1719 Matches Found
A man trapped in a strange cube must solve its riddle while his family faces danger in pandemic-stricken Vilnius. His journey through red and green doors becomes a race against time to transform himself and protect his loved ones.
Young flutist and conductor Maija's secret dream has come true—she has been entrusted with conducting her first orchestra. However, Maija's inner insecurity and fear of conflict do not help her cope with the energetic youth orchestra. In addition, the overly cheerful choirmaster Kārlis, in his attempts to help the young conductor, only undermines her already non-existent authority. When Maija remembers the legendary conductor Leonīds Vīgners and his authoritative leadership style, she feels a strange inspiration. The changes in the young conductor's personality surprise both her and her orchestra, which has only three rehearsals left before the concert. Maija must decide how to lead her orchestra to the concert - in the style of Leonīds Vīgners, or in her own?
In 1994, the Soviet army left Karosta, a military district in Liepāja that had been closed for 50 years. Within a few days, the population of Karosta fell from 25,000 to 6,000. The photographs found in the empty houses raise the question: where did they all go? The answer is not necessary...
A portrait of a Woman told though the events of a night like any other.
A message from Adolf Hitler to the Latvians that they are here to save them from Bolshevism.
Ten years have passed since we made the film “Crossroad Street”, about a small street in the suburbs of the city of Riga. Now we’ve come back. Perhaps it was a sense of duty, perhaps nostalgia that brought us back – who knows? Perhaps it was both. Daiga, Aldis, Osis – they’re all our people. The first film had an impact on both the filmmakers and the residents of Crossroad Street. We found friends whom we want to meet again and again. Society has become more prosperous, several value systems coexist side-by-side. People often live in these systems as though they were in different worlds that never meet. We felt that the world inhabited by our people is sinking into oblivion, and so we wanted to show that it still has its own turbulence, that Crossroad Street resembles Latvia’s palm – the place where a fortune teller can see the lines of its destiny.
"Comedy Latvia" comedians open the grilling season by roasting three prominent people in Latvia - humorist Ufo, rapper ansis, and improviser and event host Kaspars Breidaks.
Latvia from a bird's eye view
A 1972 short film by Latvian body and performance artist Andris Grinbergs, is both a singular artifact of Cold War-era Soviet dissident culture and an addition to first-person quasi-documentary cinema's experimental vein. Hailed by filmmaker-critic Jonas Mekas as ‘one of the five most sexually transgressive films ever made,’ Pašportrets is a selfie avant la lettre and a prototypical sex tape. It shares similarities, both in editing style and visual content, with certain films of the so-called American underground, Western European auteurs and various East European New Waves, although Pašportrets lacked their access to audiences. Narrowly escaping confiscation by the Komitet gosudarstvennoy bezopasnosti (KGB) shortly after its completion, Pašportrets remained hidden until 1994–1995, when it was restored and premiered at Anthology Film Archives in New York City.
In the past, many people, including my grandparents, recorded the most significant events in various calendars or notebooks. The nicest thing is that in such notes, people did not touchingly divide events by scale or, as they would say now, globality. Our film about the Skrunda radar (Skrunda radio location station) reminds us of such records. It is a story about a long, patient process of negotiations and agreements in order to achieve the closing and blowing up of the Skrunda monster. It is a film about people who participated in this work, regardless of position or social status.
A documentary about the summer house of the poet Imants Ziedonis and the spirits of nature and thoughtfulness that surround it.
A short fantasy film about a man who is meticulous in every action. The entire action takes place and ends during breakfast.
The third film in a series about Latvian folk costumes, their preparation and wearing. The film focuses on an ancient tradition - dressing the bride. A bride from Nīca (Dace Gasjūne) and a groom from Talsi (Kaspars Dortāns) are preparing for their wedding. Folk costumes from Nīca, Bārta and Rucava. The Otaņķi ethnographic ensemble sings under the direction of Zenta Bērtiņa. Excerpts from Aleksandrs Rusteiķis' film "Wedding in Nīca" (1931) are used.
