New York, NY—The 7th Annual New York Baltic Film Festival (NYBFF) presented by Scandinavia House: The Nordic Center in America is back November 6-17, 2024, with a mix of in-person and virtual screenings of the best new films from the Baltic region. From November 6-10, festival-goers can enjoy screenings and events at Scandinavia House in New York. For those across the U.S., virtual screenings of six of the films will be available to viewers from November 9–17. All in-person evenings will be followed by receptions.
Film talks with directors, producers and others have now been announced. On Thursday, Aistė Stonytė, a journalist and director who has created over 300 award-winning portraits of famous Lithuanian cultural figures for the Lithuanian National Television, will discuss her debut film The Mammoth Hunt (7 PM). On Friday, Latvian director Elza Gauja will discuss her debut feature A Postcard from Rome, awarded Best Film at the 2024 Latvian Film Awards (6 PM). Also on Friday, producer Ivo Felt and costume designer Reet Aus will discuss 8 Views of Lake Biwa (8:15 PM). Ivo Felt is a veteran producer of the Estonia film scene and has produced acclaimed films including the Academy Award-nominated Tangerines and Golden Globe-nominated The Fencer; Reet Aus is a leading Estonian fashion designer and pioneer of the upcycling movement.
On Saturday, meet the director of Life and Love, Helen Takkin (Estonia). Helen is an award-winning commercial director; Life and Love marks her debut feature (12 PM). Director Dāvis Sīmanis, an award-winning director from Latvia with a focus on both historical feature films and poetic documentary, will discuss his film Maria’s Silence (5 PM). And Saulė Bliuvaitė, a rising talent from Lithuania, will discuss Toxic (7:30 PM), which was awarded the Golden Leopard for Best Film at the Locarno Film Festival; her short film Limousine was also awarded Best Short Documentary at the Warsaw Film Festival.
Joining us on Sunday, Titas Laucius will discuss his debut feature film Parade (2 PM); a promising upcoming director, playwright, and screenwriter from Lithuania, his shorts have all reached international audiences, including Snake, which won Most Promising Director at the Kino Pavasaris International Film Festival in Vilnius. Helen Lõhmus, the co-director of Kelly — Someone Else’s Dream, will discuss her debut film. And Mātiss Kaža, producer and co-writer of Flow — whose past films Wild East and Sister have both screened at NYBFF — will discuss the hit animated feature, which received the 2024 Jury Award at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival and is Latvia’s contender for Best International Feature at the 97th Academy Awards.
SCHEDULE
Wednesday, November 6
6:30 PM: Life and Love (dir. Helen Takkin, Estonia, 2024); U.S. Premiere
During the Great Depression in 1933, young Irma leaves her rural home to pursue a writing career in the city, where she enters a a toxic relationship with her boss at a local print shop. As political tensions rise, Irma realizes that love and ambition come at a steep cost.
Thursday, November 7
7 PM: The Mammoth Hunt (dir. Aistė Stonytė, Lithuania, 2024); New York Premiere
Aistė Stonytė’s documentary revisits 1968 Lithuania, where theater director Jonas Jurasas directs a thinly veiled anti-Soviet production titled “The Mammoth Hunt” and must later flee to the U.S.; surviving participants share their recollections. Film talk with director Aistė Stonytė
Friday, November 8
6 PM: A Postcard From Rome (dir. Elza Gauja, Latvia, 2024); North American Premiere
In this gentle love story, Latvian couple Ernests and Alvīne use a lottery scheme to travel to Rome, where they soon realize that Alvīne’s Alzheimer’s disease is rapidly progressing. Film talk with director Elza Gauja
8:15 PM: 8 Views of Lake Biwa (dir. Marko Raat, Estonia, 2024); North American Premiere
Estonia’s contender for Best International Feature at this year’s Academy Awards is a poetic fairy tale set in an Estonian fishing village, where teenage girls watch ships sail to Kyoto, villagers create erotic art, and all seek connection to the universe. Film talk with producer Ivo Felt and costume designer Reet Aus
Saturday, November 9
12 PM: Life and Love.
3 PM: Baltic Shorts
Six short films: Ootid (U.S. Premiere); On Weary Wings Go By (NY Premiere); The One Who Knows (U.S. Premiere); Blank Page Syndrome (North American Premiere); The Weight of Light (U.S. Premiere); Sacrificial Lamb (NY Premiere).
5 PM, Maria’s Silence (dir. Davis Simanis, Latvia, 2024); North American Premiere
A powerful historical drama about Maria Leiko, a famous silent-film actress forced to abandon her career to join Skatuve, the Latvian State Theater in Moscow, where she was manipulated amid purges of political enemies. Film talk with director Dāvis Sīmanis
7:30 PM: Toxic (dir. Saulė Bliuvaitė, Lithuania, 2024), New York Premiere
In this gritty coming-of-age drama, two young teens dreaming of escape from their rural Lithuanian hometown form a unique bond at a modeling school, where they are pushed to violate their bodies in increasingly extreme ways. Film talk with director Saulė Bliuvaitė
Sunday, November 10
2 PM: Parade (Paradas, dir. Titas Laucius, Lithuania, 2022); New York Premiere
A Baltic comedy follows a former couple’s decision to finalize their divorce through Catholic Court — with unexpected consequences. Film talk with director Titas Laucius
4:15 PM: Kelly — Someone Else’s Dream (dir. Helen Lõhmus & Leana Jalukse, Estonia, 2024); U.S. Premiere
Am Estonian documentary explores the dark side of competitive sports with the story of freestyle skier Kelly Sildaru, who shot to fame as an X-Games gold medalist at the age of 13 but was later revealed to have been abused. Film talk with director Helen Lõhmus
7 PM: Flow (dir. Gints Zilbalodis, Latvia/France/Belgium, 2024); NYC Premiere
Latvia’s official entry for Best International Feature at the 97th Academy Awards is a visually stunning animated adventure follows a brave cat who, after a devastating flood, teams up with a capybara, lemur, bird, and dog to survive. Film talk with co-writer and producer Matīss Kaža
ABOUT THE NEW YORK BALTIC FILM FESTIVAL
Established in 2018, the New York Baltic Film Festival is presented and organized by Scandinavia House in collaboration with the Embassy of Estonia, Consulate General of Lithuania, and Permanent Mission of Latvia to the United Nations in New York. Financial support for the festival comes from the Estonian Film Institute, National Film Center of Latvia, and Lithuanian Film Center, with additional sponsorship by the American-Scandinavian Foundation, American Latvian Association, Edhard Corporation, Estonian Ministry of Culture, Estonian American National Council (EKRÜ), Honorary Consulate General of Latvia in New York, Investment and Development Agency of Latvia, Sondra Litvatytė, Narbutas and Baltic Film, Media and Arts School at Tallinn University.