, 105’, ka For audiences age 16 and up

NO/SE/DK/IE, 2016, 122’, no/de For audiences age 12 and up

In a remote Icelandic town, Ingimundur – father, grandfather, an off-duty police chief and widower – begins to suspect a local man of having had an affair with his late wife, who died in a tragic accident two years earlier. Gradually his obsession for finding out the truth accumulates and inevitably begins to endanger himself and his loved ones.

Merab has been training since a young age at the National Georgian Ensemble with his dance partner Mary. His world is suddenly turned upside down when the charismatic and carefree Irakli arrives and becomes both his strongest rival and desire. In this conservative setting Merab finds himself having to break free and risk it all.

A story of grief, revenge and unconditional love. The title of the film is inspired by an Icelandic saying: when everything is white, and you can no longer see the difference between the earth and the sky, the dead can talk to us who are still living. The score for the Hlynur Pálmason’s (Winter Brothers, 2017) second feature film is created by the internationally acclaimed British composer Edmund Finnis.

Confines of tradition and forbidden love. The director, born in Sweden to Georgian parents, got the idea for the film after seeing a violent attack on a pride parade in Tbilisi. He developed his story following numerous interviews with gay Georgians. The film crew got death threats and had to have bodyguards on set. Sweden has selected this dance drama as its entry for the Best International Feature Film award for the Oscars.

Three dramatic days in April 1940. The King of Norway is presented with an impossible ultimatum from the German armed forces: Surrender or die! The Royal Family is forced to flee from the capital. They decide to separate ways, without knowing if they will ever see each other again. The Crown Princess Märtha leaves Norway with the children to seek refuge in Sweden, whilst King Haakon and the Crown Prince Olav stay to fight the Germans. King Haakon refuses to capitulate, even if it may cost him, his family and many Norwegians their lives.

IS/DK/SE, 2019, 109’, is For audiences age 16 and up

Screenplay: Hlynur Pálmason Cinematography: Maria von Hausswolff Cast: Ingvar Eggert Sigurðsson, Ída Mekkín Hlynsdóttir, Hilmir Snær Guðnason, Björn Ingi Hilmarsson Production: Anton Máni Svansson / JOIN MOTION PICTURES / SNOWGLOBE, FILM I VÄST, HOB AB After his debut with the visually impressive Winter Brothers, now the director focuses on the emotional experiences not experiments with the form. The phenomenon of white days has served as a catalyst to grieve over the loss. Splendid Palace Small hall Sunday, 20/10 18:00 Splendid Palace Large hall Sunday, 27/10 16:30

Screenplay: Levan Akin Cinematography: Lisabi Fridell Cast: Levan Gelbakhiani, Bachi Valishvili, Ana Javakishvili, Giorgi Tsereteli Production: Ketie Danelia, Mathilde Dedye / FRENCH QUARTER FILM, TAKES FILM / AMA PRODUCTIONS, RMV FILM, INLAND FILM

King Haakon was a man for whom honour and sense of duty were more than just nice words. This unequivocally patriotic drama was Norway’s Oscar contender for Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards. Screenplay: Harald Rosenløw-Eeg, Jan Trygve Røyneland Cinematography: John Christian Rosenlund Cast: Jesper Christensen, Anders Baasmo Christiansen, Karl Markovics, Tuva Novotny Production: Finn Gjerdrum, Stein B. Kvae / PARADOX FILM / NORDISK FILM PRODUCTION, FILM I VÄST, ZENTROPA INTERNATIONAL SWEDEN, COPENHAGEN FILMFUND, NEWGRANGE PICTURES

Love stories in their different forms can catch us off guard. The world of the traditional dance as a micromodel of society.

A classic story line and outstanding actors have come together in a film on the significance of a decision important not only to Norwegians.

Splendid Palace Small hall Sunday, 20/10 20:30

Splendid Palace Large hall Monday, 21/10 16:30

NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS

Hans Petter Moland

OUT STEALING HORSES UT OG STJÆLE HESTER NO/SE/DK, 2019, 122’, no For audiences age 12 and up

November 1999. Following the death of his wife, 67-year-old Trond has found solitude in a rural landscape and looks forward to spending the New Year’s Eve alone. As winter arrives, he discovers he has a neighbor, a man Trond knew back in 1948, the summer he turned 15 and Trond’s father prepared him to carry the burden of his forthcoming betrayal and disappearance. This story is about the choices that other people make that affect one’s life. The film is based on the critically acclaimed international bestseller written by Per Petterson, and it has been selected as the Norwegian entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the Academy Awards. The Silver Bear at Berlinale for Outstanding Artistic Contribution (cinematography). Screenplay: Hans Petter Moland Cinematography: Rasmus Vidbæk Cast: Stellan Skarsgård, Bjørn Floberg, Tobias Santelmann, Danica Ćurčić Production: Turid Øversveen, Håkon Øverås / 4 ½ FIKSJON / HELGELAND FILMS, ZENTROPA ENTERTAINMENTS, ZENTROPA INTERNATIONAL SWEDEN, FILM I VÄST

Vibeke Idsøe

Jesper Kurlandsky, Fredrik Wenzel

LION WOMAN

CHARISMATIC MEGAFAUNA

LØVEKVINNEN NO/DE/SE, 2016, 120’, no For audiences age 12 and up

SE, 2019, 70’ For audiences age 12 and up

Set in a small Norwegian town, this epic and beautiful story starts in 1912. A weird girl is born with a body entirely covered in hair. Her mother dies when giving birth; her father is so ashamed that he tries to hide his daughter away from the world. Despite the many challenges she is faced with due to her appearance, she manages to overcome them. The girl’s exceptional character and intelligence – especially in mathematics – takes her from the tiny railroad station to the big world. She becomes a professor lecturing at the Sorbonne in Paris. A timeless story about universally human values, exclusion, the need for acceptance and standing up against one’s fears. Adaptation from the Norwegian author Erik Fosnes Hansen’s international bestseller. Screenplay: Vibeke Idsøe Cinematography: Dan Laustsen Cast: Ida Ursin-Holm, Rolf Lassgård, Rolf Kristian Larsen, Kjersti Tveterås Production: John Martin Jacobsen, Marcus Brodersen, M. Reza Bahar / FILMKAMERATENE, SF STUDIOS, GIFTED FILMS WEST GMBH

A globe spanning odyssey, steeped in the tempo of the contemplative traditions. Through the eye of the free-floating witness, we observe life at work and leisure, in play and through hardships, from the shanty towns of Cape Town, to the Waura Tribe by the Xangu river, through the mist of the Atlas Mountains to the coloured night skies of Beijing. At a time when we are exposed to an overwhelming stream of images all day long, this film with no dialogue creates a space for reflection about humanity as the dominant force on the planet Earth. The work is intended as a liberating and sensory experience, based on thorough research and scientific studies of life in hypermodernity. Original score by the acclaimed Swedish composer Anders Hillborg. Screenplay: Jesper Kurlandsky, Fredrik Wenzel Cinematography: Fredrik Wenzel Production: Erik Gandini, Jesper Kurlandsky, Malin Hüber / FASAD PRODUCTION / SVT, FILM I VÄST

The Silver Bear of Berlinale for the Best Cinematography. Colours, textures, details and underwater shots turn the adaptation of the powerful novel into a visual treat.

The film is close to our canonical idea of a classic Nordic film. In this big-budget production, one can wholeheartedly sympathize with ‘otherness’ as well as get to know life in a small Norwegian town in the beginning of the XX century.

He has a unique style in cinema, he works more as a cameraman than a director, therefore Wenzel’s directorial pieces also speak through images not with words or the story.

Splendid Palace Large hall Wednesday, 23/10 16:30

Splendid Palace Large hall Saturday, 26/10 16:30

Splendid Palace Small hall Sunday, 27/10 14:30

NORDIC HIGHLIGHTS

Miia Tervo

AURORA FI, 2019, 106’, fi/fa/en For audiences age 16 and up

TICKETS:

One night, a commitment-phobic Lapland’s party animal, Aurora, meets Iranian Darian. He needs to marry a Finnish woman to get an asylum for himself and his daughter. Aurora turns him down, as she plans to move to Norway, away from her shit life. However, agrees to help him. Darian is running from death and Aurora is running from love. This is the talented director’s debut feature film – a dark and melancholic romantic comedy that shows the inner reality of a young woman in the arctic ghetto coping with inherited barriers against love and life. Fragile moments of hopeless situations. Miia Tervo wanted her characters to be free – free to be arseholes, free to be ugly, beautiful, loving, addicted or politically incorrect. Just let them be.

RIGAIFF.LV AND BOX OFFICES OF BIĻEŠU SERVISS

Screenplay: Miia Tervo Cinematography: Arsen Sarkisiants Cast: Mimosa Willamo, Amir Escandari, Oona Airola, Hannu-Pekka Björkman Production: Max Malka / DIONYSOS FILMS

Following the tradition of Aki Kaurismäki films, Miia Tervo also confirms – Finns are able to treat the topical subject of asylum seekers with compassion and humour. Splendid Palace Small hall Sunday, 27/10 20:30

ARTDOCFEST RIGA WORLD DOCUMENTARY FILM COMPETITION

This section of RIGA IFF is ambitious, thought-provoking, full of discoveries, multifaceted and praising freedom of expression. It is curated and presented by Artdocfest, the largest documentary film festival in Russia.

The audience is welcome to express their views, opinions and impressions during the Q&A with filmmakers right after each screening, as well as to participate in public discussions conducted by international media representatives.

CURATORS’ GREETING

Vitaly Mansky President of Artdocfest Festival

Victoria Belopolsky Program Director of Artdocfest Festival

We are pleased to welcome you at ARTDOCFEST/RIGA! Since last year, it has become not just a documentary program, but a full-fledged documentary competition of the Riga International Film Festival. The decision to transfer the most prestigious documentary film competition of Russia across the border was our response to the Kremlin’s policy aimed at destroying the basic democratic principles of the country. Over the past year, the situation in Russia has only become worse, and our next step was to transfer the full cycle of the competition to Riga. It means that this time the winners selected by the jury will also be announced in Riga. We will present a romantic comedy about the fate of women, a blockbuster about the funeral of Stalin, a film about the Belarusian stripper, a lyric drama about Moscow stray dogs... and again, there will be films in the competition that cannot be shown in Russia. In order to see them, not only professionals but also ordinary viewers will come to Latvia. We will arrange discussions about all the films of the competition with their authors. We will also organize large public discussions in the mornings where the filmmakers and interested viewers will participate. Let us also remind you that all the films of the competition haven’t yet been screened neither in Latvia, nor in Russia.

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION JURY

Zhanna Nemtsova Journalist and public figure, Russia/Germany

Roman Balayan Film director, screenwriter and producer, Ukraine

Abram Kletskin Film critic and film expert, Latvia

She worked for the Russian business television channel RBK-TV, was a commentator on the Markets program, the host of the program Nemtsova. Vzglyad and other analytical programs. Since 2015, she has been working in the Russian service of Deutsche Welle and hosts her own television program Nemtsova. Interview. She is the co-founder of the Boris Nemtsov Foundation for Freedom. Among the projects of the Foundation is the annual Prize for Courage in upholding the democratic values in Russia, the Forum, the Media school for young journalists from the former USSR countries, and others.

He made his debut as a film director in 1973. Considers Sergey Parajanov one of his teachers. Has shot most of his films at the Dovzhenko film studio in Kiev. His films are the laureates of international film festivals (in Istanbul, Minsk, Moscow, etc.), participants of film festival competition programs in Berlin, Venice, Karlovy Vary. His most famous work is the film Flights in Dreams and Reality (Полёты во сне и наяву, 1982), which became one of the biggest cash-box hits of Soviet cinema and at the same time a movie that expressed the crisis of a whole generation of the era of developed socialism.

Researcher, theoretician, as well as promoter and popularizer of the Riga School of Documentary Films. Author and curator of retrospectives about this School at international documentary film festivals in Nyon, Berlin, Leipzig, St. Petersburg and other cities. For many years he was a Professor at the University of Latvia. Screenplay writer for a number of documentary films, also the co-writer of the screenplay of the well-known film Is It Easy to Be Young? (Vai viegli būt jaunam? 1986). In 2018, he was awarded the Latvian National Film Award Lielais Kristaps (Big Kristaps) for his contribution to the art of cinema.

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

OPENING

Alina Rudnitskaya

SCHOOL OF SEDUCTION ШКОЛА СОБЛАЗНЕНИЯ DK, 2019, 97’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

Three young Russian women seek security, a higher social status, and eternal happiness. Not an easy wish to fulfill in a country where the patriarchy dominates. So they join a course in the art of seducing a wealthy man. Seven years of recordings paint a sometimes tragicomic picture of gender roles and femininity in Putin’s Russia.

Screenplay: Alina Rudnitskaya Cinematography: Alina Rudnitskaya, Alexander Demyanenko, Fedor Bakulin, Aygul Musina, Sergei Maksimov Production: Sigrid Dyekjær, Eva Mulvad, Pernille Rose Grønkjær, Mikala Krogh / DANISH DOCUMENTARY

Alina Rudnitskaya’s documentaries always have a characteristic original perspective – she is interested not only in depicting the facts of life but also in exploring the internal world of her characters. She succeeds in painting a vivid image of modern man while maintaining a very personal and humanistic approach to each of her stories in visually stunning films.

Imagine a Brazilian or Mexican soap opera of 200 series, which is compressed into one film of an hour and a half. Here we see the story of three-fold Simplemente María or Escrava Isaura from modern Russia. Splendid Palace Large hall Monday, 21/10 19:00

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

Alexander Mihalkovich

MY GRANNY FROM MARS

Andrei Kutsila

Maxim Shved

СТРИПТИЗ И ВОЙНА

ЧИСТОЕ ИСКУССТВО

PL/BY, 2019, 68’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

PL/BY, 2019, 50’, ru For audiences age 16 and up

A small family, consisting of a grandfather, who is leading a veteran organization and writing patriotic articles, and his grandson, who has abandoned his career as an engineer to become a stripper and dream about his own erotic theatre. It is not just a story about a relationship, but rather a reflection of the generation gap and the entire post-Soviet Belarus.

The contemporary Belarus, freedom and art. A mysterious artist appears on the streets of Minsk. He is Zahar Cudin, one of the most promising Belarusian painters.

