Macho loudmouth Henri goes to visit his old buddy Toomas in his new home, smack in the middle of nowhere. Henri tries to reconnect with his friend, but it quickly becomes apparent that the evening is not about watching sports and drinking beer. Instead, the mysteriously quiet Toomas has summoned his friend to help him with an important bodily function – he’s about to give birth. Overwhelmed by the situation, Toomas leaves… But at the last moment decides to turn back and help his old friend in this moment of need. During a clumsy, chaotic and humorously bloody childbirth, the two old friends reconnect. And a new life is born.
Oskar Lehemaa is a live action and animation director from Estonia. In 2019 Oskar completed the body horror short film “Bad Hair” and the feature length stop motion animation “The Old Man Movie”. Both films found success with audiences and festivals alike, winning prizes at Fantasia, Scream Fest, Fantastic Fest and Brussels Anima Festival, among others. Oskar studied audiovisual media at the Baltic Film and Media School and has directed commercials in Estonia since 2010. In his work he aims to combine elements from genre films with a healthy dose of dark humor.
A cat named Schrödinger leads a carefree life with his human. The only hint that the world extends the safety of their small apartment is the view from the window. Every day, Schrödinger sees a girl in an apartment across doing her chores and waving to the cat when their eyes meet. When Schrödinger sleeps, fantastic visions of mystical jungles and strange creatures visit him. The cat’s realities become shattered when one day he finds himself alone in their home. The friendly apartment becomes a prison, grief and fear overtake the cat. Is there a way out of the box? And if so, where does it lead? At the saddest time, the prospect of a new box may seem very soothing.
Film studio Rebel Frame is focused on documentary and animated film production. In 2014, documentary “The Women of Muhu Island” (60 min.) was completed, followed by a short documentary “Toys and Totems” (2017). Currently, there is a feature length documentary “A Fight for Future” in production and animated short “Schrödinger” in late development. The films have received financial support from the Estonian Film Institute and the Estonian Cultural Endowment. In addition to in-house productions, Rebel Frame offers film development and production services.
Sergei Kibus (1987) is an animation director, writer, and cinematographer. In May 2019, Sergei received the upcoming young talent award for his short animation „Teofrastus“ at Zlin Film Festival. “Teofrastus” has been screened at around 30 international film festivals and has won 15 awards, including best film for children at Fredrikstad Animation Festival and Animateka, and special mention at Ottawa International Animation Festival. Sergei´s next film “Schrödinger”, which is in late development, will be a spiritual successor to “Teofrastus”. In addition to filmmaking, Sergei teaches animation in the Estonian Academy of Arts. Currently, he is also acquiring his master’s degree in Asian Studies, with research focus on artistic animation of China.
Kadriann Kibus (1979) is an Estonian film producer, director, and anthropologist (MA). She runs the film studio Rebel Frame that focuses on animated film and documentary production. Currently, Kadriann is developing two animated short films: “Schrödinger” (by Sergei Kibus) and “Tuljak” (by Riho Unt), and is in production with her documentary feature “A Fight for Future”. Since 2001, she has worked on several documentary films as a director, producer, or editor. Kadriann is a member of the Estonian Documentary Guild and the Estonian Filmmakers Association.
When Surya, a teenage rag-picker girl, finds a discarded photo camera in a vast garbage dump yard of Delhi, she tries to secretly document the world of poverty and patriarchy she lives in. Hoping for a better future, Surya’s father Ram Kumar arranges her marriage to a wealthier man, however the groom demands a dowry, which is beyond the father’s financial reach. As he desperately tries to arrange for the dowry, Ram Kumar reaches a solution that forces Surya to turn the photo camera from a tool of self-expression into a weapon of self-defense.
Stellar Film is a production company based in Tallinn, Estonia. It was established in 2015 by producer Evelin Penttilä. It currently employs 4 people full time. We in Stellar like working with films that are mixing dynamic original ideas with clear artistic and commercial core. We aim at bringing Estonian talent to the world, but also participating in intriguing international films. Stellar is producing original content as well as collaborating in international productions.
Anna Hints is an Estonian film director, scriptwriter and composer. She has studied Estonian and Comparative Literature and Folklore and has a degree both in Photography and Film Directing. Her student film “Free World” brought her Kaljo Kiisa named Young Filmmaker Award and Best National short Film award at Black Nights Film Festival. So far, her most renown film is a short fiction “Ice” which has participated in more than 90 film festivals and won 14 awards, including Best Short Film Award at Estonian Film and Television Awards in 2018. Anna is part of female music trio Eeter that was nominated for The Best Composer Award at Estonian Film and Television Awards in 2019.
