In anticipation of 5th edition of the Baltic Shorts Residency, we reached out to last years’ participants – Klaudija Matvejevaitė-Duškina (Lithuania), Sander Joon (Estonia) and Tīna Zariņa (Latvia) – and invited them to share their thoughts about the experience at the Baltic Shorts Residency 2022.
Baltic Shorts Residency – is a three-week intensive script development program, organized by Lithuanian Short Film Agency “Lithuanian Shorts”. For the past four years, filmmakers from Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia came along to the Residency to develop their writing skills and explore ideas while being mentored by an experienced script consultant.
Currently directors and scriptwriters from Baltic States can submit their applications for the Baltic Shorts Residency 2023, which will take place on 1–18 June in Kintai, Lithuania. The application deadline for the 5th edition is 16th April. For more information visit here.
When asked about his personal experience during Baltic Shorts Residency 2022, animation director from Estonia Sander Joon highlights the importance of devoting time for writing and having someone to share ideas with: “Time to focus is the most valuable asset for scriptwriting. Three weeks might not seem a lot, but I got more done in Kintai than I would have within 3 months in solitude at my home office in Tallinn. Having a professional consultant and two other talented filmmakers next to you give their perspectives on your progress creates a friendly environment where I could shoot out ideas and get immediate feedback on what would resonate with future audiences.”
Lithuanian director Klaudija Matvejevaitė–Duškina shares the benefits of living in a rural area, where every corner inspires to create: “For me, Baltic Shorts Residency was a time for making connections with my ideas and other filmmakers in ways that could never happen in the context of busy everyday life. The stillness of Kintai is deceptive though, because it’s a never ending source of inspirations and experiences. I’m very grateful to the organizers, tutor Wim and the fellow creators for this time of joy and personal reinvention.”
Last, but not least, Latvian director Tīna Zariņa express her gratitude to Residency consultant Wim Vanacker and other residents for a friendship: “Baltic Shorts Residency was a game changer for my short film script. I had the best experience with script consultant Wim – he showed me new ways on how to generate the right ideas, and how to manage my workflow. <…> Besides, we had a lovely time together with other residents Klaudija and Sander biking around and discussing our script ideas. I’m happy that we developed a beautiful friendship.”
The Baltic Shorts Residency is supported by Lithuanian Council for Culture, Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme for Culture in partnership with Kintai Arts, PÖFF Shorts | Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, Riga International Film Festival, Riga International Short Film Festival 2ANNAS and Latvian Animation Association.