STRIP AND WAR

МОЯ БАБУШКА С МАРСА BY/UA/EE, 2018, 72’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

The director’s granny Zina had lived in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, and, after retirement, she moved to Crimea. Cheerful and bossy, she has always been uniting the big family. After the annexation of Crimea by Russia, visiting her has become an endless hustle. The place has turned into ‘a distant planet’, like Mars, and its environment is unfriendly towards the lonely woman. For many reasons, the time has come for her to make a crucial decision. Screenplay: Alexander Mihalkovich Cinematography: Siarhei Kanaplianik Production: Volia Chajkouskaya / VOLIA FILMS / DIRECTORY FILMS, VOKA FILMS

The most important message in this film – family love is more important than any ideology. Screenplay: Andrei Kutsila Cinematography: Andrei Kutsila Production: Beata Krasicka / BELSAT TV

PURE ART

The director Maxim Shved is a lawyer and political scientist, but he has switched to filmmaking and photography. This film has emerged from his photo project about fundamental suprematism, which appears on the city walls when the community service workers paint out graffiti. Screenplay: Maxim Shved, Łukasz Czajka Cinematography: Grzegorz Hartfiel Production: Magdalena Borowiec, Tatiana Matysiak, Volia Chajkouskaya / SQUARE FILM STUDIO / VOLIA FILMS, DI FACTORY

Russia annexed Crimea along with the grandmother and her plans for a happy living at the old age. The grandmother turned out to be the only one in the company of her peers who did not appreciate this gesture of the Eastern neighbor.

Each meeting of the heroes in the kitchen of a small-sized apartment in the capital of Belarus is a war of two generations and two ideologies.

Contemporary art has found a place in conservative Belarus. There its place is on the streets. No tickets and no registration required.

Splendid Palace Small hall Monday, 21/10 21:00

Splendid Palace Small hall Tuesday, 22/10 15:00

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

Elsa Kremser, Levin Peter

Sergei Loznitsa

Natalia Kadyrova

SPACE DOGS

ГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫЕ ПОХОРОНЫ

МАМА ДЛЯ ЮЛИ

AT/DE, 2019, 91’, ru For audiences age 16 and up

NL/LT, 2019, 135’, ru For audiences age 16 and up

RU, 2019, 79’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

Laika, a stray dog, was the first living being to be sent into space and thus to a certain death. A legend says that she returned to Earth as a ghost and still roams the streets of Moscow alongside her free-drifting descendants.

A grandiose, terrifying and grotesque spectacle – unique archival footage from 1953 shows the funeral of Joseph Stalin. The farewell lasted three days and three nights.

Julia is seven years.old. She was born in prison and had a different mother at three different periods of time. All of these women attempt to mother her now. They want what’s best for the child, but their actions threaten the future of the girl.

SPACE DOGS

While shooting this film, the directors little by little realised that they knew the street dogs only as part of our human world; they have never looked at humans as a part of the dogs’ world. Screenplay: Elsa Kremser, Levin Peter Cinematography: Yunus Roy Imer Production: Elsa Kremser, Levin Peter / RAUMZEITFILM PRODUKTION / IT WORKS MEDIEN

STATE FUNERAL

A MOM FOR JULIA

It is unthinkable that 66 years after the tyrant’s death, thousands of mourning people still gather at his tomb on March 5th to lay flowers. Loznitsa sees this film as a visual study of the nature of Stalin’s personality cult and an attempt to deconstruct the ritual, which formed the foundation of the bloody regime in USSR.

The director Natalia Kadyrova met the film’s protagonist when she was shooting her previous film. It dealt with an experiment – the children lived together with their sentenced parents in jail.

Screenplay: Sergei Loznitsa Production: Sergei Loznitsa, Maria Choustova / ATOMS & VOID / STUDIO ULJANA KIM

Screenplay: Natalia Kadyrova Cinematography: Natalia Kadyrova, Vyacheslav Navalov, Alexandra Ivanova, Sergey Petriga Production: Vladislav Ketkovich / ETHNOFUND

An important fact is that the famous actor Alexei Serebryakov masterly expresses the feelings of dog heroes with his voice.

Probably the most ambitious documentary blockbuster – the epic story of the XXI century, shot fully in the middle of the XX century.

One daughter and three mothers – this is a plot from Indian cinema. And I think that Indian cinema will borrow it sooner or later.

Splendid Palace Small hall Tuesday, 22/10 15:00

Splendid Palace Small hall Tuesday, 22/10 18:00

K.Suns Tuesday, 22/10 21:00

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

Ksenia Okhapkina

IMMORTAL

Yuriy Pivovarov

Ewa Kochanska

СЕКРЕТАРЬ ПО ИДЕОЛОГИИ

JAZDA OBOWIAZKOWA

RU, 2019, 50’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

PL, 2018, 72’, ru/uk For audiences age 18 and up

Ivan Komendantov is just 16 years old, but he has already become the secretary of ideology at the local Komsomol committee. Ivan craves to grow up, so he takes every challenge with enthusiasm, whether it is a world financial crisis or a secret mission to hit a chick.

Julia Polniuk is ten years old. She trains figure skating – and there is not much time left for her to succeed in sports and to meet the expectations of her family, which has moved to Poland from Ukraine.

THE SECRETARY OF IDEOLOGY

БЕССМЕРТНЫЙ EE/LV, 2019, 60’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

Apatity, a far-north industrial town in Russia, first came into being as a USSR concentration camp. Although its environment is at the brink of ecological disaster, the people here still believe in the state’s promise of immortality. The idea of immortality that can be gained through sacrificial service to the fatherland is how the elite in a totalitarian state buys a person’s will, strength, talent and, indeed, life, turning the human being into another resource that is as faceless as a grey lump of ore.

Director Yuriy Pivovarov has become a Komsomol member himself during the shooting of this movie.

COMPULSORY FIGURES

The girl has the opportunity to take part in the Polish Figure Skating Championships. This could bring her fame and success, and maybe even help the whole family to obtain Polish citizenship. But can a child spread its wings and fly with such a burden on its shoulders?

Screenplay: Yuriy Pivovarov Cinematography: Yuriy Pivovarov Production: Yuriy Pivovarov, Marina Razbezhkina / THE MARINA RAZBEZHKINA AND MIKHAIL UGAROV SCHOOL OF DOCUMENTARY FILM AND THEATRE

Screenplay: Ewa Kochanska Cinematography: Egor Efimov Production: Magdalena Borowiec, Tatiana Matysiak, Daria Zienocicz / SQUARE FILM STUDIO

The film is not about the city but about a big country which now exists as a labor camp and will remain as such for eternity, if we ourselves will not do something about it.

A documentary comedy about the building of the party which is closely associated with the formation of the personality of the protagonist (including the time of his puberty).

Some plans are easy to come up with, but very difficult to implement, especially when it comes to the highest sports achievements. Julia goes toward the goal set by her parents – with all her might.

K.Suns Wednesday, 23/10 18:00

K.Suns Wednesday, 23/10 21:00

Screenplay: Ksenia Okhapkina Cinematography: Aleksandr Demyanenko, Artem Ignatev Production: Riho Västrik, Uldis Cekulis / VESILIND / VFS FILMS

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

Yuriy Shylov

PROJECTIONIST ПАНОРАМА UA/PL, 2019, 72’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

Alexey Sukhovey

Dmitry Bogolyubov

PROMOTING SUCCESS

TOWN OF GLORY УЕЗДНЫЙ ГОРОД Е

АКЦИЯ

RU/CZ/DE, 2019, 90’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

RU, 2019, 58’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

Valentin is an eccentric projectionist. For 44 years, he’s been working in one of the oldest cinemas in Kyiv. Every day at work seems like another adventure. It all comes to an abrupt end when a fire breaks out, and he is forced to retire. The man is aware that he does not have much time left and struggles to find a new meaning of his life in a rapidly changing country.

Several dozens of soldiers in the military train are transporting an exhibition with captured weapons from Syria across Russia. Artists of military ensembles accompany this festive event. In each city, they are greeted by thousands of people who dance and take pictures with them, while children swear allegiance to their homeland.

The memory of World War II is the only thing that makes a small Russian town alive. Like a great treasure this memory is preserved here in every home and is passed on from generation to generation. Yet exactly this memory prevents people from understanding that despite their own will they are getting involved in a new war.

The director sees his heroes in this film as dinosaurs living in today’s world.

The train that is mentioned in the film then travelled 28 000 km in 2 months and visited 62 cities. Screenplay: Alexey Sukhovey Cinematography: Alexey Sukhovey Production: Alexey Sukhovey / THE FILM STUDIO OF THE MINISTRY OF DEFENCE OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION

Screenplay: Dmitry Bogolyubov, Anna Shishova-Bogolyubova Cinematography: Dmitry Bogolyubov Production: Vlad Ketkovich, Simone Baumann, Filip Remunda / ETHNOFUND, FEELING REALITY, SAXONIA ENTERTAINMENT, HYPERMARKET FILM / CZECH TV, CURRENT TIME TV

The cinema quite symbolically leaves together with the old cinema technology. Unfortunately, Valentine, the main character of the picture, is also on the way to death.

When I saw reportage about this train on one of the Russian state TV channels, I immediately realized that this got to be a movie. And now it has been shot.

This small town is as an example of patriotic frenzy, succinctly formulated in the slogans “Thank you grandfather for the victory” and “We can repeat it.”

K.Suns Wednesday, 23/10 21:00

K.Suns Thursday, 24/10 18:00

Screenplay: Yuriy Shylov Cinematography: Yuriy Shylov, Seraphim Kusakin, Ilya Ehorov Production: Gennady Kofman, Olga Beskhmelnytsina, Miroslaw Dembinski / MAGIKA FILM / DOCEDU FOUNDATION

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

Masha Novikova

Sergey Kozmin

Olga Delane

NL, 2019, 85’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

СВЯТОЕ МЕСТО

DE, 2018, 27’, ru For audiences age 16 and up

A story about the Chechen dance star and choreographer Ramzan Ahmadov, whose traditional dance group Daymohk has found refuge with the Chechnya’s current president Kadyrov. The extinction of this age-old folk dance is postponed. But the price is high: Ramzan collaborates with the authorities and sacrifices what he loves the most.

Some time ago they would come here to walk their dogs, play with their kids or jog. They are two hostile parties now. Every Sunday, half of them come to pray by a wooden cross, and another half is there to defend a spot of land, which they want to stay public.

In the Siberian countryside, marriage is traditionally seen as the greatest happiness for a woman. But the 80-year-old Dorotchka has always remained alone. At the kitchen table, she contemplates life, love, regret and loneliness – has she may be brought this fate upon herself?

The film focuses on a story of Torfyanka, a small park where contention between the believers and park defenders has turned into a severe struggle with night watches, physical fights and mutual offence.

Olga Delane was born in Siberia. At the age of 16, she moved to Germany with her family. The director explores the views of Siberian people on life, love and marriage.

Screenplay: Sergey Kozmin Cinematography: Sergey Kozmin Production: Sergey Kozmin, Artyom Vassiliev, Julia Shaginurova / METRA FILMS

Screenplay: Olga Delane Cinematography: Nikolai von Graevenitz, Olga Delane Production: Frank Müller, Linda Matern / DOPPELPLUSULTRA, BILDSCHÖN FILMPRODUCTION

DAYMOHK

SACRED GROUND RU, 2019, 64’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

Masha Novikova is exploring the topic of Chechnya war since she worked for the documentary Train to Grozny by Leo de Boer in 2000. Screenplay: Tamara Vuurmans Cinematography: Vladas Naudžius Production: Willemijn Cerutti, Frank van den Engel / CERUTTI FILM, ZEPPERS FILM

DOROTCHKA

Film where the most beautiful soloist of the folk dance ensemble has to become one of the wives of the President of Chechnya. It will not be shown in Russia.

Some want to build the temple, others want to disown the temple. The conflict in one of the parks of Moscow is shown as a symbol of previous, current and future days of Russia.

European director Olga Delan is not ready to tear herself away from her roots. The main value of the film is the story about her returning to them.

K.Suns Thursday, 24/10 21:00

K.Suns Friday, 25/10 18:00

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

Anna Eborn

TRANSNISTRA SE/DK/BE, 2019, 95’, ru/ro/uk For audiences age 16 and up

An intimate and vital account of love and friendship within a group of youngsters. They live in a complex, contradictory, and isolated world – the self-proclaimed state of Transnistria, where the national flag still holds the hammer and sickle. Tanya plans to move abroad, however future seems to offer frighteningly limited possibilities for her lovestruck friends.

Aljona Surzikova

Elena Laskari

OODATES IMET

ГДЕ МАТРЁНА?

EE, 2019, 14’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

RU, 2019, 81’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

A woman’s greatest joy is giving the gift of life to a new human being. Her deepest sorrow – the loss of a child. This very personal and touching film is not about death, it is about the beauty of life and how miraculous it is that we are alive.

Shelemishevo, a small village in the Ryazan Oblast. Two girls live together with their grandmother as they have lost their parents – the mother is dead, the father has a new family. One of the sisters is very sick, the other, Natasha, will turn 18 soon. She revisits her old diary and comments on the journaled stories with ease.

WAITING FOR A MIRACLE

WHERE IS MATRYONA?

Stuck in between borders and time, Transnistria is not an idyllic environment for young people.

Waiting for a miracle was never planned to be filmed. It was dictated by the unique unusual situation, and life was the main scriptwriter. The director hopes that her work can be therapy for people in similar situations.

Screenplay: Anna Eborn Cinematography: Virginie Surdej Production: David Herdies, Michael Krotkiewski / MOMENTO FILM

Screenplay: Aljona Surzikova Cinematography: Sergei Trofimov Production: Ülo Pikkov / SILMVIBURLANE / DIAFILM

At first glance, Natasha’s life seems fun and carefree, but is it really? And what lies ahead of her? Screenplay: Elena Laskari Cinematography: Alexandra Ivanova, Artur Sokolov, Polina Razina Production: Yevgeni Kokusev / KINOARTEL

The film tells a story about love that is born everywhere, in recognized and unrecognized states. It is about the kind of love that everyone on planet Earth should experience.

The director shoots a film about the most joyful moment of her own life, which then turns into an incredible pain.

We will never know if the heroine of the film will succeed in breaking free from the reality that is pressing on her after coming of age. But it does not lessen the drama of the film.

K.Suns Friday, 25/10 18:00

K.Suns Friday, 25/10 21:00

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

Ilya Komarov

Philippe Mac Gaw

KARABASH

RUSSIA ACCORDING TO EKATERINA

КАРАБАШ

LA RUSSIE SELON EKATERINA

RU, 2019, 29’, ru For audiences age 18 and up

FR, 2019, 142’, ru/en/fr For audiences age 18 and up

A poetic documentary about the Russian monotown of Karabash, located in the Ural mountains. Mass media often call it ‘the most polluted town on Earth’. Two centuries of copper mining have left an impact on the local ecology, transforming the woods and hills into a Mars-like landscape. The main force in this place where nothing ever changes is the copper smelting plant – the primary source of both employment and environmental pollution.

