The story of Mērija Grīnberga, a young woman who saved a large number of Latvia's museum treasures during the World War 2.
At the end of the WW2 the retreating German army took with them 700 crates of treasures from Latvian museum collections. If not for a young woman Mērija Grīnberga, many of the exhibition halls in Latvian museums would be empty today. In 1944 Mērija volunteered to travel with the train of Latvian art treasures and returned with them back to Riga in 1945.
The German occupying forces tried to take the treasures out of the country, and the Soviet occupying forces brought them back again, but Mērija stuck to her mission until the very end. Instead of receiving gratitude, Mērija was fired from her job at the museum and was forced to work at a factory. And all her life she was plagued by suspicion.
The film is based on the diaries of Mērija's mother and reveal both Mērija Grīnberga's unusual fate, as well as the twists and turns of the Latvian history.
Movie ir Latvian with subtitles in English.
Mark Ginzburg, 52, is a talented artist, but personal and professional success has escaped him. Many years ago Mark moved from his native Latvia to Israel to get away from his oppressive father, Viktor, a famous conductor, who never cared about Mark's feelings and tried to mold his son in his own image. After Viktor is diagnosed with a fatal illness, Mark moves back to his father’s home in Riga, and father and son set off on a difficult journey to rediscover each other.
The Baltic documentary cinema played an important role during Soviet time. It put its emphasis on the visuals, used metaphors where the official film language was propaganda but was at the same time poetic declarations to Life and Humanity. In this film outstanding works are presented as are their directors - personalities as they look and think decades after their masterpieces were made: Herz Frank, Uldis Brauns, Ivars Seleckis, Mark Soosaar, Andres Sööt, Robertas Verba, Henrikas Šablevičius and Aivars Freimanis.
Youthful dreams, the best years of her life, health, home, husband, son, homeland – the Soviet regime took it all away, yet she survived. She survived to write it all down, so that generations to come would never forget the story that was forced on all of us.
Film based on the memoirs of Latvian writer Melanija Vanaga "Suddenly, a Criminal: Sixteen Years in Siberia".
The feature "What Nobody Can See" is a psychological drama with elements of science fiction. The story is based on the relationship of the nurse Elsa with her patient Nicola who has fallen into deep coma after experimenting with creation of artificial intellect. He has to go through a long and hard period of recovery, complicated by the artificial intellect "Anna", eager to keep Nicola just for herself.
A 78-year-old Indian woman in New York is the world's most passionate theatergoer. Nicki Cochrane been going to at least one play every day for more than 25 years, acquiring free tickets using a variety of ingenious means. Nicki prides herself with a staunch dedication to the art. But at what point does passion turn into addiction?
Under the loving but firm guidance of an old fan turned director and cultural diplomat, and to the surprise of a whole world, the ex-Yugoslavian cult band Laibach becomes the first rock group ever to perform in the fortress state of North Korea. Confronting strict ideology and cultural differences, the band struggles to get their songs through the needle’s eye of censorship before they can be unleashed on an audience never before exposed to alternative rock’n’roll.
Three guys escape from Soviet Estonia to Sweden via Finland in the 1980s. Swedes welcome them as real heroes who broke through the Iron Curtain. But as the media circus blows over, dissidents discover that they've become nothing more than tedious immigrants. To put food on the table they have to do something as lame as... work! So they come up with new crazy plans that should guarantee success in the Western world. That's when things go totally insane!
Two Latvians have become the first team in the world, who rowed across the South Atlantic Ocean. Without the engine, sails or accompanying boat. Both enthusiasts are not professional sailors or rowers, the adventure begins by typing in google "how to row an ocean?". Insted of planned 100 days they spent 142 on the open ocean. How almost the impossible becomes possible.
Film in Latvian with subtitles in English.
A film for the whole family. 8 year-old Oskars' summer vacation in the countryside begins as a seemingly never-ending struggle with his Grandpa, but what then turns into a solid friendship allows the men to rescue Grandma from her former student's scheme.
"Foaming at the mouth" is a thriller about a relationship. It is a story about Didzis – an ex-policeman and a canine unit trainer. He is suspicious of his wife cheating on him while his beloved dogs get dangerously infected.
The peaceful life of a middle aged architect Francis turns upside down after the street attack. In order to prove to his wife that he has guts to act courageously, he tries to settle the score with an offender, but the situation gets out of control. As time passes the husband notices how the attacker and his wife's sudden pregnancy may be related. In addition, the young family's seemingly idyllic life is disturbed by mysterious blackmailer, who is trying to force Francis to commit a crime. The reality and fantasy intertwine in disturbing chain of events, which leads to unexpected consequences.