Evelin Penttilä has received a BA in international relations and political theory and a MA in TV production. She has also received a MEGA Plus diploma from the Media Business School in 2009, is part of alumni of EAVE, Nipkow and ACE networks. In 2015, Evelin started her own production company Stellar Film. Evelin has produced and co-produced 10 feature films, her filmography includes among others youth film and mini-series Zero Point (sold to Netflix, premiere in Shanghai IFF 2015) and short film Bad Hair (directed by Oskar Lehemaa), that has been selected to more than 50 film festivals over the world, including Sundance, Fantastic Fest and Fantasia among others.
Johanna Maria Paulson is an Estonian film producer and script editor who graduated in 2017 from Baltic Film, Media and Arts School in the Film Arts curriculum, specializing in film production. Her portfolio includes award-winning short films and documentaries, her first feature film as a junior producer (THE SLEEPING BEAST, dir. Jaak Kilmi) is currently in post production. Currently she is working at Stellar Film, an acknowledged Estonian film and TV production company, is a member of Estonian Filmmakers Union and a board member of Estonian Screenwriters Guild.
The soviet apartment building, where 16-year-old physics prodigy Christine lives, is sinking. When a large crack appears on its facade, a house meeting is called. Christine’s father attends the meeting; her grandmother next door stays home to watch the Moscow Victory Day Parade on TV. While neighbors are busy arguing about the existence of the crack and Christine is in her room solving physics equations, grandmother’s cats disappear. “A Crack” offers a glimpse into parallel worlds within one building.
Tasse Film. Founded in 2011, “Tasse Film” is an administrative and creative production team led by Aija Bērziņa. Company’s first feature-length production “Mellow Mud” (directed by Renars Vimba) had its world premiere at Berlin International Film Festival 2016, where it received Crystal Bear for the Best Film in section “Generation 14 Plus”. Juris Kursietis “Oleg” was selected for Director’s Fortnight Cannes 2019.
Ieva Norvele graduated Baltic Film and Media School, later spent several years working in film and TV productions in Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. After moving back to Latvia, Ieva studied film directing in Latvian Academy of Culture. Couple of short student films written and directed by Ieva have been nominated for Latvia’s national film awards. Currently she has finished working on a Slovak-Hungarian dance feature film “Bunker” as a co-writer and is now focused on developing a couple of her own short film projects.
Aija Bērziņa has graduated European Film College in Ebeltoft, Denmark, and the Latvian Academy of Culture in Riga. Her first film as producer was the daring documentary by Ivars Zviedris – “Documentarian” (VFS Films, 2012) which was awarded Latvia’s national award for the best film and premiered at Dok Leipzig. Her next – and the first from the company TASSE FILM founded by her – Renars Vimba feature fiction “Mellow Mud” (2016). Premiered at the Berlinale, it won a Crystal Bear for best film in the Generation 14plus program. Her latest productions include titles like “Oleg” by Juris Kursietis and Finish co-production “Dogs don’t wear pants” both selected for Quinzaine, Cannes 2019.
A young cheerful woman who enjoys making everyone happy during a music festival meets a sad guy with a big hole in his chest. She’s convinced no one but herself can cheer him up! But all her attempts to fill up his heart are just a waste of her emotions. Trying to help the guy she finds herself completely lost in a dark forest. All alone in the darkness however she discovers new possibilities giving her new perspectives.
Full Glass Media is a Latvian based production company who produces Art House Films and high quality short films.The company always keeps an eye open for young talent.
Kristina Tverdohleba is a 25 year old director-screenwriter from Riga, Latvia. She lived and finished school in Zaporozhye, Ukraine. Already in 20 she got her bachelor degree in screenwriting for films and TV in the Riseba University, Riga, Latvia. For more than 2 years now she’s been working as the 1st AD and director of the Motion Capture series “Zapovednik” by the German government channel Deutsche Welle. The motion capture studio is situated in Riga, Latvia. In 2020 Kristina participated in the international screenwriting contest and won the scholarship to The Rocaberti Writers Retreat, France.
Aleksandr Tverdohleb is 23 years old screenwriter. He finished school in Ukraine and then moved to Riga, Latvia. This year he finished university and got a bachelor degree, public relations manager qualification. He has experience in writing scripts for social networks for the German company and some other projects. Currently he is working on developing an educational web-series for kids with his sister Kristina Tverdohleba and producer Thom Palmen.
Currently working as a curator for a number of festivals and parallel to that as a producer at the same time developing projects within the field of the cinema. His first film as producer, In the Theme was selected and awarded at the Berlin Film Festival Shorts in 2008. Worked as pitching coach for young animators at VAF (Visegrad Animation Forum in Trebon, Czech Republic) and on a regular basis as tutor for a large number of short film projects. 2019 – : Film 7 Days, Kazan, Russia, a film project involving 10 film teams from 10 countries producing one 7 min short film each. Since 2007 started working as a producer. Since then worked on around 150 short films and three features.