An impossible love story between the narrator from Paris and a young woman – Ekaterina Tretyakova, descendant of the Romanov dynasty. It takes place behind the Ural mountains. Navigating between poetic illustrations of passion and schizophrenic wanderings in a hostile environment, the film draws an intimate and heart-breaking portrait of Russia. The director strongly believes that the story was driven by some unknown and uncontrollable forces.

Cinematography: Ilya Komarov, Pavel Samokhvalov Production: Egor Mostovshchikov, Alexey Ferapontov, Anton Yarosh / BATENKA, YOU’RE A TRANSFORMER

Screenplay and cinematography: Philippe Mac Gaw Production: Franck Sanson / A2DOCK FILM

We see a very fashionable film made by young talented authors and plunge into a very attractive reality of the most polluted city of Russia – with an emphasis on the word “reality”.

This picture surprised me and made me doubt the fact that I am watching a documentary. This is a true classic novel worthy of the pen of Tolstoy, Kuprin and Dostoevsky combined.

K.Suns Saturday, 26/10 16:00

ARTDOCFEST/RIGA

HOME MADE ANIMATED BALTIC FILM LANDSCAPE

The films selected by HOME MADE organically integrate into contemporary world-cinema scene. They strive to reach the viewer across national and linguistic borders, yet are aware and proud of their origins. This year’s programme highlights animation, and even the honour of being the film chosen to be shown at the RIGA IFF Opening Night goes to Away (Projām), Gints Zilbalodis’ full-length debut in animation. It was premiered at the World Festival of Animated Film Animafest Zagreb in the Feature Film Competition, and won the main prize of the competition Feature Film Contrechamp at the 2019 Annecy International Animated Film Festival. Baltic animation is one of the most popular means of bringing the region’s name into the world.

Each of the three Baltic countries differs with its own special approach and method, yet they are united in terms of their unique and high quality artistic work that seamlessly interacts with the director’s masterful technique in visual storytelling. Estonia has always been the most productive of the three countries, but Latvia is quickly catching up, and, and after a longer break, Lithuania is also strengthening its game. This year’s selection brings together the latest and internationally recognised works created by animation filmmakers hailing from Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania. The full-length films have been created with a younger audience in mind, whereas the short films have been designed for mature adult viewers who are ready for material that is more challenging in terms of visuals and content.

Kaspar Jancis, Henry Nicholson, Riho Unt

CAPTAIN MORTEN AND THE SPIDER QUEEN KAPTEN MORTEN LOLLIDE LAEVAL

Edmunds Jansons

JACOB, MIMMI AND THE TALKING DOGS JĒKABS, MIMMI UN RUNĀJOŠIE SUŅI LV/PL, 2019, 70’, lv

EE/IE/BE/GB, 2018, 79’, et

One fine day a boy named Morten is magically shrunk to the size of a bug and needs to sail his toy boat through a flooded café. He notices that the ship’s insect crew looks uncannily like his mean aunt and the people she orders around. Morten has to reassess his relationships, save the crew from shipwreck and take control over his life. Sometimes it takes shrinking in order to grow up. The first ever stop-motion animated feature film produced in Ireland was developed at Tallinn-based Nukufilm – the oldest and largest stop‑motion studio in Northern Europe. Best Animated Feature award at the Schlingel festival for children and young people (Germany) and a nomination for Best Animation Film at National Film Awards UK. Screenplay: Mike Horelick, Kaspar Jancis Animation: Märt Kivi, Sam Turner Voices: Cian O’Dowd, Brendan Gleeson, Pauline McLynn, Ciarán Hinds Production: Kerdi Kuusik-Oengo, Paul Cummins, Mark Mertens, Robin Lyons, Andrus Raudsalu, Andres Mänd / NUKUFILM / TELEGAEL, GRID ANIMATION, CALON

Splendid Palace Small hall Friday, 18/10 13:00

Jacob – a boy from the city center – has to spend a week with his bossy cousin Mimmi and ex-pirate uncle Eagle in the Riga’s suburb Maskachka. The boy soon discovers a previously unknown world where the local dogs can talk! But the greedy Imants Rausis wants to turn this romantic district into an impersonal area of skyscrapers. Will the kids and talking dogs manage to team up and save the neighborhood? The plot of Jacob, Mimmi and the Talking Dogs is based on a book called The Story of Maskačka by the Latvian writer Luīze Pastore. This is the artist-director Edmunds Jansons’ first feature film. The animated short films produced by his studio Atom Art have received numerous awards at internationally acclaimed film festivals all over the world. Screenplay: Līga Gaisa Animation: Mārtiņš Dūmiņš, Kristīne Zvirbule, Līga Skirmane-Ļeščova, Edmunds Jansons Voices: Eduards Olekts, Nora Džumā, Andris Keišs, Kaspars Znotiņš Production: Sabīne Andersone / ATOM ART / LETKO

Kino Bize Friday, 18/10 14:30

HOME MADE ANIMATED

Janno Põldma, Heiki Ernits

Roze Stiebra

LOTTE JA KADUNUD LOHED

SAULE BRAUCA DEBESĪS

EE/LV, 2019, 78’, lv

LV, 2018, 75’, lv

Two scientists come to Gadgetville. They are taking part in a big folk song collecting competition. Whoever succeeds in recording the folk song of the world’s oldest animal species, the mythical fire-breathing dragon, wins the competition’s grand prize. The spirited girl dog Lotte and her little sister Roosi decide to help them. Exciting and unexpected adventures await.

When the Sun and Moon’s baby girl is kidnapped, the distraught parents beg humans to retrieve her. Thus Nabašnieks, along with the Girl and her little Brother set out on a journey to face both monsters and their own fears. They have just three days: if the Sun’s daughter is not found, she will lose her magic powers. An exciting adventure follows, during which everyone must prove their courage, wit, exceptional endurance and helpfulness.

LOTTE AND THE LOST DRAGONS

This film is the third installment of the Lotte series made in co-production between Estonia (Eesti Joonisfilm) and Latvia (Rija Films). The only animated film in the frame of Estonia’s centennial film programme has become one of the most viewed movies in the country. It was premiered at the Generation Kplus competition section of the 69th Berlin Film Festival.

BEFORE THE DAY BREAKS

A visual poem about Latvia as the daughter of the Sun, who is born in darkness, gets kidnapped but is later released to blossom like a beautiful flower in eternity. This film is a collaboration between Locomotive Productions and Roze Stiebra, the founder of Latvian hand-drawn animation, director of 62 films.

Screenplay: Janno Põldma, Heiki Ernits, Andrus Kivirähk, Andris Akmentiņš Artists: Heiki Ernits, Laima Puntule Voices: Lueta Meldere, Amēlija Barone, Ilze Ķuzule, Gundars Āboliņš Production: Kalev Tamm, Vilnis Kalnaellis / EESTI JOONISFILM, RIJA FILMS

Screenplay: Roze Stiebra Animation: Dzintars Krūmiņš, Georgs Āva, Valters Mednieks, Sabīne Moore, Artūrs Lācis Voices: Kaspars Znotiņš, Lelde Dreimane, Ance Strazda, Guna Zariņa Production: Roberts Vinovskis / LOCOMOTIVE PRODUCTIONS

Splendid Palace Small hall Friday, 18/10 16:00

Kino Bize Friday, 18/10 18:00

HOME MADE ANIMATED

HOME MADE

ANIMATED SHORTS A screening of animated shorts created by authors from the Baltics welcomes adults looking for an extraordinary art experience capable of surprise.

SATURDAY, 19/10 20:30 K.Suns

For audiences age 16 and up

Kārlis Vītols

Once upon a time, Rowan, the earl of heaven, woke up old. From that moment on, all his future plans were in the form of the past. A film about a man’s inability to cope with the aging of his body.

THE END BEIGAS LV, 2019, 10’

Screenplay: Kārlis Vītols Animation: Kārlis Vītols Production: Kārlis Vītols, Sniedze Sofija Kāle / STUDIJA KOKLES

Vladimirs Leščovs

While working near a psychiatric clinic, an electrician is struck by an accident. He ends up in this hospital, where he gets accustomed to its everyday routine. In order to return to his previous life, he goes through a process of world creation.

ELECTRICIAN’S DAY ELEKTRIĶA DIENA LV, 2018, 9’

Priit Tender

ORPHEUS EE, 2019, 13’

Screenplay and animation: Vladimirs Leščovs Production: Vladimirs Leščovs / LUNOHOD Orpheus can enchant everyone with his music, including animals and plants. His song can even rescue his beloved Euredice from the underworld. But there is one condition – until Orpheus reaches the land of the living, he should not look back. Screenplay: Priit Tender Animation: Ülle Metsur, Tarmo Vaarmets, Maiken Silla, Dag-Ole Solaas, Priit Tender Production: Kalev Tamm / EESTI JOONISFILM

HOME MADE ANIMATED

Sergei Kibus

TEOFRASTUS EE, 2018, 16’, et

A stray cat Teofrastus finds loving owners. Accidentally, he jumps down their balcony and gets lost among the very same-looking houses. Will he find his territory again? Or will the cold streets and indifferent looks from the strangers be his lot? Screenplay: Sergei Kibus Cinematography: Ragnar Neljandi Production: Kerdi Oengo, Andres Mänd / NUKUFILM

Skirmanta Jakaitė

THE JUGGLER LT/FR, 2018, 11’, en/fr

We live in the same house, but in different apartments, jobs, situations, beliefs, visions. We fool ourselves that the world is one and that it exists. A film about the other side of life – the scary one, we never fully grasp, but we know is there. Screenplay and animation: Skirmanta Jakaitė Production: Agnė Adomėnė, Delphine Schmit / ART SHOT, TRIPODE PRODUCTIONS / PERSPECTIVE FILMS

Liāna Mihailova

VERTIGO LV, 2018, 5’

While having an exciting summer swim and diving one after another in the water at the foot of a cliff, the main character is unexpectedly separated from the rest of his group of friends by an unsurpassable edge of the cliff and amplified experience. Screenplay and cinematography: Liāna Mihailova Production: LATVIJAS MĀKSLAS AKADĒMIJA

Anu-Laura Tuttelberg

WINTER IN THE RAINFOREST TALV VIHMAMETSAS EE/LT/MX, 2019, 9’

HOME MADE ANIMATED

The tropical rainforests of Mexico and Peru. A unique poetic reality. The eternal dance of life and death as experienced by magical creatures of porcelain – animals, birds, insects and flowers. They are fragile and resilient at the same time. Screenplay: Anu-Laura Tuttelberg Cinematography: Rodrigo Pérez Alcocer, Anu-Laura Tuttelberg Production: Andres Mänd, Daniel Irabien Peniche, Agnė Adomėnė / NUKUFILM, ESTUDIO CARABÁS, ART SHOT / MOON BIRDS STUDIOS

NEW CANADIAN CINEMA GLANCE OVER THE OCEAN

RIGA IFF is searching out new film horizons across the ocean, this time bringing special attention to Quebec’s filmmakers. In relation to us, they are so far away, yet their work still seems familiar. Their primary concern is finding one’s directorial voice instead of a ticket to Hollywood. As a social commentary, Denis Côté’s Ghost Town Anthology creates a model of coexistence between departed souls and the living that is very fitting for this time of year, while in his film Wilcox, the eponymous traveller invites us along on his journey away from urban commotion to a place where even the world sounds different.

Xavier Dolan’s name is well-known to every savvy film-festival goer; in his first English-language film, Susan Sarandon, Natalie Portman, Kit Harington and Kathy Bates participate in the identity and toxic relationship games observed in the director’s previous films. And much like in Ghost Town Anthology, in Geneviève DuludeDe Celles’ film the director touches upon the subject of a closed community as anachronism. Her film A Colony has been composed in emotional and visual halftones, creating a painterly, intimate, fascinating and true coming of age story.

Geneviève Dulude-De Celles

A COLONY UNE COLONIE

CA, 2019, 102’, fr For audiences age 12 and up

Mylia, a timid 12-year-old child, is about to leave her native countryside to begin high school. Lost in this new hostile environment, she copes as well as she can, sometimes awkwardly, dealing with the absurdities and victories of adolescence. Along the way she encounters Jimmy, a young indigenous outsider from the neighbouring reserve, who will help her stand her ground and embrace who she really is. The director believes that the shock of slipping into teenage years can turn out to be more brutal and scarring than the transition to adulthood. This is a specific time in life when one develops their relationship with other people. Major power struggles take place within the walls of a high school.

Denis Côté

GHOST TOWN ANTHOLOGY

WILCOX

RÉPERTOIRE DES VILLES DISPARUES

CA, 2019, 66’ For audiences age 16 and up

CA, 2019, 97’, fr For audiences age 16 and up

In Irénée-les-Neiges, an isolated town with a population of 215, Simon Dubé dies in a car accident. The stunned townspeople are reluctant to discuss the circumstances of the tragedy. From that point on, for the Dubé family as well as for Mayor Smallwood and a handful of others, time seems to lose all meaning, and the days stretch on without end. Something descends slowly upon the area. In this period of mourning and in this fog, strangers start to appear. Who are they? What is happening?

Wilcox is of those whom exist outside the norm. Traversing deserted roads and nameless fields, he sets off to create his own mythology. Deserter, delinquent, or survivalist, the adventurer quietly roams in search of something; in search of what could more simply be described as freedom. He is free. We might believe that he’s quasi heroic in the beautiful way he turns his back on civilization; but it’s also possible that he is simply a person without direction, and who lacks resources to orient himself.

Spiked with tragic humour and straddling the line between social realism and the supernatural, this film is based on Laurence Olivier’s novel of the same title. A story about the Other and the fear it inspires.

The director is interested in exploring themes of solitude, intimate fears, and alienation through documentary and fiction filmmaking that confronts and questions the language of cinema.

Screenplay: Denis Côté Cinematography: François Messier-Rheault Cast: Robert Naylor, Josée Deschênes, Jean-Michel Anctil, Larissa Corriveau Production: Ziad Touma / COUZIN FILMS

Screenplay: Denis Côté Cinematography: François Messier-Rheault Cast: Guillaume Tremblay Production: Denis Côté, Annie St. Pierre / INSPIRATRICE & COMMANDANT, GREENGROUND PRODUCTIONS

The film follows the tradition of the North American independent cinema. Common teenager dilemmas and search for identity, however without trivialisation, as if experiencing the world for the first time.

Denis Cote is one of the most prominent and original representatives of Quebec cinema – he is a virtuoso of speaking about social problems in a purely artistic language.

The film made in a record time on a staggeringly ascetic budget is like a deep inhale when you can become dizzy from all the fresh air (or cinema that declines from the conventional narration).