A satirical commentary on the inefficiency of the Soviet system. Close-up of a woman's legs, walking backwards and forwards. A sign reading "Dumpster", a broken stool with one leg missing underneath. Books on 'Higher Mathematics', 'Furniture Industry', 'Industrial Economics'. A conveyor, a machine printing perforated tape, a child's face, a nail, a hammer. The stool is repaired - the leg is repaired yet the long end of the nail is sticking above the stool.
A fun and exciting story about Christmas as an adventurous adventure – the daughters carefully prepare for the holiday, set the table and puck, but then a bunch of stilts invade the house and fascinate everything with them in the Dance Carousel, in which all the masquerade characters usual in the traditions of Latvian folklore swirl.
Fiction. Directed by Māris Lintiņš (Konors Migla). Made in Latvia 2021.12.18.
Katya (20) travels from a small town in Russia to Riga to attend a concert by a famous dancer she has dreamt of seeing since she was a child, as she is passionate about dancing herself. When she arrives in the Latvian capital, she is thrown into a whirlwind of troubles and problems: controllers and fines for travelling on an international train without a ticket in the companion's room; language and nationality problems; ending up in an apartment where Katya is harassed by strange men; fortunately, after a failed attempt at rape, the girl manages to escape from the apartment, but Katya's belongings and documents are left behind. Katya is left alone in a strange city with no papers, no money, no friends and no knowledge of the language. In this desperate situation, she is helped by an unusual Latvian young man, Ivars, and a penchant for dancing, which makes this reality less bleak in Katja's eyes and helps her to immerse herself in an idealised fantasy world.
Strangers Madara and Gatis try to reach a mutual acquaintance, but encounter various complications when they take the shortest route - through the forest. The journey is not without conflicts, but it also brings the characters closer together. The film is a true story that explores the dynamics of strangers' relationships and the representation of nature as an image, trying to answer the question: do strangers know each other better than the forest?
Once upon a time, God, sitting on a mountain, created a cow after a long time, breathed into its mouth, and the animal immediately came to life. The devil saw all this and wanted to make an animal for himself, but he couldn't bring it to life, so he went to God to ask him to give life to his animal too...
The filmmakers learned about Paula Tisenkopfa's battle with breast cancer at her exhibition "Paštrokšņi" at Laubes nams. The exhibition was a true work of art, a bold story of a young woman's self-awareness during her illness, her attempts to overcome it and cope with the new realities of her life. The idea for the film was born. The documentary takes place shortly after the end of treatment, but the main character's life still revolves around doctor's appointments, MRIs, and hormone therapy. After her recovery, Paula begins a new life, witnessed by the filmmakers – a new home, new relationships, new projects and new challenges, including a week-long climb in the mountains of Nepal. Paula rediscovers herself, and the film's viewers get to know Paula together with her children, sister, and parents.
The abandoned town of Irbene is left with only a radio telescope and its last two inhabitants - astronomy professor Juris and metal recycler Gena. Despite their striking differences, the two wonder about each other, about aliens, war and the stars.
A documentary about Latvian poet Ilze Binde, made during the last year of her life. She tells us about her relationship with love, poetry, god and her four children and four foster children. The photos by her first husband, prominent photographer Gunārs Binde, serve as living proof of the flow of time.
A voyage through time — when memories of recent past, reality, and dreams interact — everything is related and not. Mysterious and troubled feelings arouse as we are submerged into an audio-visual experience where another dimension of life can be sensed.
The film "Latvian Rocket" is a documentary about HGK team's journey to the final stage of Formula Drift in America giving us a peek of what hides behind startling achievements. That is a film about enthusiasm, passion, willpower and nerves of steel. Latvian film crew named Robyworks went to Formula Drift stage to document the whole process in action with real emotions at the spot - interviews under pressure short before the race and all the atmosphere inside and out the team.
Story about Varis - a man with four bags beneath his eyes, Mirdza - seller of the sour cream, an old Lung that spat a chewing gum in the face of a Mitten, and a Megapixel, which slowly digitalizes the world. Vilma has nothing to do with all this, she is just off today, so there is a slim chance of finding hair in your food.
The Latvian director’s graduation film from Moscow Film School does not deliver images loyal to the regime but is a testimony to her journalistic background. When the independence struggle is to be suppressed by military power, the people in Riga erect barricades. Laila Pakalniņa captured the dramatic events whose topicality is frightening.