Inspired by true events, the story takes place in the 1970s Soviet Union. An engineering student Paulis finds his well-respected professor Kalns in a situation with another man. Struggling with his own sexual identity, Paulis is looking for answers within a society built on codes and double morality.
Mima Films. Started as a creative production company working with mostly commercials and music videos, we became leaders of the local market. In 2018 we made a huge step and produced our first feature. The film premiered in 2019 and became successful both critically and commercially. Since then we have changed our focus on films and production services so we can work on projects which we enjoy the most. Currently we have 3 movies in development.
Žanete Skarule is a Riga-born filmmaker based in Amsterdam. Over the years she has worked in film production in New York and Los Angeles, where she also graduated from the California Institute of the Arts with an MFA in film directing. Žanete works in different genres and techniques – fiction, documentary, experimental, and installation – using both analog and digital mediums. Filmmakers like Jonas Mekas, regarded as the godfather of avant-garde cinema, have left a significant impact on her artistic practice. Žanete worked in Mekas’ New York-based studio until 2012 when she started her journey as a filmmaker. Her debut award-winning documentary Flying Monks Temple (2017) is still traveling around the film festivals.
With a bachelor’s degree in Visual Communication, Alise has produced different projects for more than 10 years – from music videos and commercials till mini-series and full feature. Starting as a producer in a then well-known production company, she gained her experience also in a creative agency and afterwards knowingly decided to work as a freelance producer. In 2016 she established MF Production and since 2021 she has started a new company – Mima Films which will focus only on movies.
A spaceship captain gets interrupted with the news that one of her crewmates broke one of taboo laws on an alien planet and is sentenced to death. The only way to get him out is to fight in a ritualistic mortal duel in an alien gladiator arena. However, because the alien planet is conservative matriarchy only female champions can defend the accused. Therefore, the captain reluctantly decides to fight in the arena.
SP “Studio Mitkus” was created with the ambition to be the best possible professional creative studio in Lithuania to develop and produce (short and feature) traditional animation, comic books and any other form of 2D visual art. The studio specializes in creating concept art, character and background designs, storyboards, animatics, comic books and other types of illustrations.
Tomas Mitkus is a lecturer at Vilnius Gediminas Technical University and an art director in co-founded animation studio MB “Studio Mitkus”. Tomas has worked in various live action and animated TV, feature, advertising, comic book and video games projects in Lithuania and abroad. Tomas is also a member of Lithuanian film board and an author of a few academic books.
Vaida Nedzinskaitė-Mitkė – Lecturer at the Department of Entertainment Industries, in Vilnius Tech. Her field of teaching and research mainly includes creative project management in various segments of the creative industries. Vaida is also the co-founder and project manager of MB Studio Mitkus, coordinating and implementing various creative projects in animation, film, video games and comics mediums.
Parked overnight in a remote lay-by, a truck driver gets out of his cab to go for a pee. Suddenly, he hears a beep as the vehicle’s door locks shut behind him. Trapped outside, half naked on a chilly night, he needs to find a way back in, which is only through the window. After numerous failed attempts to break it, he eventually hurls a rock in despair – and to his surprise, the stone flies straight through the glass… and keeps going. Instead of one, it breaks both windows at once.
Broom Films. Established in 2016 as ARTBOX laisvalaikio klubas, BROOM FILMS is a growing production company based in Lithuania. Producing and co-producing feature films as well as documentaries and animations, the company works with a wide range of emerging talents and is constantly seeking captivating stories to tell.
Ieva Veiverytė graduated from Lithuanian Music and Theater Academy in 2009 with TV and cinema director BA. In 2013 she did her master’s degree in Editing and made a short “Dog’s life” which travelled around festivals and was nominated for Best Short Film in Lithuanian cinema awards “Silver Crane”. Since then, she’s been a part of numerous national and international TV, music videos, short, feature and documentary projects, mostly switching between working as 1st AD and editing director. Whenever she isn‘t occupied with cinema business, Ieva plays drums.
Justė Michailinaitė is a promising and ambitious emerging female producer from Lithuania. Having gained valuable experience in a number of roles across the film industry, Justė is delving deeper to achieve further success in an area that holds so much fascination for her. For Justė, cinema offers a host of opportunities to fully exploit her talents and provides space for continuous growth and improvement. Justė is currently working on a number of new projects at various stages, both as producer and director.
A retired set designer Juozapas (83) brings his wife Genovaite (83) to an exact recreation of their first flat, where they moved in as a young family in 1964. Genovaite suffers from an advanced stage of Alzheimer’s and her fading memory keeps clinging to that moment from Juozapas has two lethal doses of morphine – one for her, one for himself. As they are living their last moments in the recreated room from the past, the memories blend with the present in Genovaite’s fading mind. The fiction starts to blend with reality, and she reveals a secret kept for decades. Before meeting Juozapas she worked for the KGB and marrying him was part of her mission. As a reward for such commitment, she got this flat to start a beautiful family as an undercover agent.