Splendid Palace Small hall Monday, 21/10 16:00

Splendid Palace Small hall Wednesday, 23/10 18:00

K.Suns Thursday, 24/10 16:00

Screenplay: Geneviève Dulude-De Celles Cinematography: Léna Mill-Reuillard, Etienne Roussy Cast: Émilie Bierre, Irlande Côté, Jacob Whiteduck-Lavoie, Cassandra Gosselin-Pelletier Production: Fanny Drew, Sarah Mannering / COLONELLE FILMS

NEW CANADIAN CINEMA

Xavier Dolan

THE DEATH AND LIFE OF JOHN F. DONOVAN RÉPERTOIRE DES VILLES DISPARUES CA/GB, 2018, 123’, en For audiences age 16 and up

TICKETS:

A decade after the death of closeted Hollywood superstar John F. Donovan, a young actor Rupert Turner reminisces the written correspondence he shared with him, as well as the impact those letters had on both their lives. Donovan’s struggles living in the public eye, tenderness and generosity inspired that little boy who was desperate to connect with the man he idolized. Xavier Dolan’s seventh feature and first in English is a summation of key themes the Montreal writer and director often explores: the mother-son relationship, homosexuality, alienation, shame, prejudices and childhood, blended in a brand-new captivating framework. The film features a cast of multi-award winning Hollywood actors.

RIGAIFF.LV AND BOX OFFICES OF BIĻEŠU SERVISS

Screenplay: Xavier Dolan, Jacob Tierney Cinematography: André Turpin Cast: Kit Harington, Natalie Portman, Susan Sarandon, Jacob Tremblay Production: Xavier Dolan, Nancy Grant, Joe Iacono, Lyse Lafontaine, Michel Merkt / LYLA FILMS, SONS OF MANUAL, WARP FILMS

The English-language debut of the fast-rising film festival star who always painfully analyses himself and his protagonists. A chance to find out if the language of the film has a decisive role in creating its atmosphere. Splendid Palace Large hall Thursday, 24/10 19:00

BERLINALE 2019 RIGA CURRENT TRENDS IN GERMAN FILM

Films that were recently screened at the Berlin International Film Festival and exhibit the strength and diversity of the contemporary German cinema. As Germany is one of the major film producers in Europe, it strongly influences the trend developments in film art â&#x20AC;&#x201C; new talents, new stars, skillfully crafted films for wide audiences,

stunningly vigorous documentaries, and surprises provided by the authors. The selection of the most remarkable productions is not just a unique opportunity to see these films on big screens in Riga, it can be regarded as a present-day reflection of the German society and culture life.

OPENING

Nora Fingscheidt

SYSTEM CRASHER SYSTEMSPRENGER DE, 2019, 118’, de For audiences age 12 and up

“We’re so happy you were born,” goes the birthday song for Benni. Unfortunately that’s not entirely true. Even her beloved mother fears her unpredictable and violent outbursts of aggression and doesn’t want to subject both younger children to them. Social services and doctors are powerless – every caretaker, every welfare institution hurry to get rid of system crashers. The girl, imprisoned in her own mind and body, suffers as much as those around her and longs for a home that’s no longer to be found. Until a glimmer of hope appears… The intense feature film debut of director Nora Fingscheidt won the Silver Bear Alfred Bauer Prize at the Berlin International Film Festival for opening new perspectives.

Screenplay: Nora Fingscheidt Cinematography: Yunus Roy Imer Cast: Helena Zengel, Albrecht Schuch, Gabriela Maria Schmeide, Lisa Hagmeister Production: Peter Hartwig, Jakob D. Weydemann, Jonas Weydemann / KINEO FILMPRODUKTION, WEYDEMANN BROS / OMA INGE FILM, ZDF DAS KLEINE FERNSEHSPIEL A proof that one can make films also on uncomfortable subjects and have them travelling around international film festivals. This film is like bitter medicine that clears the mind and opens the heart. Splendid Palace Large hall Wednesday, 23/10 19:00

BERLINALE 2019 RIGA

Fatih Akın

Andreas Dresen

THE GOLDEN GLOVE

GUNDERMANN DE, 2018, 128’, de For audiences age 18 and up

DER GOLDENE HANDSCHUH

HI, A.I. – LOVE STORIES FROM THE FUTURE HI, A.I. – LIEBESGESCHICHTEN AUS DER ZUKUNFT DE, 2019, 87’, en/ja/de/it For audiences age 16 and up

DE/FR, 2019, 110’, de/el For audiences age 18 and up

Hamburg-St.Pauli in the 1970s. A neighborhood of night-time entertainment and its nocturnal figures: habitual drinkers and prostitutes, gambling addicts and other lonely souls. At first glance, Fritz Honka is a pitiful loser. The man with the broken face carouses through his nights in the bar Golden Glove, chasing after lonely women. None of the regulars suspect that the apparently harmless fellow is actually a monster. Fatih Akin’s horror film is based on a true story and the novel of the same name by Heinz Strunk. It tells the story of Fritz Honka, a man who murdered numerous women, and his favorite bar, where schmaltzy German songs move the boozy bar hounds to tears and drinking is a reflex against pain and longing. Screenplay: Fatih Akın Cinematography: Rainer Klausmann Cast: Jonas Dassler, Margarethe Tiesel, Katja Studt, Martina Eitner-Acheampong Production: Nurhan Şekerci-Porst, Fatih Akın, Herman Weigel / BOMBERO INTERNATIONAL / WARNER BROS. ENTERTAINMENT, PATHÉ FILMS

To sink into the enchantment of disgust, to see the comical in horror. The film has split audiences in half – the haters and the admirers. Splendid Palace Large hall Thursday, 24/10 21:30

Isabella Willinger

He wants to be a good worker, a great husband, a caring father, an artist, a clown, a politician – he is everything at the same time. Gerhard Gundermann is hero and anti-hero, a constant contradiction, a glittering figure typical of the former East-Germany – and again not. People like him are everywhere. And they offend everywhere. This is both a music film and a love story; a drama about guilt and entanglement. The director Andreas Dresen looks at the life of singer/songwriter Gerhard Gundermann, who rose to prominence in the waning years of the German Democratic Republic. In Germany, the film was a box-office hit while critics hailed it as an outstandingly honest portrait of living in an oppressive society. Screenplay: Laila Stieler Cinematography: Andreas Höfer Cast: Alexander Scheer, Anna Unterberger, Axel Prahl, Thorsten Merten Production: Claudia Steffen / PANDORA FILMPRODUKTION / KINEO FILMPRODUKTION, RUNDFUNK BERLIN-BRANDENBURG - RBB, ARTE DEUTSCHLAND

Chuck is picking up his new robot partner Harmony fresh from the factory and both are planning a trip through California. On the other side of the world, in Tokyo, the cute robot Pepper is moving in with Grandma Sakurai, arranged by her son, to keep her company. While Chuck and Sakurai are searching for love or killing time, pressing questions arise: How will we live together with AI? What will we win, what will we lose? Insightful and laconic melding of sci-fi and documentary explores the ethically complex universe of artificial intelligence. Moving between a lonely American scientist and an estranged Japanese family, this often funny futuristic drama portrays people seeking human connection with the robots that have entered their lives. Screenplay: Isabella Willinger Cinematography: Julian Krubasik Production: Stefan Kloos / KLOOS & CO. MEDIEN / ZDF - DAS KLEINE FERNSEHSPIEL

The subject of informants is topical also in German cinema – the prominent director unravels it with passion and style.

Future is made today but are we ready for it? How diverse and how lasting can be relationships between people and their mechanical friends and assistants with artificial intelligence?

Splendid Palace Large hall Friday, 25/10 16:30 K.Suns Sunday, 27/10 20:00

Splendid Palace Small hall Saturday, 26/10 14:00 K.Suns Sunday, 27/10 16:00

BERLINALE 2019 RIGA

Angela Schanelec

I WAS AT HOME, BUT ICH WAR ZUHAUSE, ABER

Pia Hellenthal

SEARCHING EVA DE, 2019, 85’, de/en/it For audiences age 16 and up

DE/RS, 2019, 105’, de For audiences age 16 and up

After having disappeared for a week, Astrid’s 13-year-old son Phillip returns home one day without saying a word. Now she finds herself confronted with questions that provide a whole new perspective on her middle-class existence and her career in Berlin’s cultural sector. It becomes more and more difficult for this single mother to accept that her son is leading his own life. Soon she gets wiped out by worry, guilt and her feelings of failure. The family has to form itself anew. This film is a philosophical essay on existence and art that fails to bore viewers, despite its static elements, thanks to a certain intelligence that leaves room for humour and which slowly hacks away at the film’s coldness from start to finish. Screenplay: Angela Schanelec Cinematography: Ivan Marković Cast: Maren Eggert, Jakob Lassalle, Clara Möller, Franz Rogowski Production: Angela Schanelec / NACHMITTAGFILM / DART FILM

Eva, 25, drifter, Berliner, poet, lesbian, housewife, addict, feminist and model, declared privacy an outdated concept at the age of 14. This is a tale of a young woman growing up in the age of the internet, turning the search for oneself into a public spectacle, challenging you on what a woman should be. For Eva, identity is like fashion – she can change it as she pleases. The film dives into Eva’s life over the course of three years, following her like flipping through her Instagram profile. In her blog – where she showcases the most private parts of her life – reality and fiction seem to be inseparable. The film floats between artificial staging and documentary observation, combining her online publishings with everyday scenes. Screenplay: Pia Hellenthal, Giorgia Malatrasi Cinematography: Janis Mazuch Cast: Eva Collé Production: Erik Winker, Martin Roelly / CORSO FILM / ZDF - DAS KLEINE FERNSEHSPIEL

The director is a true follower of the Berlin film school – the distant observation and detached texts allow the audience to find their own angle from which to ‘read’ the film.

Surprising in its candour, Eva is a perfect mirror of the Instagram society. It is alarming to look into it but impossible to turn away.

K.Suns Saturday, 26/10 20:30

Splendid Palace Small hall Sunday, 27/10 18:00

BERLINALE 2019 RIGA

ARCHITECT’S CUT FOR THOSE WHO LOVE ARCHITECTURE

Cinema and the art of architecture create a frame of mind that we aspire to. Both fields have a strong influence on one’s way of thinking and emotional state; at the same time, they both also form and reflect our perception of the world. Perhaps, this is why

an interest in films about architecture and architects is currently burgeoning among viewers, directors, producers and academia. In any case, RIGA IFF is not about to let this interesting development pass by. Welcome to ARCHITECT’S CUT!

CURATOR’S GREETING

Boris Missirkov, Georgi Bogdanov

Boris Benjamin Bertram

THE HUMAN SHELTER

PALACE FOR THE PEOPLE

DK, 2018, 58’, en For audiences age 12 and up

BG/DE/RO, 2018, 76’, bg/en/ro/ru/sr For audiences age 12 and up

Ieva Zībārte RIGA IFF guest curator, ARCHITECT’S CUT Architect and journalist, Head of Exhibitions at the National Library of Latvia Architecture cannot always be fully described and captured with photography, which is why cinema is becoming an increasingly popular tool for discovering architecture and the drama behind the architect. Indeed the architect – either as hero or anti-hero – is also of great interest to the viewer. ARCHITECT’S CUT is the name of the architectural film programme being presented by RIGA IFF, and its screenings will take place in one of the most notable new buildings in Riga – the National Library of Latvia, designed by Gunārs Birkerts.

The story of socialist-era projects in former socialist bloc countries that, much as historical castles and cathedrals, continue to be of interest to people in terms of their size, funding and scale. Moscow, Belgrade, Berlin, Sofia and Bucharest – five palaces, five different fates, and many more life stories of the people involved. Which of these buildings is still amazing people today? Which one is still being used by the grandchildren of its first inhabitants? Which one has disappeared, and which one have most people never even heard of?

Much like the topics discussed among architecture professionals, the film programme covers subjects such as contemporary architecture, urban planning, and the legacy of XX century modernism. Viewers will be introduced to the unconventional yet innovative modelling methods of the future, as well as be able to take a look into people’s homes and learn about socialist architecture in Europe and the fate of the buildings, their interiors, and the people who lived or still live in them.

The People’s Palace documents the endangered legacy of socialist-era architecture in Europe (or, in some cases, the remnants of what little is left). At the same time, the film cleverly communicates our own attitude towards this architecture – including criticism, admiration, and a longing for what is now lost – complemented with masterfully chosen background music.

Screenplay: Boris Missirkov, Georgi Bogdanov Cinematography: Boris Missirkov, Georgi Bogdanov Production: Martichka Bozhilova / AGITPROP / FILMTANK, ICON PRODUCTION

Featuring striking views from the white horizon of the Arctic Circle to the cramped confines of a microflat in Tokyo, the film explores the concept of home on four continents in a variety of conditions and life situations. The stories are linked by the dignity with which a widely differing assortment of people compose their homes – a safe island and refuge in a changing world. We see how refugees in a camp arrange their living quarters in a tent, and how a museum visitor looks at the same tent. The film radiates empathy and encourages the viewer to be a little happier. It is a story of beauty, loneliness, and hope. For architects and urban planners, the film also gives us a glimpse of the untold and diverse typology of contemporary housing in which short-term, quick-build housing is growing in demand. Screenplay: Boris Benjamin Bertram Cinematography: Henrik Ipsen, Adam Philp Production: Boris Benjamin Bertram, Malene Blenkov, Nikolaj Vibe Michelsen / CREATIVE ALLIANCE, GOOD COMPANY PICTURES

Architecture and interior behind the Iron Curtain.

A human and his house.

National Library of Latvia Wednesday, 23/10 19:00

National Library of Latvia Thursday, 24/10 19:00

ARCHITECT’S CUT

OPENING

Anders Eklund

GAMING THE REAL WORLD SE, 2016, 73’, en/sv For audiences age 12 and up

A look at city planning and engaging citizens in improving their living situations through computer games. The film follows planning projects around the world being spearheaded by: Mojang, the creators of the popular game Minecraft; Paradox Interactive, the publisher of Cities: Skylines; and Jose Sanchez, creator of the game Block’hood. The projects consist of both social initiatives where gamers work with various citizen groups and municipal projects in which games are used to help solve intricate problems. This topic continues the discussion of non-traditional urban planning tools that was initiated in the first RIGA IFF architecture film programme. Much like urban activists who are ready to take to the streets to ensure that city improvements are implemented, computer gaming

ARCHITECT’S CUT

enthusiasts are a community that knows how to come together to find a solution. Employing tools commonly used in architecture and urban planning, games are a way to involve people of all ages and skills in planning real-life environments. Screenplay: Anders Eklund, Rodney Guest Cinematography: Matthew Gormly, Mike Parry Producers: Mats Billberg Johansson, Anders Eklund / LUCKYDAY

For urban environmentalists. National Library of Latvia Sunday, 20/10 19:00

SHORT RIGA SHORT FILMS, EXPERIMENTAL CINEMA AND MUSIC VIDEOS

Short film is the clearest and most truthful mirror of our times in cinema. To help you navigate through the wide range of short films and Baltic music videos, we’ve created a selection of the best and most daring in this field.

