FESTIVALS: Vilnius Film Festival 2021 Holds Screenings in Hotels

15-03-2021

FESTIVALS: Vilnius Film Festival 2021 Holds Screenings in Hotels

Natural Light by Dénes Nagy photo: Dobos Tamas

VILNIUS: The 26th Vilnius International Film Festival will take place 18 March – 24 April 2021 in the Lithuanian capital‘s six top hotels, complete with red carpets and step-and-repeat marketing boards. Hundreds of hotel rooms will turn into screening rooms, where all the festival films will be available through the television.

This is the first time the film and hotel industries have partnered to find a solution to the online festival dilemma.

“When you cannot go outside and the media is blowing up with negativity, it is hard to stay sane,” says Algirdas Ramaška, CEO of the Vilnius International Film Festival. “We help people to redirect their attention to more positive thoughts."

Vilnius IFF will screen world premieres, recently awarded festival hits and some of Lithuania‘s best features. The programme includes 104 features and 44 short films.

Ten features will screen in the festival’s European Debut Competition, including Dénes Nagy’s Berlinale 2021 Competition entry Natural Light, and the world premiere of Lithuanian director Tomas Smulkis's debut feature People We Know Are Confused / Žmonės, kuriuos pažįstam, produced by Just A Moment.

The festival’s selection of films will also be available for streaming on TELIA TV and “Žmonės Cinema”.

The project is supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre, sponsored by the Lithuanian Council for Culture, European Commission’s Creative Europe MEDIA programme, and Vilnius City Municipality.

European Debut Competition:

Bad Road (Ukraine)
Directed by Natalya Vorozhbit

Feast (Netherlands)
Directed by Tim Leyendekker

Gargarine (France)
Directed by Jeremy Trouilh

Gritt (Norway)
Directed by Itone Soimer Guttormsen

Looking for Venera (Kosovo, North Macedonia)
Directed by Norika Sefa

Mighty Flash (Spain)
Directed by Destello Bravio

Moon, 66 Questions (Greece, France)
Directed by Jacqueline Lentzou

Natural Light / Természetes fény (Hungary, Belgium, Latvia, France, Germany)
Directed by Denes Nagy
Produced by Campfilm (HU)
Coproduced by Novak Prod (BE), Mistrus Media (LV), Lilith Films (FR), Propeller Film (DE), Proton Cinema (HU)
Supported by the National Film Centre of Latvia, Eurimages, Aides aux Cinémas du Monde, Creative Europe MEDIA, Torino Film Lab

People We Know Are Confused (Lithuania)
Directed by Tomas Smulkis
Produced by Just A Moment
Supported by Lithuanian Film Centre