The 27th Baltic Sea Docs announces its winners
- A handful of awards have been given out at the event that ran in Riga from 3-8 September
The 27th edition of the Baltic Sea Forum for Documentaries (Baltic Sea Docs, 3-8 September) has wrapped successfully. This year's forum featured pitching sessions and industry gatherings held in Riga, Latvia, along with film screenings that were spread across various towns in the country. Additionally, a preparatory workshop for representatives of the film projects was conducted in the seaside village of Liepupe. This event served as a convergence point for filmmakers hailing from the broader Baltic Sea region, Eastern Europe and Georgia, and it also attracted industry experts not only from Europe, but also from around the world.
A total of 24 film projects (see the news) were part of the forum, with representation from film studios in 11 countries. Among these, 20 film projects enjoyed their inaugural presentation in Riga, while four projects made a return appearance specifically for the forum's new "Coming Soon" session, designed to spotlight films that are already in the post-production phase.
Following the conclusion of the event, a handful of awards were given out. Eros and Thanatos by Ukrainian director Dmytro Tiazhlov, produced by Ella Shtyka (Indie Media Polis), received the Current Time TV Award, which comes with a cash prize of €2,000. The film follows Albert and Vova, typical Ukrainians who transform into avant-garde musicians and thought leaders during a tumultuous period marked by revolution, pandemic and war, as we trace their artistic quest for the “zeitgeist”.
Sacrum and Profanum in Pievenai, the latest project by Lithuanian filmmaker Giedrė Beinoriūtė (Breathing into Marble [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Giedrė Beinoriūtė
film profile]), produced by Jurga Gluskinienė (Monoklis), snagged the BB Post House Award, which comes with post-production services to the value of €3,000. The film unfolds in Pievėnai, a quaint Lithuanian village known for its Easter Eve church-vigil tradition. Through the lens of local preparations and the Easter night, it explores the interplay between the sacred and everyday life in contemporary society.
The Ukrainian project Archive. Box#64, directed by Eva Dzhyshyashvili (Plai. A Mountain Path [+see also:
interview: Eva Dzhyshyashvili
film profile]) and produced by Natalia Libet (2Brave Productions), in co-production with Valeria Sochyvets, was the recipient of the IDFA Spotlight Award, which includes funding for the director's participation in, travel to and accommodation at the upcoming edition of IDFA, where she will engage in a customised programme within IDFA's industry and training activities. The film weaves together archival imagery and personal narratives of individuals dedicated to preserving historical records, illustrating the connection between accumulated knowledge and the passage of time.
The Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights granted a cash award of €2,500 to support a portion of the production, post-production or impact-campaign expenses for the project War in Chornobyl by Ukrainian filmmaker Oleksiy Radynski (Infinity: According to Florian [+see also:
film review
film profile]), produced by Lyuba Knorozok (Kinotron Group) and Jurga Dikčiuvienė-Kaye for Lithuania’s Studija Kinema. The survivors of the Russian occupation of the Chernobyl exclusion zone share first-hand accounts of this unprecedented act of nuclear terror.
Finally, the recipients of the Baltic Sea Docs Awards – including Lithuanian director Mindaugas Survila with Yalla Yalla, produced by Giedrė Žickytė (Moonmakers); Estonian director Mihkel Oksmann with In the Winds of the Icefields, produced by Hõbe Ilus (Sui); and Swedish producer Marina-Evelina Cracana (Film and Tell) for the project Vanessa, directed by Åsa Ekman, Martina Iverus and Oscar Hedin, and co-produced by the latter – have earned the opportunity to pitch their future projects at a forthcoming edition of Baltic Sea Docs.
The Baltic Sea Forum for Documentaries is organised by the National Film Centre of Latvia, and is supported by the Creative Europe – MEDIA programme, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia and Limbaži district municipality.
Here is the full list of award winners at the 27th Baltic Sea Docs:
Current Time TV Award
Eros and Thanatos - Dmytro Tiazhlov (Ukraine)
Producer: Ella Shtyka (Indie Media Polis)
BB Post House Award
Sacrum and Profanum in Pievenai - Giedrė Beinoriūtė (Lithuania)
Producer: Jurga Gluskinienė (Monoklis)
IDFA Spotlight Award
Archive. Box#64 - Eva Dzhyshyashvili (Ukraine)
Producers: Natalia Libet (2Brave Productions), Valeria Sochyvets
Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights Award
War in Chornobyl - Oleksiy Radynski (Ukraine/Lithuania)
Producers: Lyuba Knorozok (Kinotron Group), Jurga Dikčiuvienė-Kaye (Studija Kinema)
Baltic Sea Docs Awards
Mindaugas Survila, director - Yalla Yalla (Lithuania)
Mihkel Oksmann, director - In the Winds of the Icefields (working title) (Estonia)
Marina-Evelina Cracana, producer - Vanessa (working title) (Sweden)
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