The International Competition titles will be presented in 7 different screenings, while the Baltic Music Video competition titles – in one unforgettable movie party. Look for more! The other marvellous selections – FESTIVAL DARLINGS and LATVIAN SHORTS.

SHORT RIGA

OPENING TUESDAY, 22/10 18:30 Splendid Palace Large hall

For audiences age 12 and up

Anna Zača, Nils Skapāns

ALL MY FRIENDS ARE DEAD VISI MANI DRAUGI MIRUŠI

Lizete Upīte

Žanete Skarule

RIGA’S LILAC

FABLE

RĪGAS CERIŅI

LV/US, 2019, 3’11’’, en

FR/LV, 2019, 14’, lv

LV, 2019, 6’

“Roses are red, violets are blue, I had my friends, but now they’re dead.” Anna Zaķis had experienced the upswing of social networks. Once active cultural life has slowed down but the desire for real conversations is still there. She will fight to the end... for a chance to talk with someone. The film is dedicated to the friends of the screenwriter Anna Zača and seniors in her surroundings. Screenplay: Anna Zača Animation: Nils Skapāns Production: Uldis Cekulis / VFS

Everyone has their own emotional overwhelm regarding a bad smell. Lizete, an amateur interviewer, is eager to record the moments when it is revealed. Dealing with the topic of bad odour’s influences on society, this is an animated short film for adults in the inquiring style of a documentary. The director continues to work on tragi-comic stories about our natural awkwardness while finding ourselves. Screenplay: Lizete Upīte Animation: Louise Cailliez, Lizete Upīte Production: Richard Van den Boom / PAPY 3D PRODUCTIONS Co-production: Sabīne Andersone / ATOM ART

A young woman in an undefined time and space playing with artifacts of humanity. The ever-changing scale of the objects challenges the perception of a viewer, pointing out the relativity of everything around us. Can one really only gain by letting go? This story about a fragile and inquisitive world creator is based on a poem by Jackson Hobert. The protagonist is played by actress Emma Bobrova Lourié. Screenplay: Žanete Skarule Production: Zane Puriņa / TARHUN SISTERS Co-production: MOTIONPOEMS

SHORT RIGA

NATIONAL PREMIERES OF LATVIAN SHORT FILMS Linda Stūre

Kerija Arne

NAKTS MAIŅA

DRAMATISKAS BEIGAS

LV, 2019, 3’

NIGHT SHIFT

DRAMATIC ENDING

Tīna Zariņa

EASTERN-EUROPEAN SPIDERWOMAN AUSTRUMEIROPAS ZIRNEKĻSIEVIETE LV, 2019, 24’, lv

The night watchman’s usual ritual – Tetris game – is suddenly interrupted by a technical flaw. One of the surveillance cameras breaks down, and the game begins to dictate its own rules.

The participants of a ritual are performing a rhythmic energy discharge. Suddenly, a vibration sound comes from outside. Spectators are hurrying back to their places. A dramatic ending can begin.

While losing his connection with the familiar routine and moving away from the real world, the protagonist encounters unlooked-for sensations and events. The animations are drawn and painted with coloured markers.

Exploration of the psychological boundaries between the observer and the object – an animation cycle. The author aims to create the meeting point of both elements in conditions of high emotional stress.

Production: ART ACADEMY OF LATVIA

SHORT RIGA

Gertrude is a forty-year-old woman. She is lonely and lives in a one-room apartment. She works at a public lavatory. One night, a spider bites her. Gertrude gains superpowers: super strength and ability to weave a web, yet she does not understand how to deal with these newfound abilities. The relationship between the spider and Gertrude reminds of destructive relationship between a man and a woman. Screenplay: Tīna Zariņa Cinematography: Kalvis Kulačkovskis Cast: Ieva Puķe, Jānis Kronis Production: Kristiāna Štāla / LATVIJAS KULTŪRAS AKADĒMIJA

SHORT RIGA

INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION CURATOR’S GREETING

Anna Zača Curator, SHORT RIGA International Competition How will the short film change your cinematic experience? How should one watch short films? Is the short film the format for you? Every year, it is these two- to thirty-minute-long cinematic works made in a variety of techniques that restart my understanding of what cinema can be. The experience of watching a short film is quite different from that of a full-length film, not only because of its length but also due to the differing content and visual form of the short film. Unlike a full-length film, a short film can be completely independent and embody the director’s unfettered flights of fancy – frequently they will not shy away from revealing their inner self (in all of its glory) nor the strangest fruits of their imagination. A short film speaks to the viewer without generalisations, and can be an extremely saturated experience if the viewer is able to accept it without trying to analyse and justify its message (or the absence of one). The short film is a study or training in tolerance of the world’s idiosyncrasies that has been dropped into the viewer’s lap. Which is why, for the most part, curators of short films are very open-minded; how could they not be – living in the world of short films means respecting and loving the countless personalities and people who make them. Distinctly different from watching a full-length film, watching a short film is mostly an active process in which the viewer either looks for signposts, floats away on a cloud of visual pleasure, or tries to digest a narrative structure that is, for them, without precedent. After watching a screening of good short films, the viewer is overcome with a sense of slight confusion that, once settled, leaves a sweet aftertaste. As someone who has watched at least 20,000 short films over my career, I must admit that I’ve become addicted to this aftertaste – and I hope the same happens to you!

The SHORT RIGA International Competition selection committee considers the short film to be the final front line of cinematic art in the current clash between the entertainment industry and artistic creativity as they both compete for attention. In a world where commercial cinema is calibrated to conform with the wishes of what has been calculated to be the average viewer, it is important to reserve a place and time for the contemporary avant-garde that is markedly different and oversteps conventional societal norms. For this purpose, nothing fits the bill better than auteur cinema. We have selected thirty-one short films for you. This is a very special year for us, because from now on, one of the films featured in the competition will qualify for the European Film Awards in the category Best Short Film.

SHORT RIGA INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION JURY

Miguel Dias Short film producer and programmer, Portugal

Edmunds Jansons Film director and artist, Latvia

Emilia Mazik Festival Director, Poland

Director of the company Curtas Metragens CRL, active in programming, distribution and production of short films. A programmer of Curtas Vila do Conde – International Film Festival, and director of Agência – Portuguese Short Film Agency, for the promotion and international sales and distribution of Portuguese short films.

He works as an animation film director and graphic designer at his studio Atom Art. His animation films have been screened all over the world and have won prizes at Animafest Zagreb, interfilm, Hiroshima, KROK, Sommets du cinéma d’animation, SICAF (Seoul), CICFF (Chicago), LIAF (London), etc. He is also a recognized children’s book illustrator.

Project coordinator at Ad Arte Foundation of Cultural Education in Poznan. She has been involved in multiple interdisciplinary projects, including educational activities, programming and short film distribution. In 2019, she has become director of the Short Waves Festival, the most concise short film festival in Poland.

Rich Warren Festival Director, United Kingdom

Alise Zariņa Film director and film critic, Latvia

Festival Director for Encounters, the UK’s leading short film, animation and VR celebration. The festival prioritises the showcasing, supporting and progression of new and emerging talent in the moving image. A member of the programming team at the Australian and international short film festival Flickerfest.

Publicist, film critic and outspoken feminist. She has been working on her short film projects and in the advertising industry. She has studied advertising in Paris and filmmaking in Baltic Film and Media school. Presently doing her MA in film directing at the Latvian Academy of Culture. Her feature debut is Blakus (2019).

SHORT RIGA

PRIVATE

WEDNESDAY, 23/10 18:30 SUNDAY, 27/10 16:00 Kino Bize

For audiences age 16 and up

Lāsma Bērtule

28 YEARS LATER 28 GADUS VĒLĀK

A zombie movie about the fate of several musical beings in the time of prolonged apocalypse. After watching this movie, you will probably acquire an ability to go through the eye of the needle.

LV, 2019, 10’, lv

Screenplay and production: Lāsma Bērtule / LKA NFS

Kārlis Vītols

Once upon a time, Rowan, the earl of heaven, woke up old. From that moment on, all his future plans were in the form of the past. A film about a man’s inability to cope with the aging of his body.

THE END BEIGAS LV, 2019, 10’

Screenplay: Kārlis Vītols Production: Kārlis Vītols, Sniedze Sofija Kāle / STUDIJA KOKLES

Duncan Cowles, Ross Hogg

Contrasting artistic visions, misplaced confidence and blatant ignorance collide on the backdrop of an increasingly fragile and divided world. Two stubborn Scottish filmmakers struggle to make a short film together in the Austrian Alps.

JUST AGREE THEN DE/GB/AT, 2019, 9’, en

Screenplay: Duncan Cowles, Ross Hogg Production: Duncan Cowles / RELATIVE FILMS LTD

Nora Särak

A POEM ABOUT LOVE POEEM ARMASTUSEST EE, 2019, 20’, et

Lizete Upīte

RIGA’S LILAC RĪGAS CERIŅI FR/LV, 2019, 15’, lv

It was my first time leaving Estonia with no thoughts of return. It was the first time I changed my life completely for something as unexpected as love. It was my first time truly understanding the pathetic feeling of yearning. Screenplay: Nora Särak Production: Ülo Pikkov / SILMVIBURLANE

A tragicomic story about the social impact of a bad smell. In the style of a documentary film, the story is based on real interviews with people who reveal how overwhelmed they can be by the strong smell of another person. Screenplay: Lizete Upīte Production: Richard Van den Boom, Sabīne Andersone / PAPY 3D PRODUCTIONS / ATOM ART

SHORT RIGA

THINGS DO NOT CHANGE Efthimis Kosemund Sanidis

ALL THE FIRES THE FIRE GR, 2019, 25’, el

Maria Elorza

STILL FIREFLIES ANCORA LUCCIOLE ES, 2018, 14’, es/it

Matheus Parizi

FIRST ACT PRIMERO ATO BR, 2019, 20’, pt

Antonio Llamas

BALLAD FOR THE ROBBERY OF THE SACRAMENT

ROMANCE DEL ROBO DEL SACRAMENTO

WEDNESDAY, 23/10 20:30 FRIDAY, 25/10 16:30 Kino Bize

For audiences age 16 and up Men set birds free on the mountains. Two grieving, estranged brothers try their marksmanship together with their sons. It’ s the hunting season. Can a bird’ s heart stop in the sky with no bullets coming through its body? Screenplay: Efthimis Kosemund Sanidis, Elizampetta Ilia Georgiadou Production: Efthimis Kosemund Sanidis, Michalis Alexakis / FOSS PRODUCTIONS In 1972, in one of his best-known articles, Pier Paolo Pasolini spoke of the disappearance of fireflies. A few months later, he was murdered. Since then the fireflies have continued to disappear. But there are still people who remember them. Screenplay: Maria Elorza Production: Marian Fernandez Pascal / TXINTXUA FILMS “Stop the world, I want to get off!” Two theatre students try to convince their colleagues to leave their classroom and join them in the protests against the dismantling of culture policies that take over Brazil. Screenplay: Matheus Parizi, Juliana Lobo Production: Paula Pripas, Matheus Parizi / FILMES DE ABRIL An inevitable march, an exodus or an exile. A town that is abandoned and remembered. On the way, perhaps, there is an end. Screenplay: Kuba Tarasicwicz Production: J.M. Martínez Ávila / ECAM

ES, 2019, 8’, es

Anu-Laura Tuttelberg

WINTER IN THE RAINFOREST TALV VIHMAMETSAS EE/LT/Mexico, 2019, 9’

SHORT RIGA

The tropical rainforests of Mexico and Peru. A unique poetic reality. The eternal dance of life and death as experienced by magical creatures of porcelain – animals, birds, insects and flowers – fragile and resilient at the same time. Screenplay: Anu-Laura Tuttelberg Production: Andres Mänd, Daniel Irabien Peniche, Agnė Adomėnė / NUKUFILM, ESTUDIO CARABÁS, ART SHOT / MOON BIRDS STUDIOS 77

FAMILY

THURSDAY, 24/10 18:30 SUNDAY, 27/10 14:00 Kino Bize

For audiences age 16 and up

Wilbirg Brainin-Donnenberg

LETTER TO A DAUGHTER BRIEF AN EINE TOCHTER AT, 2019, 8’, de

A greeting from one paradise to another. Rather than undisturbed joy about the ocean, thoughts circle around the daughter and develop into reflections about being a woman. A bold essay that inextricably binds the personal and the political. Screenplay and production: Wilbirg Brainin-Donnenberg

Vytautas Katkus

Patriarchal masculinity seems to catch its last breath in the sun. A story about a cold relationship between a father and his son. Their bond, plagued by indifference, disintegrates completely.

KOLEKTYVINIAI SODAI

Screenplay: Vytautas Katkus Production: Viktorija Seniut / VIKTORIA FILMS

COMMUNITY GARDENS LT, 2019, 15’, lt

Margarida Lucas

HOLY FAMILY SAGRADA FAMÍLIA PT, 2019, 21’, pt

Regina Pessoa

UNCLE THOMAS, ACCOUNTING FOR THE DAYS

A dark comedy about a family of five brothers, a single and unemployed mother, and a grandmother. They live tight in a small apartment in Benfica. Everything gets complicated on the day when the emblematic Sardoal FC mascot escapes. Screenplay: Margarida Lucas Production: João Matos / TERRATREME FILMES A tribute to the director’s uncle Thomas, a humble man with a simple and anonymous life. This is her acknowledgment how one does not have to be somebody to become exceptional in other’s eyes.

