Matīss Spaile

Latvia is home to almost one fifth of the world’s population of the lesser spotted eagle, yet their number is endangered. Uģis Bergmanis is one of Latvia’s best-known ornithologists, and he does his best to save the eagles in Latvia. He also has another passion – he hunts wolves. He can sit for hours in freezing temperatures until meeting his prey eye to eye. There are many stories in this man. And some of them are going to be told.

Tired of not seeing her sport represented at adventure film festivals, Katie Tannenbaum decided to make her own film. In it, she leaves the busy ski slopes behind to cross the Swiss Alps on her sled… headfirst.

During Latvia’s centennial year, 15 filmmakers created each his own film portrait of a person living in Latvia on the background of centenary events. Documentary 2018 combines these stories into a unique poetic vision based on analogy with the documentary 235 000 000, a classic of the Riga school of poetic documentary cinema. This film is an attempt to make sure whether the codes of the poetic cinema are still relevant and accessible today.

“One Of Us” follows Latvia-born athletes – wrestler Anastasija Grigorjeva, veteran gymnast Igors Vihrovs, and up-and-coming figure skater Deniss Vasiļjevs. Being of non-Latvian ethnicity, they are sometimes treated as ‘others’ by native Latvians, who welcome them into their ranks only when they’ve shown astonishing results.

A story about recklessness and risk. About dreams and people who change their destinies by following their passions. In this documentary, we follow Mārtiņš Sesks and Raimonds Strokšs – two reckless Latvians who believe that right here in Latvia we can reach the highest peaks in one of the most difficult sports in the world – motor racing.

Latvia is home to almost one fifth of the world’s population of the lesser spotted eagle, yet their number is endangered. Uģis Bergmanis is one of Latvia’s best-known ornithologists, and he does his best to save the eagles in Latvia. He also has another passion – he hunts wolves. He can sit for hours in freezing temperatures until meeting his prey eye to eye. There are many stories in this man. And some of them are going to be told.

Tired of not seeing her sport represented at adventure film festivals, Katie Tannenbaum decided to make her own film. In it, she leaves the busy ski slopes behind to cross the Swiss Alps on her sled… headfirst.

During Latvia’s centennial year, 15 filmmakers created each his own film portrait of a person living in Latvia on the background of centenary events. Documentary 2018 combines these stories into a unique poetic vision based on analogy with the documentary 235 000 000, a classic of the Riga school of poetic documentary cinema. This film is an attempt to make sure whether the codes of the poetic cinema are still relevant and accessible today.

“One Of Us” follows Latvia-born athletes – wrestler Anastasija Grigorjeva, veteran gymnast Igors Vihrovs, and up-and-coming figure skater Deniss Vasiļjevs. Being of non-Latvian ethnicity, they are sometimes treated as ‘others’ by native Latvians, who welcome them into their ranks only when they’ve shown astonishing results.

A story about recklessness and risk. About dreams and people who change their destinies by following their passions. In this documentary, we follow Mārtiņš Sesks and Raimonds Strokšs – two reckless Latvians who believe that right here in Latvia we can reach the highest peaks in one of the most difficult sports in the world – motor racing.