DocuDrama about 13th century pre-Christian culture. Danish spy Lars enters the tribal lands of the Baltic peoples, where he takes part in religious rites, cruel forays, gets high during the Summer Solstice, becomes slave to the Couronians and even fights the crusaders. Who were the last pagans of Europe and how did they live? It is a unique trip into the textures of the past and into the unknown lands of the Baltic Tribes.
A young director, who sits in front of a commission defending a film based on her own experiences with sex and relationships, is continually confronted with questions about why she’s making the movie. The answer doesn’t come easy… Linde took on a difficult task for her short film.
Brothers Robert and Martin are a month away from their largest art exhibition. To get creative juices flowing, Martin locks himself in a black cube. Once out, brothers fall into a wild rollercoaster of events existing on the very edge of the chaos, examining the thin line between the artist’s creativity and mental troubles.
Five twenty-somethings, in search of an authentic life, move into an isolated country house full of books. Living in the carelessness of youth, with time, practical problems and the immature nature of young people create tension. Everyone has romanticized the idea of an independent and responsibility-free life – running away from reality, they run right into it.
Dog of God retraces the story of Thiess, a man in his eighties who proclaims himself a werewolf during a trial where a young woman, Neze, is accused of witchcraft and of stealing a priest’s relic. Thiess isn’t your ordinary wolf. He considers himself a “Dog of God” serving humanity instead of demonic forces.
Small town resident Valters breeds his pigs and sings in the local church choir. His childhood secret however, prevents him from integrating in the community. After the death of his father he tries to establish contact with Aija. This is not the beginning of an ordinary young couple’s love story.
Curonians is a historical documentary about one of the ancient Baltic tribes. The Curonians lived in the western parts of modern-day Latvia from the 5th until the 16th century. They eventually merged with other Baltic peoples to form the Latvian nation. The docu-mentary utilizes reenacted scenes, interviews with known historians and 3D animation to tell the story of this brave warrior tribe. They were feared even by their Scandinavian neighbors and remained one of the last remaining pagan tribes in Europe. Evidence of Curonian rituals can be found as late as the 19th century. The film offers a brief insight into their lives, culture, customs and beliefs. It tells about their moments of strength, victory and also their defeats.
On March 11, 2020 the WHO declared the outbreak of Covid-19 as a pandemic. At the time, almost no one predicted that this pandemic would drag on and on, make us sit at 'home', reintroduce curfew or even let us partly forget how it is to hug our loved ones. During this a year, we have more or less adapted to the ‘pandemic lifestyle’. Some have been significantly affected while others have remained almost unchanged. Exactly a year later we look at ourselves - how does this adaptation look? Or - have we adapted at all? This story is told by 624 submitted videos all filmed in a single day - on March 11, 2021. Filmed in Georgia, Finland, France, Switzerland, USA, Russia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Canada, Brazil, Belgium, Iceland, Spain, Vietnam and Malta.
While the whole world is overwhelmed by revolutions of different shades, the leading tandem of the Small Theater - Ivars and Armands is working on a new historical play set in 18th century France called ‘Revolution’. A week before the premiere the favorite of audiences and critics Armands receives a tempting offer to pursue his career at the Grand Theater. Betrayed by his best friend, Ivars gradually loses touch with reality. Themes of the play ‘Revolution’ starts to intertwine with Ivars personal life until he becomes unable to distinguish truth from fiction and that brings the Small Theater closer to an inevitable catastrophe - the act of terrorism at the evening of the premiere.
“Hike '44" is a personal story by director Lauris Abele and cinematographer Marcis Abele about how to maintain humanity when the world falls apart. The protagonist of the film, Melita Abele (89), retraces her refugee path from 1944, when, at the age of 14, she had to leave her home at the beginning of winter. Asking strangers for shelter, spend nights in the woods until she found refuge and warm hearts. Through the use of animation, the viewer will be guided through Melita's memories on a journey through recent and present-day Latvia until a series of events brings Melita to what she has been trying to accomplish for 75 years.
Behind the all-seeing eyes of surveillance cameras, there is always someone watching the Latvian capital. "Full Moon Serenade" offers the viewer a unique opportunity to get to the other side of the surveillance cameras on the nights of the full moon to see Rīga's night life in all its quirky forms. The film is a tribute or a serenade to the nocturnal city, night dwellers and night watchers.
For every generation the doomsday clock is ticking louder and human beings feel they live in the most bizarre and dreadful time ever. No one knows if it’s an incapability to comprehend the existence, a need to return to a more primitive state or a pure idealization of nihilism. After the Great Blackout a man seeks out his past. By confronting his feminine and masculine alter egos he strives to restore his identity. The emergence of his most primal instincts is an absolutely straightforward and unequivocal reflection of the present day.
“Mierjema” in Liv means “to be by the sea”. The film documents a very diverse population of Latvia that lives, works and spends time on the shores of the Baltic Sea. In the form of short, kaleidoscopic stories the film captures and reflects on people’s habits, needs and dreams. To what extent the importance of the sea is to meet our basic needs and - how important is it to our spirit?