Screenplay: Regina Pessoa Production: Abi Feijó, Julie Roy, TIO TOMÁS, A CONTABILIDADE DOS DIAS Reginald de Guillebon / CICLOPE FILMES PT/FR/CA, 2019, 13’, en / ONF/NFB, LES ARMATEURS

SHORT RIGA

A HEALTHY DOSE OF IRONY Nina Yuen

EVELYN US, 2019, 6’, en

Elli Vuorinen

STILL LIVES KIIREHESSÄ LIIKKUMATOIN FI, 2019, 6’, ja/ar/fr/de/en/fi

Robin Klengel, Leonhard Müllner

OPERATION JANE WALK AT, 2018, 16’, en

Priit Tender

ORPHEUS EE, 2019, 13’

THURSDAY, 24/10 13:00 THURSDAY, 24/10 20:30 Kino Bize

For audiences age 16 and up A flow of associations. The artist performs a gender reversal on a masculine tradition to explore the radical potential of fragility, and round shapes with soft edges. Screenplay and production: Nina Yuen

The concept of busy stillness is explored from various standpoints as museum artefacts from all around the world reflect on the mundane challenges of modern life. Screenplay: Elli Vuorinen Production: Terhi Väänänen / PYJAMA FILMS

Absurdism and black humor. A multiplayer game’s digital war zone is set in a post-apocalyptic New York, however the militaristic environment is being re-used for a pacifistic city tour to discuss the history of architecture and urbanism. Screenplay: Robin Klengel, Leonhard Müllner Production: Leonhard Müllner Orpheus can enchant everyone with his music, including animals and plants. His song can even rescue his beloved Euredice from the underworld. But there is one condition – until Orpheus reaches the land of the living, he should not look back. Screenplay: Priit Tender Production: Kalev Tamm / STUDIO JOONISFILM

Tinja Ruusuvuori

UNTITLED – BURNED RUBBER ON ASPHALT, 2018 FI, 2019, 20’, no/fi/en

SHORT RIGA

In a remote Norwegian village the weaving roads have become the subject of controversy. Assuming the role of a detective, the documentary investigates the bewildering phenomena of car skid marks and their mysterious appearance. Screenplay: Tinja Ruusuvuori Production: Marja Pihlaja / AALTO UNIVERSITY

BELIEVE!

FRIDAY, 25/10 11:00 FRIDAY, 25/10 18:30 Kino Bize

For audiences age 16 and up

Eva Rini May Cragg

BEN AND MIMI – MIMI AND BEN US/DE, 2019, 15’, en

Eva Pauné, Elena Pauné, Marina Pauné

BAD FAITH LA MALA FE

Stuck in a claustrophobic marriage, a woman misses a connection to the outside world and to nature in all its harshness. She secretly opens a window one night, allows a caterpillar to enter their home, and rediscovers herself. Screenplay: Eva Rini May Cragg Production: Apoorva Guru Charan / COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY A family on their holiday at the Costa Brava. The older brother’s belief system is disrupted when an act of kindness results in a little tragedy. This immerses him into a routine where refusing to make decisions could lead to more tragic ends.

ES, 2019, 19’, es

Screenplay: Eva Pauné, Elena Pauné and Marina Pauné Production: Norbert Llaràs / ALHENA PRODUCTION

Ilaria Di Carlo

Loosely based on Dante’s Divine Comedy, the film takes us along on the protagonist’s epic descent through an endless labyrinth of staircases. We move on a mystical path full of uncertainty and the unexpected.

THE DIVINE WAY LA VIA DIVINA DE, 2018, 15’

Vanessa del Campo

MARS, OMAN BE, 2019, 20’, ar/en

Screenplay and production: Ilaria Di Carlo / L.H.O.O.Q. FILMS

An old Bedouin riding his camel can’t believe his eyes: a woman dressed in a big, compact armour and a bizarre helmet is studying an insignificant rock. Astronauts in the desert of Oman...Or is it Mars? Reflections about life in this Universe. Screenplay: Vanessa del Campo, Miquel Sureda Production: Emmy Oost / CASSETTE FOR TIMESCAPES

SHORT RIGA

ONE AGAINST ALL Daria Kashcheeva

DAUGHTER DCERA CZ, 2019, 15’

Alexandre Siqueira

PURPLEBOY PT/FR/BE, 2019, 14’, en

FRIDAY, 25/10 13:00 FRIDAY, 25/10 20:30 Kino Bize

For audiences age 16 and up A girl was hurt as a child and keeps alive the memory of it. She lacked love and empathy from her father. Sometimes it’s too hard to open your feelings and share it with a close one. Sometimes it’s too late. Let your painful memory fly away! Screenplay: Daria Kashcheeva Production: Zuzana Roháčová / FAMU / MAUR FILM Oscar is a child who sprouts in his parents garden. Nobody knows his biological sex but he claims the masculine gender. An extraordinary but painful adventure in an authoritarian and oppressive world awaits him. Screenplay: Alexandre Siqueira Production: Patrick De Carvalho / BANDO À PARTE, RAINBOX PRODUCTIONS, AMBIANCES...ASBL, LUNA BLUE FILM

Anastasia Vorotnikova

SLALÅM СЛАЛОМ RU, 2019, 23’, ru

Skirmanta Jakaitė

THE JUGGLER LT/FR, 2018, 11’, en/fr

Fear and circumstances – that’s what makes us choose. From the moment of awareness to the moment of making a decision, we are like in a dream. This is a story about Alena Zavarzina – snowboarder, Olympic medalist in 2014, World Champion. Screenplay: Anastasia Vorotnikova Production: ALL-RUSSIAN STATE INSTITUTE OF CINEMATOGRAPHY NAMED AFTER S.A GERASIMOV We live in the same house, but in different apartments, jobs, situations, beliefs, visions. We fool ourselves that the world is one and that it exists. A film about the other side of life – the scary one, we never fully grasp, but we know is there. Screenplay: Skirmanta Jakaitė Production: Agne Adomene, Delphine Schmit / ART SHOT, TRIPODE PRODUCTIONS / PERSPECTIVE FILMS

SHORT RIGA

ADRENALINE

THURSDAY, 24/10 16:30 SATURDAY, 26/10 16:30 Kino Bize

For audiences age 16 and up

Monique Moumblow, Paul Litherland

47 STOREYS CA, 2019, 11’, en

Paul Litherland re-enacts a video recording of himself in which he recounts jumping off a building with a parachute in downtown Montreal. Paul’s imperfect attempts to copy his younger self expose the performative aspects of memory. Screenplay: Monique Moumblow, Paul Litherland Production: Monique Moumblow, Paul Litherland

Jon Vatne

The eccentric Norwegian artist Eirik Havnes is preparing his most ambitious project – a symphonic masterpiece with nature’s sounds as his orchestra. Eirik has a scientific approach combined with childish enthusiasm and charisma.

POLYFONATURA NO, 2019, 20’, no

Screenplay: Jon Vatne Production: Håvard Wettland Gossé / SPÆTT FILM AS

Marcin Polar

A discovery arouses a man’s imagination and propels him forward in an uncouth and obsessive way. Step by step, the camera participates as he explores places hitherto unknown to humankind, which offer increasing resistance to human delicacy.

THE TOUGH HARDA PL, 2019, 14’

David Verbeek

Screenplay: Marcin Polar Production: MUNK STUDIO – POLISH FILMMAKERS ASSOCIATION

TRAPPED IN THE CITY OF A THOUSAND MOUNTAINS NL/CN, 2018, 22’, zh

Chinese rap is gaining traction internationally, but there is a struggle for freedom of speech behind it. In the vast city of Chongqing, a new generation of rappers try to keep expressing themselves after tough new censorship is announced. Screenplay: David Verbeek Production: Jos de Putter / DIEPTESCHERPTE

SHORT RIGA

FESTIVAL DARLINGS Four short films by authors whose artistic styles are so impressive that dozens of festivals around the world have included them in their programming over the last two years. These masterpieces are a must-see!

SATURDAY, 26/10 18:30 Kino Bize

For audiences age 16 and up

Tomek Popakul

ACID RAIN PL, 2019, 26’, pl

Somewhere in the Eastern Europe. A teenage girl runs away from her depressing hometown. Her early enthusiasm about the hitch-hike falls when she finds herself in the city outskirts in the middle of the night. There she meets some weirdo. Together with him, she sets on a journey with no destination. It’s a movie about disillusionment, or getting a higher consciousness where you’re not so naïve anymore. Screenplay: Tomek Popakul Animation: Tomek Popakul Production: Piotr Szczepanowicz, Grzegorz Wacławek / ANIMOON / NATIONAL FILM ARCHIVE – AUDIOVISUAL INSTITUTE

Charles Williams

ALL THESE CREATURES AU, 2018, 13’, en

An adolescent boy attempts to untangle his memories of a mysterious infestation, the unravelling of his father, and the little creatures inside us all. The director hopes that the film can deliver some sense of understanding for those volatile creatures who may have caused harm in our lives. All These Creatures was the winner of the Palme d’Or prize for Short Film at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival. Screenplay: Charles Williams Cinematography: Adric Watson Production: Elise Trenorden, Charles Williams / SIMPATICO FILMS

SHORT RIGA

Juanita Onzaga

OUR SONG TO WAR NUESTRO CANTO A LA GUERRA BE/CO, 2018, 14’09”, es

A mystic river, some kids that like fishing and a war that ends share the same Colombian land. In this place, villagers have strange beliefs and celebrate the Novenario death ritual. The spirits and humans could meet here to learn what is there to life after the end of war. The author touches the importance of memory, death and imagination, creating tales that reflect different ways of perceiving reality. Screenplay and cinematography: Juanita Onzaga Production: Juanita Onzaga, Jan Stevens, Sofie Despeer / RANA FILMS, DE CHINEZEN

Ana Nedeljković, Nikola Majdak Jr.

UNTRAVEL RS, 2018, 9’, en

A girl lives in a gray, isolated country, enclosed by a huge wall. She has never travelled anywhere, but all her life she has dreamt of leaving forever for a perfect world – “Abroad”. It is a story about the complex relationships between boundaries, patriotism, tourism, emigration, utopias, dystopias, and reality. The authors wanted to dedicate this film to people who are traveling for a better future. Screenplay: Ana Nedeljković Animation: Ana Nedeljković Production: Jelena Mitrović / FILM HOUSE BAŠ ČELIK / YOUR DREAMS FACTORY, BFILM

SHORT RIGA

LATVIAN SHORTS RIGA IFF has a special space dedicated to local films, with short film genre being particularly dynamic. The selection of Latvian short films includes nine titles and is guaranteed to be an exciting experience!

SATURDAY, 26/10 14:00 Kino Bize

For audiences age 16 and up

SHORT RIGA

Kirils Ēcis

MEMORIES FROM EARTH ATMIŅAS PAR ZEMI LV, 2019, 8’, lv

Tīna Zariņa

EASTERN-EUROPEAN SPIDERWOMAN AUSTRUMEIROPAS ZIRNEKĻSIEVIETE LV, 2019, 24’, lv

There is a moment in the lives of emperors, which follows pride in the boundless extension of the territories we have conquered, and the melancholy and relief of knowing we shall soon give up any thought of knowing and understanding them. Screenplay: Kirils Ēcis Production: DEEP SEA STUDIOS Gertrude is a forty-year-old woman. She is lonely and lives in a one-room apartment. She works at a public lavatory. One night, a spider bites her. Gertrude gains superpowers, yet she does not understand how to deal with them. Screenplay: Tīna Zariņa Production: Kristiāna Štāla / THE LATVIAN ACADEMY OF CULTURE

Antons Barons

On the verge of global conflict, a young man comes to his hometown. The horror of war alternates with warm childhood memories. The search for his mother becomes not only physical but also metaphorical.

DĒLS JEB KALEIDOSKOPS

Screenplay: Antons Barons Producer: Daiga Livčāne / NATIONAL FILM SCHOOL OF THE LATVIAN ACADEMY OF CULTURE / Dominiks Jarmakovičs, Roberts Vinovskis

SON OR THE KALEIDOSCOPE LV, 2019, 26’, ru

Kerija Arne

DRAMATIC ENDING DRAMATISKAS BEIGAS LV, 2019, 3’

The participants of a ritual are performing a rhythmic energy discharge. Suddenly, a vibration sound comes from outside. Spectators are hurrying back to their places. A dramatic ending can begin. This is an exploration of psychological boundaries. Production: ART ACADEMY OF LATVIA

Žanete Skarule

FABLE

LV/US, 2019, 3’11’’, en

A young woman in an undefined time and space playing with artifacts of humanity. The ever-changing scale of the objects challenges the perception of a viewer, pointing out the relativity of everything around us. Can one only gain by letting go? Screenplay: Žanete Skarule Production: Zane Puriņa / TARHUN SISTERS / MOTIONPOEMS

Lāsma Bērtule

A detective movie with two people trying to find some clues. They manage. There are witnesses. On Super 8 mm with magnetic soundtrack.

IEVA & DAINIS UZLAUŽ KODU

Screenplay and production: Lāsma Bērtule / BALTIC ANALOG LAB

IEVA & DAINIS CRACK THE CODE LV, 2019, 5’, lv

SHORT RIGA

Matīss Kaža

MEYERHOLD’S FLIGHT LV/US, 2018, 19’, lv/ru

A dreamlike cinematic collage exploring the life, times and choices of the Russian avant-garde theatermaker Vsevolod Meyerhold. An innovative artist becomes a tool in the hands of the socialist revolution. Screenplay: Matīss Kaža Producer: Matīss Kaža / DEEP SEA STUDIOS

Linda Stūre

NIGHT SHIFT NAKTS MAIŅA LV, 2019, 3’

The night watchman’s usual ritual – Tetris game – is suddenly interrupted by a technical flaw. One of the surveillance cameras breaks down, and the game begins to dictate its own rules. The protagonist encounters unlooked-for sensations and events. Screenplay: Linda Stūre Production: ART ACADEMY OF LATVIA

Anna Zača, Nils Skapāns

ALL MY FRIENDS ARE DEAD VISI MANI DRAUGI MIRUŠI LV, 2019, 6’

“Roses are red, violets are blue, I had my friends, but now they’re dead.” Anna Zaķis has slowed down in her cultural activities, but the desire for real conversations is still there. She will fight to the end... for a chance to talk with someone. Screenplay: Anna Zača Production: Uldis Cekulis / VFS

SHORT RIGA

BMV COMPETITION & PARTY FRIDAY, 25/10

Villa C.C. von Stritzky, Aristīda Briāna 9

20:00

The only screening of the Baltic Music Video competition programme. Q&As with creators, music authors, curators and international jury. For tickets and more information: www.rigaiff.lv

22:00

Striking DJ sets: — Artūrs Liepiņš (Rīga) — JAVYBZ (Moscow) — JEN Z (Amsterdam)

SHORT RIGA

BALTIC MUSIC VIDEO CURATOR’S GREETING

Agnese Logina Curator, Baltic Music Video Competition The Baltic Music Video Competition (or BMV, as we like to call it) seeks to demonstrate that music video is a standalone, self-sustaining and powerful short format that captures and documents the realities of the modern world while also creating new ways of experiencing the genre. Convinced that music videos can be viewed as a work of art and not just as a TV-friendly advertisement for new music, our curators look for music videos that not only achieve an ideal balance between audio and video, but that also challenge audiences by extending the accepted boundaries of format, content, and even art in general. This year, BMV celebrates its fifth anniversary. Every year the competition transforms itself into something unexpected and surprising, and not only because

its creators believe that the venue can and should change – a feature that also varies the competition’s accents and boundaries (which we are always eager to break). We hope that every viewer will find something special in this year’s broad and diverse programme based on the fact that the Baltic music video scene has lately become increasingly daring, experimental, and original. As usual, we will meet on the last Friday of the festival, 25 October at 20:00, at the Villa C.C. von Stritzky for the competition’s screening session. Also slated for the evening are talks and discussions with the video-makers in the presence of festival guests and the jury. The event will be followed by a party with DJ sets lasting until the wee hours of the morning!