A sensation or good fortune? Or a lucky occurrence? The Cuckoo has 12 husbands, all of them splendid! Can this be true, and why is she the lucky one?
What happens to the socks that go missing during the wash?
A story about how a young man filmed a story about fishermen.
The story of a small Minotaur who tries to find playmates in the endless labyrinth while his Dad is at work. He only manages to meet mythological characters, busy with their own ambitions.
The significance of Kurts Fridrihsons reaches beyond the importance of his art, because during the Soviet period there were not many personalities refusing to comply with the regime while at the same time being outstanding artists. The charm and lightness that Fridrihsons preserved from pre-war civilized Europe and the free, lost Latvia was a harsh contrast to the realities of Soviet life. He was a model and inspiration for many people whose spiritual world refused to accept the existing system. The greater the distance between Fridrihsons’ lifetime and the present day, the more diversely and clearly we see the aloof and exceptional power of his personality. Unlike thousands of people who excuse themselves today for collaborating with the system with phrases like “Such were the times!”, justifying their non-resistance and compliance and their role as little bolts in the system, Fridrihsons – the loner and the example for a different option – is existentially important.
Art graduate runs to Berlin to search for love and art, but finds only bread, ketamine, and orgies. A visual diary about life between sex clubs, abandoned apartments, and streets where both furniture and people get thrown out.
This documentary tells the story of a Latvian social legend of the 20th century, meeting Raimonds Pauls one month before his 70th birthday.
The beloved composer Eduards Rozenštrauhs was born on August 13, 1918, and a few months later, the state of Latvia was established. How did the author of the popular song "Zilais lakatiņš" live his life until his death on March 8, 1992? Historical evidence is sought in the stories of the composer's relatives — his daughter Skārleta, granddaughter Vineta, niece Vallija — as well as the memories of his colleagues from the Puppet Theater and the stories of musicians who performed Eduards Rozenštrauhs' songs together with the composer himself during the Awakening.
A portrait of a modern city. Documented and artistically interpreted life in Riga unfolds over a single summer day. Dynamic shifts between three main characters – a food courier, a tram driver, and a young girl – reveal the inhabitants’ daily trajectories and interactions with the city. A mosaic of intermittent scenes highlights nuances often lost in everyday routines, capturing the rhythm of the city and its rich urban life beyond the limits of the story.
In the beginning there was the forest. Then came the live performance, and then the film. The yellow wagtail, Eurasian skylark, white-backed woodpecker, corncrake and hazel grouse have not only gotten their voices back, but have taken on human form — clad in elegant tailcoats and bearing names — to recount ancient tales. Through the interplay of theatrical metamorphoses and the creative team’s reflections on nature and relationships, a field of meaning unfolds, vaster than any single spectator. Where ends the self, and where begin the wings of birds and the branches of trees? Can culture, standing on the shoulders of nature, also nurture it? Or will it merely glisten in the light like a sawblade?
Maria dreams of touring the world with her band like her late rock star mom. But when her dad's new girlfriend moves in and tries to replace her mother, Maria steals another girl's identity and escapes to a camp in Spain for a new start.
Anatols Imermanis was a Latvian crime writer and a poet during Soviet occupation. He could call himself a successful, financially stable soviet writer. But he wanted more – to be free. The free West, especially Paris, was a life-long dream for Imermanis, but he was never allowed to leave the Soviet Union. So he created his own personal Paris – a bohemian lifestyle, sexual freedom, ignoring all puritan norms of the soviet world. He died alone without fulfilling his dream about Paris. But death was not a reason to give up – his last will was to be cremated and his ashes to be dispersed in Paris red light quarters.
Dreary office routine turns into a group performance.
Conversations before the premieres is a cycle of Latvian National Opera and Ballet’s educational events, giving an opportunity to listen to lectures on upcoming productions supplemented with musical performances, meet the creative team and participants of the production. This event will be devoted to the upcoming premiere of the opera Adriana Lecouvreur by Francesco Cilea on June 9, 2023.
An interrogator interrogates 2 eye-witnesses of a crime
The film is about crossing a line that leads to becoming part of a group of people labeled as drug addicts. It all starts with seemingly innocent marijuana smoking, with the hope that "nothing will happen to me, I won't get addicted"...
