Kaspars Znotiņš

A historical thriller about Latvia in 1939 - a year before the Russian occupation.

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In 1920, Franz Kafka wrote 120 letters to writer and journalist Milena Jesenská. A love which filled Kafka’s life with light and hope and, at the same time, illuminates his fears and the darkness in him.

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A revolutionary militant, a thug, an underground writer, a butler to a millionaire in Manhattan. But also a switchblade-waving poet, a lover of beautiful women, a warmonger, a political agitator, and a novelist who wrote of his greatness. Eduard Limonov’s life story is a journey through Russia, America, and Europe during the second half of the 20th century.

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The film is based on true events leading up to the historical 2013 resignation of Benedict XVI. After succeeding John Paul II, and serving as Pope for eight years, Joseph Ratzinger shocked the world by becoming the first Pope to voluntarily resign in over 600 years. In light of moral and ethical upheavals in the Catholic Church, and the unique challenges of the 21st century, Ratzinger's cited reason of declining health raises more questions than it answers.

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A miniseries about the events during one summer in a family of a writer who are unexpectedly granted a remote estate with all its unusual inhabitants, and who has to decide what to do with the dilapidated estate. Exciting and comic events in eight episodes in which the future writer Anšlavs Eglītis together with his brother Vidvuds, father Viktors and his wife Hilda Vīka, begin the restoration of the estate, at the same time opening a boarding house, which becomes the intersection and summer stage of the neighbourhood, ghosts of the past, visitors from the city and Latvian intellectuals in Latvia in the 1920s.

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The film, like fragile, sensual, philosophical poetry, evokes the youth of the Poet (Imants Ziedonis) and Auķa (the actress Ausma Kantāne-Ziedone was called Imants), when poetic words in letters and postcards were the lifeline for another person. In his letters, the Poet writes about the cultural figures with whom he travels to distant lands, his observations about places where ordinary people of that time could rarely travel – even to Bulgaria and Poland, as well as Sakhalin. The poet's observations about the people he met in foreign lands, as well as about parties, cafes, and girls, are amusing. In the letters, just like in Imants Ziedonis' poetry, there is their longing for a strong family filled with children, understanding, personality development, as well as contrasts and reflections on their great talents, and how close they are to each other even when they have reached creative heights.

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From an early age, songs and fairytales convinced Zelma that Love would solve all her problems as long as she abided by societal expectations of how a girl should act. But as she grew older something didn't seem right with the concept of love: the more she tried to conform, the more her body resisted. A story about the acceptance of the inner female rebellion.

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Martin has fulfilled the European dream: he has a beautiful spouse, a nice house and a well-set business. When he turns 40, he starts to ask: is this all there is, and what’s next? An existential comedy/drama about success, sense of freedom and the meaning of life.

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The film is based on the diary of Arkus Gunārs Reninger about his experiences in Salaspils concentration camp in 1944, which are visually partially covered by archive materials and prisoners’ drawings, but mostly the viewer will see the specific location today. A documentary observation of a memorial nowadays, where children and adults come in groups and watch individually, with interest or get bored, emotionally react or indifferently distance themselves, sunk into phones, disconnected from the outside world… Film will tell about our time no less than Reninger’s notes about what happened in this place almost 80 years ago.

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The middle aged rock enthusiast Raimonds has a dream to become a guitar player for a legendary rock and roll band. He attempts to achieve this goal by making a music video for them. However, drama starts, when a young film student, Rūta, gets involved.

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A nightmarish evening unfolds for neighbors David and Robert when they accidentally hit a woman on her bike and flee the scene. While David is increasingly plagued by feelings of guilt, Robert shows no remorse and becomes overbearing and possessive.

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A runaway bride, a young peasant, mysterious illusionists and a manic investigator become entwined in a murderous affair at a Baltic German baron's manor.

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A Latvian series shot by the team at Jaunais Rīgas Teātris / New Riga Theatre over the course of summer 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. It's a story about a world that once again changes rapidly. About the belief that everything on this planet is subject to manipulation. The series centers around an advertising agency - a classic office where professionalism mixes with boredom, romance and an existential tiredness.

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A historical spy-thriller set in 1939 about an Estonian intelligence agent tasked with uncovering the Soviet double agent in their ranks.

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Ilze Burkovska, a little girl who is obsessed with stories of World War II and will be a filmmaker in a distant future, lives in Latvia under the totalitarian boot of the Soviets and the ominous shadow of the many menaces and horrors of the Cold War.

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A Greek couple, Anna (Katia Goulioni) and Petros (Andreas Konstantinou), have recently moved to a small industrial town in Siberia. It’s a long process to adapt, especially for Anna, since Petros is quite occupied with his job. That will cause a conflict between them and inevitably the couple is distanced. Everything is escalated as for the past period there is no sexual intercourse between them. This slow-paced decay is intensified when an unexpected event occurs, changing everything between them. Balancing between trust and disbelief the haunting suspense evolves.