BMV INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION JURY

Lee Chapman Musician, United Kingdom/Latvia

Christoph Etzlsdorfer Programme Curator, Austria

Adriāna Roze Director, Latvia

British-born, Riga-based musician currently performs in the experimental improvisation bands, MVTE and Single Window. Working as PR & Artist Relations for global audio brands, he plays an active role in ensuring that the music delivered to fans is in line with the artist’s vision alongside many of the music industry’s top producers and engineers.

Curator and initiator of the Austrian and International music video programmes at VIS Vienna Shorts Festival. Programmer and archivist by day, DJ and party organizer by night. Curator of music video programmes for ImPulsTanz and Film Festival on the Rathausplatz in Vienna. Trained in Comparative Literature and hours and hours of watching MTV.

Documentary film, feature film and music video director whose works repeatedly cover the theme of interaction between individual and collective consciousness. Her nuanced visual language is inspired by the aesthetics of music and choreography, and her work has been recognised at both domestic and international film forums.

FRIDAY, 25/10 20:00 Villa C.C. von Stritzky

Una Rozenbauma Director, Latvia

Cai Trefor Music journalist, United Kingdom

Director and creative director; has studied directing and advertising. Directs commercials, music videos, experimental and not-as-experimental short films; once committed the sin of directing a documentary film. Has received various awards and nominations of both national and international scale.

An editor at Gigwise.com. He writes daily music news, reviews, long read features, and commissions contributors. He has curated stages at a host of showcase festivals (Sound City, LUCfest, FOCUS Wales) and keeps a keen eye on emerging talent from all over the globe, often playing an active role in a band’s development.

SHORT RIGA

Martin Randalu

ALMERE

I WEAR* EXPERIMENT ALBUM: JUPITERZ, 2018

Pijus Vėberis

ANTIDOTE ANGELOU ALBUM: ALL IN GOOD TIME, 2019

Toms Harjo

ĀRĀ EZERI 2019

Dace Pūce

BLACK SWAN DAGAMBA ALBUM: DAGAMBA FEAT. TCHAIKOVSKY 2019

Pijus Vėberis

BODY ON BODY DADDY WAS A MILKMAN 2019

Roberts Kuļenko

BOYS DO CRY CARNIVAL YOUTH ALBUM: GOOD LUCK, 2019

SHORT RIGA

A woman comes alive in front of our eyes. Learning to control her own urges while studying how the world works is a bit of a challenge if you happen to be in a dystopian future where there are men in hazmat suits trying to get you.

What happens if separate minds might be connected to each other? The futuristic idea of being linked to another person on a subliminal level is the guiding force behind this music video, and it uses the medium to show what a scary future that actually might be.

A broken man is looking for a way to escape from his past while trying to chase the future. Oh but this escape is so beautiful that just maybe we don‘t even want to actually get away from this place.

A story on how we harm ourselves by looking for enemies and looking for problems in the outer world. Then we get into a vicious circle and can’t get out. This expressive and instrumental video clip is about the absurdity of such aggression.

Birth of a man. Laconic in form but expressive nevertheless, this music video offers a beautiful, harmonic and soothing feast for the weary eyes. Another study of the many marvelous ways in which a human body can move.

An homage to exploitation films of the 70’s, this music video is about an unstoppable force of nature making every grown man cry. And what a beautiful force it is. And even more – the music video is full of blink-and-you‘ll-miss-it cameos, so keep your eyes open just in case

Jaan Sinka

GOOD STUFF OUU 2019

Ieva Balode

GRAIN OF SAND JO BERGER MYHRE & ÓLAFUR BJÖRN ÓLAFSSON ALBUM: LANZAROTE, UPCOMING

Rimas Sakalauskas

IMPATIENT LEON SOMOV 2019

Taavi Arus

KASEKESED PUULUUP 2019

Mindaugas Zabulis, Viktoras Jermolajevas

KING KONG

HAPPYENDLESS ALBUM: KINETIKA, 2018

Artūrs Dumbris

LAIKA MAŠĪNA TŪKSTOŠ CEĻI 2019

Set in a dystopian society poised to destroy all means of funky self expression, a voice of irresistible bass grooves bravely carries on spreading its message. The music video is a love letter to the power of funk and its trance-like effect on a person’s mind that reminisces of the style that is long lost already.

Shot on 16 mm film between Portugal and Latvia, this music video short film tells a story of a relationship between two different substances that can be conflicting to each other whilst striving for mutual connection just like body and soul that cannot exist without each other. Performed by Elīna Lutce and Rūdolfs Patriks Gediņš Music is like a drug. But so is desire for a woman. What happens if you combine both by creating a world of synthesizers and keyboards? Could they ever come to life?

In case you’re wondering where are my little birches, just as the authors of the song, the answer is - in the woods. And, more specifically, in South-Estonian woods and in the legendary communal garden in Tartu called Chinatown. If you get lost on the way there, just follow the men with that watermelon.

Not a single spare detail, not a thing that should not be there. And for a blissful moment you are in a world where things are in perfect harmony with each other. By playing with scale, something very large can become very small, thus creating a never ending cycle that allows us to peek into infinity.

A moving story about traveling, meeting, getting lost and losing one’s way, inspiring others to take this path as well. This music video is made with so much inspirational love that it’s enough for all the viewers.

SHORT RIGA

Titas Sūdžius

LIŪDNOS AKYS GARBANOTAS ALBUM: PASKUTINĖ SAULĖ, 2018

Andrejs Skurjats (Dree)

NEKAD

OZOLS ALBUM: NEONA PILSĒTA, 2018

Toms Upītis

OBSCURITY KASHUKS ALBUM: LOST ECHO, 2019

Janar Aronija

RAHU

MEES INC. ALBUM: MARGUS, 2018

Liis Lindmaa

THAT’S WHY THE BOONDOCKS ALBUM: HOW TO BUILD A LOVE BOMB 2018

Toms Burāns

VISĀ VISUMĀ VISUMS IR VISS INSTRUMENTI ALBUM: CILVĒKS, 2019

SHORT RIGA

In the surreal world of the video, the main protagonist pays a visit to a mysterious sadness healer. What follows is a truly magical, mystical and hard to explain experience that may leave you in a forest with eyes glowing – or not.

The journey is finished, and they must get away from the Neon City. However, this escape does not need to be painfully serious and dramatic, if it can be playful and fun instead. Just don‘t mind the glitches, they‘re part of the journey.

Sometimes, when you feel like sinking, letting go is the only way. But it is good to have somebody to have you back – you can‘t let go forever, it is not a continuous notion. As beautiful and mesmerizing as it can be, you also have to let go of letting go.

An omen becomes an amen, and things are starting to happen. But what exactly is happening still evades us. Part concert footage, part an epic road trip with friends, part just an ordinary party, this music video is an intense study of many human emotions.

A relatively short music video with a sharp kick – a surprising story with a twist about a betrayal and an end of a relationship. Even though the topic is heavy, the mood is lighthearted and playful which adds to the disbelief.

An ordinary man doing extraordinary things. For a brief moment, we can share this bizarre universe with our ordinary protagonist and catch some inspiration – you can actually try this at home! It may or may not turn you into the absolute champion next time you hit the dancefloor but at least it is going to be fun.

KIDS WEEKEND GREAT CINEMA FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

A sprightly celebration of cinema for the group of viewers that are the most impatient, inquisitive, and harsh in their critique â&#x20AC;&#x201C; children. This extraordinary, exciting and enriching cultural experience must

be shared with loved ones and friends, which is why we say itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s an event for the whole family and anyone you wish to bring along. May you treasure this wonderful experience of being together!

CURATOR’S GREETING

Katja Benrath

ROCCA CHANGES THE WORLD ROCCA VERÄNDERT DIE WELT DE, 2019, 97’, de For audiences age 7 and up

Kristīne Simsone Curator, KIDS WEEKEND Movies can now be watched everywhere – on the pocket-sized screen of a smartphone, on a high-definition television of such vividness that one might even become overwhelmed, or on an improvised screen made up of a bed sheet pinned onto the wall of the shed in the backyard for an intimate outdoor movie-night at home. What unites all of these modes of viewing is the comfort of home – for many years now, you don’t have to leave it to enjoy a movie. However, the scope of the cinema screen is indispensable if we want to not only watch but really see a film. And there is much to see in them; even the smallest of details serves the story and its mood. Without seeing them, we only partially watch the movie. Being aware of the fact that physically going to the cinema is not an everyday part of most people’s film watching process, it is an activity that is worth making into a celebration of sorts when it does occur, even creating a family tradition of introducing the youngest members of the family to the world of film with a trip to the cinema. The Riga International Film Festival’s children’s film programme is a good place to start, and with luck, our children will discover that the world of film can move them, inspire them, and help them discover both new horizons and themselves. This year, we have selected films that are particularly inspiring and that can show young audiences that we are capable of doing much more to improve the world around us than we think. In other words, the programme is about superheroes – not the kind we are used to seeing in fantasy films, but the ones who are alongside us and who we ourselves can become.

What would Pippi Longstocking be like if she lived in our time? Would she have her own YouTube channel? The protagonist of this adventure drama, eleven year old Rocca, is the spitting image of the famous Astrid Lindgren heroine. She is fearless and always looks on the bright side of life, never afraid to take a stand against injustice. Rocca proves that one child is enough to change the world for the better. Rocca Changes the World was named as best children’s film at the German Film Awards 2019. The director has studied acting and vocals at the Vienna Conservatory and directing at the Hamburg Media School. Screenplay: Hilly Martinek Cinematography: Torsten Breuer Cast: Luna Marie Maxeiner, Caspar Fischer Ortmann, Luise Richter, Leo Knizka Production: Tobias Rosen / RELEVANT FILM / WARNER BROS.

Bright and cheerful contemporary version on the legendary Pippi Longstocking. Splendid Palace Small hall Saturday, 19/10 13:30

Bragi Thor Hinriksson

THE FALCONS

Poul Berg

Likarion Wainaina

DK, 2019, 97’, da For audiences age 9 and up

KE/DE, 2018, 74’, sw/en/ki For audiences age 9 and up

Benjamin is gifted with a knack for technology, but he uses that to falsify test results for himself and other classmates. After an enigmatic incident at school, Benjamin and Savannah, the new kid at the children’s home, attract the attention of the secret service. And that turns out to be related to the disappearance of Benjamin’s mother several years ago. Will the boy outsmart secret agents and find out the truth about his mother?

Jo, a witty 9-year old terminally ill girl is taken back to her rural village to live out the rest of her short life. Her only comfort during these dull times are her dreams of being a Superhero, which prove to be something her rebellious teenage sister Mwix, overprotective mother Kathryn and the entire village of Maweni think they can fulfill.

HACKER

VÍTI Í VESTMANNAEYJUM IS, 2018, 90’, is For audiences age 7 and up

The annual Icelandic children’s football championship in the picturesque Westman Islands brings together plenty of players, including ten year old Jón and his team – the Falcons. But the tournament doesn’t start the way the Falcon players had hoped – the referee pretends not to see a serious offence against them, and because of that they lose the game. Soon Jón and friends notice the offender from the opposing team has to face aggression himself... off the pitch. In true sporting spirit, they’re there to help. The football culture in Iceland is very strong, so this is Bragi Thor Hinriksson’s most challenging film so far. His works enjoy enormous box office success locally in Iceland and gain international recognition.

The director and screenwriter Poul Berg has made many TV series for children and youth. His first feature-length family film Hacker won The Bronze Horse for best film in the category 6-10 years at Stockholm Film Festival Junior 2019.

SUPA MODO

This co-production has won the Award for Best European Children’s Film presented by the European Children’s Film Association (ECFA). ‘It touches audiences worldwide and opens windows to a world that most of us have never seen before,’ admits one of the producers of this cinematic marvel.

Screenplay: Gunnar Helgason, Jóhann Ævar Grímsson, Ottó Geir Borg Cinematography: Ágúst Jakobsson Cast: Lúkas Emil Johansen, Róbert Luu, Ísey Heidarsdóttir, Viktor Benóný Benediktsson Production: Anna Vigdís Gísladóttir, Þórhallur Gunnarsson / SAGAFILM

Screenplay: Poul Berg, Rune Kalle Bjerkø Cinematography: Bet Rourich Cast: Rumle Kærså, Josephine Chavarria Højbjerg, Signe Egholm Olsen, Esben Dalgaard Andersen Production: Signe Leick Jensen, Morten Kaufmann / TOOLBOX FILM / CINENIC FILM

The screening of Supa Modo within the framework of RIGA IFF is supported by Goethe-Institut Riga.

An exciting story where drama of sports films meets poetry of Icelandic cinema.

A tense adventure drama with a Nordic feel covering also technologies and social subjects.

Perhaps the next classic of cinema for children – about the strength of community and immortalization in film.

Splendid Palace Small hall Saturday, 19/10 16:00

Splendid Palace Small hall Sunday, 20/10 13:30

Splendid Palace Small hall Sunday, 20/10 16:00

KIDS WEEKEND

Screenplay: Likarion Wainaina, Silas Miami, Mugambi Nthiga, Wanjeri Gakuru, Kamau Wandung’u Cinematography: Enos Olik Cast: Stycie Waweru, Marrianne Nungo, Nyawara Ndambia, Johnson ‘Fish’ Chege Production: Sarika Hemi Lakhani, S iobhain ‘Ginger’ Wilson, Tom Tykwer, Marie Steinmann-Tykwer, Guy Wilson / ONE FINE DAY FILMS, GINGER INK FILMS

KIDS WEEKEND

ANIMATED SHORT FILM SELECTION The Animated Short Film Selection welcomes the youngest children for, perhaps, their first visit to the cinema. The witty stories, original visual language and playful sincerity will fill their heart with joy!

