The Film Centre received 35 submissions in total. Three of the fiction films will be debuts by female directors. Liene Linde’s Golden Spot / Zelta punkts, produced by Ego Media, is a contemporary tragicomedy about an aspiring female film director; Life Interrupted / Dzīve pārtraukta, a biographical story of the journalist and social activist Ita Kozakeviča at the wake of Latvian independence, will be directed by Ilze Kunga-Melgaile and produced by Tasse Film; and Signe Birkova’s stylised costume drama Lotus, produced by Lokomotīve, will be set in 1919 and focus on an early female film director. The fourth feature film, Maria’s Silence / Marijas klusums, is a historical drama directed by Dāvis Sīmanis and produced by Mistrus Media, telling the story of the theatre and silent film actress Marija Leiko, who died tragically during the Great Purge in the late 1930s.  

Among the eight documentary projects there are films by Laila Pakalniņa, Ivars Zviedris, Vitaliy Manski, Jānis Ābele, focusing on contemporary social issues, historical figures, and strong personalities. From the three animation films, two are feature length: one from Edmunds Jansons, and the second from Gints Zilbalodis.

Click HERE to see the grants chart.