After a long absence, Anna returns home for the holidays to spend time with her parents and friends and take a break from her everyday worries living abroad. Her mother wants to know every detail of her daughter's life, her father has finally found someone to share his achievements with, she no longer has anything in common with her friends—it seems that everything has changed, and even walks along the sea or through the beloved streets of the city cannot bring the long-awaited comfort.
This time, the Emergency Brigade's rescue operation takes place in a local hospital, where one of the brigade's dashing boys, Bembelāts, is unexpectedly admitted. His diagnosis is seemingly simple - a cold, or more precisely, a severe runny nose - but he has to experience first-hand the latest medical advances. This continues until... he is rescued from the over-care of the medical profession by his colleagues to discover the old truth: treat or no treat, a runny nose will eventually go away anyway...
The inhabitants of the Benedictine Monastery in Lithuania have preserved the ancient traditional lifestyle of monks that requires a life of poverty, chastity and obedience. Their daily life filled with silence and rituals are captured in this short film.
J. Čakste, G. Zemgals, A. Kviesis, K. Ulmanis. What were they like? How much did each of them manage to unite the nation, how much did they manage to oppose the oppression, greed and brutality of the giant empires surrounding our small republic as a legal entity? Did they all have personal lives? The institution of the presidency in action through the daily agenda of President Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga.
Mount Fuji in Japan is occupied by a Latvian Devil. He forces Latvian culture upon Japanese villages, thus trying to form a territory of a non-existent country. When the inhabitants of one of the villages are all turned into Rainis – the all-time greatest Latvian poet and playwright – an ambitious Samurai is sent to fight for Japan.
Regularly hanging upside-down improves one’s sex life, while loss of consciousness should be used for self-development. These are views expressed by those who Vilhelms meet one evening on the way to work as night-watchman. But the reserved, worry-ridden young man goes on a radically different path to change his life.
This film looks at the Brukna commune which helps addicts recover with hard work and lots of prayer. They spend their days restoring a church and offer a look at their past lives, which they’ve escaped for a moment.
She was in the lift. Then he joined her...
Colourful jungle, dancing dwarves and a pirate girl Vanessa. It is a story of a regular lovely girl, and it makes no difference that she is blind! An optimistic and inspiring animation about learning and accepting our natural differences, voiced by Vanessa herself.
The film focuses around Ina and Nikoloz, eleven and ten years old Georgian children who live in the 2008 Georgia-Russia war refugee village Tserovani. Unlike troubled adults who long for their old homes, the children are oblivious of the past. As they find fun and scary pastimes around the village, they try to reconstruct memories of their past, of where they came from. They don’t remember the war, but it continues to affect their present and future.
Moccasin Flowers is a film made in collaboration and dedication to a musician and hermit Orla Wren (UK) Film talks about letting go the loved one and reaching out for re-connection with inner-self which has been lost during the deprivation.
They fell trees in the forest, work in brigades and live in trailers or empty apartments far from home. The work is heavy. During moments of respite, the loggers like to sit on the stumps and talk about life. And about women – those waiting at home, or those they imagine.
On December 6 2024, Riga hosted Gustavo's arena show "Tagad tikai sākas"— the artist and producer’s most dynamic and dramaturgically rich performance to date. Alongside impressive concert footage, the documentary presents a fast-paced narrative about a unique phenomenon in the Latvian music scene: teams coming together to create massive shows designed to be performed only once. It's a story of bold artistic ambition, perseverance, and the ability to unite behind a shared goal — even when the creative visions of those involved don’t always align. It’s also a celebration of the passionate enthusiasm that drives Latvia’s creatives forward, despite the challenges posed by a small market and limited budgets. What sustains this kind of enthusiasm in the long run? What sacrifices does it demand? And how does the increasingly short lifespan of songs in today’s world influence the creative process? These are just a few of the questions that Gustavo seeks to explore throughout the film.
Jānis Greste collected various objects throughout his life and hoped that they would be useful for education in the future. His energy was harder than a rock. A hundred years ago, he created the the beginning of the modern Latvian National Museum of Literature. That is why even today we can see a piece of soap that Emīls Dārziņš used to wash himself with, or a board on which Rainis wrote.