SATURDAY, 19/10 11:00 SUNDAY, 20/10 11:00 Splendid Palace Large hall For audiences age 3 and up

KIDS WEEKEND

Julia Ocker

ANGLERFISH DE, 2018, 3’37’’

Martinus Klemet

ANGEL’S TRUMPET EE, 2019, 2’25’’

Benoît Chieux

MELTING HEART CAKE COEUR FONDANT

The little anglerfish has to go to bed. But the deep waters are full of threatening creatures. Screenplay: Julia Ocker Animation: Urte Zintler, Ina Gabriel Production: Thomas Meyer-Hermann / FILM BILDER / KiKA/SWR

Hummingbird is the only one able to drink the nectar of Angel’s Trumpet. What could be the next step in its evolution? Screenplay: Martinus Klemet Animation: Martinus Klemet Production: ANIMARTINUS

Anna ventures on through a glacial forest, haunted by a terrifying bearded giant. All animals that cross his path disappear. Screenplay: Benoît Chieux Animation: Benoît Chieux Production: SACREBLEU PRODUCTIONS

FR, 2019, 11’20’’

Julia Ocker

FLY

DE, 2018, 3’37’’

Alexandra Hetmerová, Kateřina Karhánková

BLUEBERRY HUNT HURÁ NA BORŮVKY! CZ, 2017, 7’, en

Marjolaine Perreten

LAST DAY OF THE AUTUMN LE DERNIER JOUR D’AUTOMNE CH/FR/BE, 2019, 7’

KIDS WEEKEND

Three frogs are fighting over a tasty fly. But there is something the fly can teach them. Screenplay: Julia Ocker Animation: Urte Zintler Production: Thomas Meyer-Hermann / FILM BILDER / KiKA/SWR

Two hungry bears set out for the forest. Sudden and unstoppable hiccups complicate their blueberry picking. Screenplay: Alexandra Hetmerová, Kateřina Karhánková Animation: Jakub Sršeň, Stanislav Sekela Voices: Pavel Šimčík, Lukáš Příkazký Production: Bára Příkaská, Vratislav Šlajer / BIONAUT / ČESKÁ TELEVIZE A group of forest animals secretly construct vehicles for the great Last Day of Autumn race. Screenplay: Marjolaine Perreten Animation: Marjolaine Perreten Voices: Jérôme Vitoux Production: Nicolas Burlet / NADASDY FILM / LES FILMS DU NORD, LA BOÎTE… PRODUCTIONS, RTS RADIO TÉLÉVISION SUISSE 99

Julien Becquer, Eléna Dupressoir, Jules Durand, Viviane Guimarães, Ines Scheiber

MEMO MÉMO

A retired man resists the overprotection of his daughter to keep his independence. Screenplay and animation: creative team Voices: Michel Rimbault, Kenza Lagnaoui Production: GOBELINS - L’ÉCOLE DE L’IMAGE

FR, 2017, 4’40’’, fr

Julia Ocker

The peacock is a big star onstage. His feathers, however, want a fair share of the fame.

PEACOCK

Screenplay: Julia Ocker Animation: Urte Zintler, Ina Gabriel Production: Thomas Meyer-Hermann / FILM BILDER / KIKA/SWR

DE, 2017, 3’37’’

Siri Melchior

RITA AND CROCODILE – CINEMA RITA OG KROKODILLE – BIOGRAFEN DK/GB, 2018, 5’, en

Julia Ocker

SLOTH

DE, 2018, 3’37’’

Anaïs Sorrentino

STRENGTH IN NUMBERS UN TRAVAIL DE FOURMIS FR/BE, 2017, 7’09’’, fr

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Rita and Crocodile are watching The 5 Fairies at a cinema. The Crocodile’s noisy behaviour is inconceivable! Screenplay: Siri Melchior, Anders Sparring, Jan Vierth Animation: Martyn Jones, Mark Nute, Robin Deller Voices: Ronja Eftelya Alis, Vitus Jalving Production: Marie Bro / DANSK TEGNEFILM, LADYBIRD FILMS Sloth wants to buy an ice cream cone. Unfortunately, he is way too slow and sleepy. Screenplay: Julia Ocker Animation: Urte Zintler, Ina Gabriel Production: Thomas Meyer-Hermann / FILM BILDER / KIKA/SWR

A bear sneezes so hard that a huge boulder falls across the entrance, trapping him inside. Who will help? Screenplay: Arnaud Demuynck Animation: Hugo Frassetto, Anaïs Sorentino Voices: Christian Léonard, Lily Demuynck Deydier, Sarah Maus, Django Schrevens Da Silva Production: Arnaud Demuynck / LES FILMS DU NORD / LA BOÎTE... PRODUCTIONS, PICTANOVO

KIDS WEEKEND

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SPECIAL SCREENING

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Emīls Alps

CHOIR. CONDUCTOR. KAMĒR… KORIS. DIRIĢENTS. KAMĒR… LV, 2019, 85’, lv A documentary about the famous youth choir’s Kamēr… journey to the Tolosa Choral Competition, at which the grand prize had to be won to qualify for the European Grand Prix for Choral Singing. Created by a member of the choir, the film offers unprecedented insight into the singers’ passion for music, loyalty among friends, and the overcoming of difficulties. The director has been able to capture moments that no one else would ever have access to. Kamēr... has achieved its special sound by elaborating its own signature performance style. Both full emotional surrender, as well as the strictest criteria for vocal quality, are of equal importance. Aivis Greters had just taken on the position of chief conductor and artistic director of the world-renowned choir in 2018, and this year the choir Kamēr… has, for the third time in its history, triumphed at the European Grand Prix for Choral Singing. Screenplay, cinematography and production: Emīls Alps

Splendid Palace Small hall Friday, 18/10 20:30

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SPECIAL SCREENING

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Luigi Falorni

THE BIRTH OF THE LEOPARD DIE GEBURT DES LEOPARDEN DE/LV, 2019, 90’, it/ru/en/de For audiences age 12 and up The only novel written by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, The Leopard (Il Gattopardo, 1958), just like its screen adaptation by Luchino Visconti, is considered a masterpiece. This film tells about the life of Tomasi and his German-Baltic wife Alexandra von Wolff-Stomersee – their unusual love story. The chaos of the Russian Revolution of 1917 and World War II forced Alexandra to leave St. Petersburg and later on – the family’s castle in Stāmeriena, Latvia. During the war, in 1943, she fled to her husband in Palermo, where she would live until the day she died. A journey to a lost Europe, which used to be much more united in the past. It is, however, also a journey through the Europe of today, which continues to be haunted by the wounds of its past. Screenplay: Luigi Falorni, Bernhard Pfletschinger, Thomas Keutner Cinematography: Roland Wagner Production: Jörg Bundschuh / KICK FILM Co-producers: Gints Grūbe, Elīna Gediņa-Ducena / MISTRUS MEDIA

Splendid Palace Small hall Saturday, 19/10 18:00

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SPECIAL SCREENING

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Kārlis Lesiņš

THE DESPAIR IZMISUMS LV, 2019, 75’, lv For audiences age 16 and up

Unable to deal with a personal crisis, Gatis is dealing with depression. He feels like he is burning out. By accident he ends up in a strange cult-type therapy group that seems to trigger his self healing process, though it feels like he is losing his sanity. Is he healing or going insane? This is a feature film debut of the award-winning director Kārlis Lesiņš, who received Best Student Film prize for Converts (Konvertīti, 2016) and Best Debut prize for Grandfather’s Father (Vectēva tēvs, 2017) at the Latvian National Film Award Lielais Kristaps. Screenplay: Kārlis Lesiņš Cinematography: Mārtiņš Jurevics Cast: Kaspars Zāle, Alise Danovska, Kaspars Gods, Vita Vārpiņa Production: Lelde Prūse, Dominiks Jarmakovičs / WOODPECKER PICTURES / RED DOT MEDIA

Splendid Palace Small hall Saturday, 19/10 20:30

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SPECIAL SCREENING

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Jaak Kilmi, Gints Grūbe

MY FATHER THE SPY

SPIEGS, KURŠ MANS TĒVS LV/DE/CZ/EE, 2019, 85’, en For audiences age 16 and up As a young Soviet student in 1978, Ieva could not have predicted that a holiday visit to her father, Imants Lešinskis, then working in the Soviet mission at the United Nations in New York City, would irreversibly split her life in two. Entangled in a dark spy game, Ieva was forced to leave her former life behind, never to see her mother or her homeland of Latvia again. Pulling back the curtain on the shady behind-the-scenes world of the Cold War, this film tells a daughter’s dramatic story of her double-agent father, exploring their relationship against the backdrop of events which have their roots over four decades ago. In order to find herself and understand the game she was part of, Ieva sets out on a journey to the past, confronting family secrets, lies and betrayal. Screenplay: Jaak Kilmi, Gints Grūbe Cinematography: Aigars Sērmukšs Production: Antra Gaile, Gints Grūbe / MISTRUS MEDIA / KICK FILMS, 8 HEAD PRODUCTIONS, PIMIK

K.Suns Friday, 25/10 16:00

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Charlie Paul

PROPHECY GB/US, 2019, 90’, en For audiences age 16 and up

“Creating is an incredible journey that can open the door to a new universe, “ says the acclaimed Scottish artist Peter Howson. He draws inspiration from world unrest, religious beliefs and mythology, utilizing classical technical skills from his heroes – Goya, DaVinci, Bruegel and El Greco. A rare, intimate exploration of a single monumental oil painting Prophecy. This film draws us right into the artist’s eye, magnifying the Howson’s apocalyptic world and his dark sense of humour. Inventive filming techniques and hypnotic camera work make the invisible visible, revealing how the unseen images in the artist’s head are transferred to canvas. An immensely important part of his working practice is music with drama and power. He plays it very loudly, drowning out the surrounding noises. Music by the Latvian composer Pēteris Vasks. Cinematography: Charlie Paul Producer: Lucy Paul / ITCH FILM

Splendid Palace Small hall Sunday, 27/10 16:00

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RIGA IFF EVENTS

THURSDAY, 17 OCT.

SATURDAY, 19 OCT.

Away national premiere (Dir. Gints Zilbalodis) 19:00 Splendid Palace Large hall Tickets: www.rigaiff.lv

10:00–16:00 Splendid Palace Free admission

RIGA IFF OPENING NIGHT

FRIDAY, 18 OCT. RIGA IFF GOES VR

Set of four inspirational lectures on the basics of VR storytelling Sara Lisa Vogl, Jessica Driscoll, Mikkel Keldorf, Sonja Bozic Moderator – Eva Brazdžionytė 10:00–15:00 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

MAGNETIC LATVIA FILM CONFERENCE Film market development in Northern Europe 09:00–17:00 AB Dam For registered participants (See www.rigaiff.lv)

BALTIC ANIMATION MEET-UP Portfolio. Participants’ presentations 17:00–19:00 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

KIDS WEEKEND PLAYGROUND

RIGA IFF GOES VR

Magnetic Latvia hackathon: creating educational VR content for children and youth

10:00–10:00 (24 h) National Film School of the Latvian Academy of Culture For registered participants (See www.rigaiff.lv)

BALTIC ANIMATION MEET-UP Co-production Case Studies and Funding Sources Villa Antropoff, Vladimir Leschiov, Kaspar Jancis, Winter in the Rainforest, Anu-Laura Tuttelberg, Olga Bulygo, Lotte and the Lost Dragons, Janno Põldma, Vilnis Kalnaellis, National Film Center of Latvia, Estonian Film Institute, Lithuanian Film Center 11:00–13:30 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

BALTIC ANIMATION MEET-UP

Synergy of Education and Industry (panel discussion) Priit Tender, Dzintars Krūmiņš, Tomas Mitkus, Ilja Bereznickas, Edmunds Jansons 14:30–16:30 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

BALTIC ANIMATION MEET-UP Selling Shorts to Adults (round table discussion) Mari Kivi, Zane Valeniece, Gytis Oganauskas, Rimantė Daugėlaitė Moderator – Peter Murdmaa 18:00–20:00 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

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SUNDAY, 20 OCT.

THURSDAY, 24 OCT. FRIDAY, 25 OCT.

10:00–16:00 Splendid Palace Free admission

Baltic short film presentations for experts 13:00–17:00 National Film School of the Latvian Academy of Culture For registered participants and RIGA IFF badge holders (See www.rigaiff.lv)

KIDS WEEKEND PLAYGROUND

RIGA IFF GOES VR

Hackathon VR project presentations and awards 12:00–16:00 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

MEDICAL HISTORY RECORD OF A CINEPHILE

Book Launch and Meet & Greet Author – film theoretician Viktors Freibergs 17:00 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

TUESDAY, 22 OCT. IN TECHNO VERITAS DISCUSSION 19:00–20:00 Some mysterious place Live stream on Facebook (facebook.com/rigaiff)

WEDNESDAY, 23 OCT. ARTDOCFEST DISCUSSION

Is documentary cinema still an issue in the era of post-TV? 11:00–12:30 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

SHORT RIGA: TEST SCREENINGS I

SHORT RIGA: WHAT’S UP?

Short film related project presentations 15:00–16:00 Kino Bize For registered participants and RIGA IFF badge holders (See www.rigaiff.lv)

FRIDAY, 25 OCT. SHORT RIGA: TEST SCREENINGS II

Baltic short film presentations for experts 10:30–14:30 National Film School of the Latvian Academy of Culture For registered participants and RIGA IFF badge holders (See www.rigaiff.lv)

ARTDOCFEST DISCUSSION The author and the protagonist. Who’s the victim? 11:00–12:30 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

SHORT RIGA: WHAT’S UP?

Short film related project presentations 15:00–16:00 Kino Bize For registered participants and RIGA IFF badge holders (See www.rigaiff.lv)

BALTIC MUSIC VIDEO COMPETITION & PARTY The only screening of BMV competition programme. DJ sets by Artūrs Liepiņš, JAVYBZ and JEN Z. 20:00–23:30 Villa C.C. von Stritzky Tickets: www.rigaiff.lv

SATURDAY, 26 OCT.

ARTDOCFEST DISCUSSION Documentary cinema: subjectivity or objectivity? In collaboration with Iskusstvo Kino magazine 11:00–12:30 Cafe Film Noir Free admission

RIGA IFF AWARDS CEREMONY 20:00–22:00 Splendid Palace Small hall With invitations only

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NOTES

Asnāte Vasiļjeva Catalogue Editor

Associates, Partners et Sons Design

G-print 90/200 g/m2 Paper

Ilze Ella Negribe Catalogue Editor’s Assistant

Edgars Zvirgzdiņš Design Director

Green Print Printing House

Līga Māra Kriķe Translator

Aleksandra Gudkova Lead Designer

Dace Andžāne Translator

Dans Jirgensons Designer

Laura Ziemele Translator

Piotr Czechowski Designer

YOUR PERSONAL FILM GUIDE

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