VšĮ MIŠKE has over 10 years’ experience implementing different theatre, music, film, fashion and photography projects. Liucina’s international experience provides opportunities to assess the relevance of this project in the European context, to look for new aspects of cooperation between different fields and cultures by bringing young creators together. This would be a third project working together with director Kristijonas Dirsė focusing on nostalgic memories and echoes from the past.
Born in Vilnius (Lithuania) in 1992, Kristijonas is an audiovisual artist, filmmaker and photographer. In his work he combines music and sonic art with the visual expression in narrative and non-narrative films, photography and audiovisual installations. Music plays a major role in his storytelling. It is particularly present in his collaborations with a Lithuanian composer Dominykas Digimas. Their recent work “Why Does This Appear” explores the question of the subjectivity in memories, as well as the docu-fiction storytelling in a silent music film form.
Liucina Mackialo – project manager and producer (acting as VšĮ MIŠKE) who has over 10 years’ experience implementing different theatre, music, film, fashion and photography projects. Liucina’s international experience provides opportunities to assess the relevance of this project in the European context, to look for new aspects of cooperation between different fields and cultures by bringing young creators together. This would be a third project working together with director Kristijonas Dirsė focusing on nostalgic memories and echoes from the past.
During the second world war, a pianist is captured by Russian troops. They put him in front of a piano and tells him, he can live for as long as he plays the piano.
Parapix is a production company with experience from everything from TV series, short films and commercials. Parapix has its own directors, editors and colorists. Parapix has been around since 2015 and the mission is to be a plant school for young filmmakers.
Peter Aitman is a director from Sweden and has worked as a director for 2 years. Mainly with commercials. Before becoming a director he worked for one of Sweden’s biggest branding agencies for many years. He is self taught within filmmaking but with his passion and curiosity he has developed quickly and continues to. His focus lies in creating interesting characters and worlds, always looking for the small details that give the characters a legacy. They should feel like they are truly alive in the world they live in. Peter is represented by the production company Parapix in Sweden.
Dilun is a producer at swedish production company Parapix. With 6 years in the Swedish film industry he has worked on countless productions. Most notably Spring Uje Spring and Aniara which are both winners of Swedens most prestigious film award, Guldbaggen, as best films of the year.
Anise Underground is a short film poem about transformation that follows the protagonist, Anise, on a surreal, lucid, dreamlike, journey that jumps between archetypal characters in a series of unnerving, dislocated landscapes. The piece references classic folktales, reveries (daydream narratives) and the compression of time in trauma. The film runs across ten scenes that expose different aspects of Anise’s subconscious as she descends a literal and metaphorical stairway in her family home to arrive at a point of departure. The antagonists and supporting roles are loosely based around cultural archetypes from western folklore: the Popesse, the Queen, The Cook, The Mortician, The Rabbit that each inhabit specific environments that fracture into a series of encounters. The theme: transformation, can be interpreted literally or metaphorically: growth, death, self-realisation: all aspects of the journey we all encounter through life.
Bichard Studios is an umbrella brand for the film, art and performance work of filmmaker/artist John-Paul Bichard and performer/artist Felicia Bichard. The brand has been running for over 10 years and includes the International Stockholm Burlesque Festival; internationally acclaimed ‘Fräulein Frauke Presents’; a series of short film projects: two period narrative dramas and a series of Physical Cinema experimental dance works. In addition, more commercial works include documentary and advertising work.
JP Bichard is an experimental artist and film maker whose work references traditional storytelling, baroque aesthetics and queer sexuality through the filters of contemporary culture. With a Fine Arts degree from Saint Martins, JP has worked for 3 decades as an artist, filmmaker, producer and photographer: a gender queer, feminist ally. Bichard has exhibited in Sweden, Spain and the US and has works in collections of the V&A and Tate gallery, London, MOMA NYC and CAM, Tampa. Short films include ‘Sofia’s Letters’(2020) a series of experimental Physical Cinema shorts and currently completing a short period drama ‘Emilie’ (release Autumn 2021).
Felicia Bichard is a Stockholm based international performer, producer and artist and one half of art-production duo Bichard Studios. Felicia has produced international stage art productions for over a decade and now co-runs Bichard Studios. An artist in her own right, she has also worked as a performance artist and is currently working on her own film and stage productions.
Charlotte is a loving wife and mom, although her husband has a bit of a temper, life is pretty good. One day she meets a charming, nice man named John, who she is deeply smitten by, and they start an affair. Only thing is, John looks exactly like her husband.
My name is Linn and I was born in Stockholm. I studied screenwriting at the New York Film Academy in Los Angeles but now I’m back home in Sweden again. I love the woods and water and like to play with nature as a character in my filmmaking. I love world building and enjoy working with strange sounds and music to create a heightened tone.
