{"id":6810,"date":"2024-05-25T15:50:24","date_gmt":"2024-05-25T19:50:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lnak.net\/?post_type=general-news&p=6810"},"modified":"2024-06-12T16:31:11","modified_gmt":"2024-06-12T20:31:11","slug":"latvia-boasts-a-powerful-presence-at-this-years-cannes-film-festival","status":"publish","type":"general-news","link":"https:\/\/lnak.net\/en\/general-news\/latvia-boasts-a-powerful-presence-at-this-years-cannes-film-festival\/","title":{"rendered":"Latvia boasts a powerful presence at this year\u2019s Cannes Film Festival"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s definitely a red-letter year for Latvia at this year\u2019s\u00a0Cannes Film Festival<\/a>. The French gathering, which kicked off yesterday and will run until 25 May, is welcoming a large contingent of professionals from the small Baltic nation and will host a screening of\u00a0Gints Zilbalodis<\/strong>\u2019s much-anticipated animated feature\u00a0Flow<\/a><\/em>\u00a0[+<\/span>]<\/span>\u00a0(co-produced with France and Belgium) in the Un Certain Regard strand.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cAnimated films rarely grace the main stages at Cannes, making this inclusion particularly noteworthy,\u201d states the\u00a0National Film Centre of Latvia<\/a>\u2019s (NFC\u2019s) official press release. After Cannes, the picture will head to\u00a0Annecy<\/a>, the world\u2019s largest festival celebrating animated cinema, running from 9-15 June.<\/p>\n

\u201cEarning a place in the Cannes Film Festival competition amidst the thousands of submissions is a significant achievement for Latvian filmmakers. This feat is even more remarkable given that animated films are a rarity at Cannes. Notably, in 2010,\u00a0Jur\u0123is Kr\u0101sons<\/strong>\u2019 animated short\u00a0To Swallow a Toad<\/em>\u00a0was featured in the short-film competition, underscoring the strength of Latvian animation [\u2026]. I extend my best wishes to the film\u00a0Flow<\/em>, crafted by Gints Zilbalodis and produced by\u00a0Mat\u012bss Ka\u017ea<\/strong>, and hope it has a harmonious journey towards global recognition, and perhaps even acclaim at Cannes,\u201d underscored\u00a0Dita Rietuma<\/strong>, head of the National Film Centre of Latvia. Previously, only one Latvian feature had been screened in the same section \u2013 namely,\u00a0Laila Pakalni\u0146a<\/strong>\u2019s\u00a0The Shoe<\/em>\u00a0in 1998.<\/p>\n

Flow<\/em>\u00a0will celebrate its world premiere on 22 May, with additional screenings scheduled on 23 May and two more as part of the\u00a0March\u00e9 du Film<\/a>\u00a0(14-22 May). The market serves as a focal point for Latvian film professionals, with the National Film Centre of Latvia, the\u00a0Latvian Investment and Development Agency<\/a>\u00a0(LIAA) and the\u00a0Latvian Film Producers Association<\/a>\u00a0collaborating to operate the Latvian pavilion. Additionally,\u00a0Rija Films<\/a>\u00a0will present movies from different Latvian studios at a separate stand, offering them up for distribution.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile,\u00a0D\u0101vis S\u012bmanis<\/strong>\u2019s feature\u00a0Maria\u2019s Silence<\/a><\/em>\u00a0[+<\/span>]<\/span>, produced by\u00a0Mistrus Media<\/a>, will be screened at the market for industry professionals, distributors and festival programmers. The aim is for it to continue its international journey after premiering at the Berlinale in February.<\/p>\n

Furthermore,\u00a0Dog of God<\/em>\u00a0by directors\u00a0Lauris \u0100bele<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Raitis \u0100bele<\/strong>\u00a0has attracted considerable attention at the March\u00e9 du Film and is featured in the programme of the\u00a0Fantastic 7<\/a>\u00a0industry event (see the\u00a0news<\/a>). This programme showcases fantasy genre projects or recently completed films recommended by seven A-list festivals. Supported by the National Film Centre of Latvia and the\u00a0European Regional Development Fund<\/a>\u00a0(ERDF), the film is being created using experimental rotoscoping techniques and is endorsed by the\u00a0Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival<\/a>, which bills it as \u201can exciting Latvian project\u201d and \u201ca visually captivating gem of the genre from the Baltic countries\u201d. The presentation of the Fantastic 7 programme will take place on 19 May at 12 pm, at the Palais des Festivals.<\/p>\n

Moreover, representatives from Latvia and the other two Baltic countries, united under the banner of the\u00a0Baltic Shorts<\/a>\u00a0network, will take part in the Short Film Corner\/Rendez-vous section.\u00a0Em\u012bls Alps<\/strong>, a young Latvian producer leading the\u00a0Neonorma<\/a>\u00a0studio, has been selected as one of the ten participants in the\u00a0New Producers Room<\/a>\u00a0initiative. Alps will present the upcoming short film\u00a0Thank You for Your Review<\/em>, helmed by directors\u00a0L\u012bva Polkmane<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0Marta \u0160leiere<\/strong>, alongside other filmmakers at Cannes.<\/p>\n

Latvian film producers, NFC representatives and the\u00a0Riga International Film Festival<\/a>\u00a0team, along with the Baltic Shorts participants, will be actively involved in various events at the Cannes Film Festival. Latvia\u2019s Minister of Culture,\u00a0Agnese Logina<\/strong>, will also attend the world premiere of\u00a0Flow<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Finally, the NFC, in collaboration with the\u00a0Latvian Animation Association<\/a>, has published a full catalogue of Latvian animators and animation studios (which can be accessed\u00a0here<\/a>). An additional leaflet profiling the Latvian film industry, its studios and its producers is available\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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