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Summer adventure story about two kids who spend summer in city suburb, where together with talking dogs they rescue the romantic wooden-house neighborhood from reconstruction.

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When the daughter of the Sun and the Moon is stolen, desperate parents call people to get their baby back. Helpers are given only three days: if at that time, the Sun's daughter will not be found, she will lose her strength and become an ordinary girl. A journey of danger and adventure, which teaches everyone not only to be brave and resourceful, but also helpful. The Latvian animated film is based on folklore motifs.

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Riga in the 30s. Wild bohemian lifestyle is the name of the game for every artist worth his salt. A young man from the countryside, poor but ambitious, arrives in the capital, where he hopes to make his mark in the artistic circles. What follows is a string of events, fraught with confusion and misunderstanding, hilarious and heart-warming at the same time.

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A psychological thriller about a middle-aged intellectual who, in an attempt to restore his reputation in his wife’s eyes, accidentally commits a murder. As time passes, he begins to see a link between the deceased, his wife’s pregnancy and the mysterious blackmailer who is forcing him to act against his will.

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Pigtail loves the winter holidays, but this year, shortly before Christmas, Brother comes into the world, turning everything upside down. Grandmother arrives from the countryside, because Pigtail’s parents no longer have time to take her skating, but Pigtail and her best friend, Mr. Sleeplessness, don’t like the new order. They come up with a plan – to send Brother and Grandmother to the Moon, in a bid to reclaim parental attention.

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Shammies long to have a pet. They know they would need to take care of it and everyone is ready to build a house for it. But what kind of pet it will be?

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Shammies' room is so messy it is not possible to find anything anymore. Mr. Cat suggests to spring-clean. To tidy up the house Shammies need to find out where each thing lives.

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About how Gūtenmorgens, unwilling to celebrate Jāņi, defends Latvian traditions and finds a fern flower. Gūtenmorgens tries to dampen his friends' enthusiasm for celebrating Jāņi, until Bērziņš finds him a foreign journalist to be his partner for the celebration. Becoming a defender of Latvian traditions against the foreigner's desire for entertainment, Gūtenmorgens discovers the mystery of Jāņi and meets his future wife.

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Gutenmorgen is an eccentric family man who tends to see his life in bright colours. In order to improve his failing eyesight, Gutenmorgen decides to open a third eye. Gutenmorgen begins mediating with a self-proclaimed guru and hopes that this unconventional activity will make his family and friends appreciate him just a little bit more.

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After recovering from an overseas mission, Krists Lapins moves into a quiet neighbourhood in Riga. His hopes for a new, peaceful life are disrupted when an unexpected visitor arrives one night. Krists soon finds himself in a swirl of events involving a mysterious blonde, a wannabe private detective, a bankrupt millionaire, and a rigorous cop. In this witty portrayal of modern Latvian society the absurd meets the comic and nothing is what it seems.

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After the lives of several people are tied into a intriguing knot upon meeting police officer Krasts one hot summer day, they’re all brought together again on a full moon winter night. Intrigue develops among a couple of lovers, Gints and Elga, three adventure-race participants with one woman, Renate, on their team, three generations of a family whose father, Karlis, died in a tragic hunting accident, Karlis’s daughter Aija, his former lover Livija, and a young girl hardened by life, who lives at a Christian home for expectant mothers. A detective twist is added by a bit of poison, which one of them will get.

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Donats is a modern-day Don Juan juggling the various women in his life seemingly without any consequences, until he falls in love with Agnese. Her husband, Ralfs, turns out to be a formidable opponent.

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Based on the novels by Vladimirs Kaijaks, the series tell the history of a Latvian family - the Nārbuļi family - from 1885 throughout all the events of the 20th century in the history of Latvia, up to 1995.

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In this movie (based on a true story) within a movie, a director tries to film the tale of an old KGB activist living in a parish house. In the summer of 1941 the activist tortured and killed Latvians in the cellar of the house. Although the old man hires others to brick over the cellar door, the murdered people keep coming through the stones and never leave him in peace. Unbeknownst to the film makers, the "real" KGB activist, now an aged drunk, is milling about the film set. Moreover, the director and lead actor are competing for the love of the lead actress, and the film's producer wants the director to re-shoot parts of the movie.

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An omnibus film consisting of ten parts, each directed by a different young director from the Latvian Academy of Culture. The unifying element of the ten shorts is the place where they take place - the airport. A lot can happen there - including a strike by a comet, a malicious attempt to break havoc by passengers, or an exploration of the old airport guard's house where not a lot has changed since the collapse of the Soviet Union. The film consists of the following parts: A Mishap (Nediena) by Arta Biseniece, Blurp (Šļurp) by Aija Bley, Alien Sky (Svešās debesis) by Viesturs Kairišs, 5 Versions (5 versijas) by Dzintars Krūmiņš, Comet (Komēta) by Māra Liniņa, Cleptomania (Kleptomānija) by Andis Mizišs, Alfredo's Poetry (Alfredo dzeja) by Igors Varenieks, Little Hand (Mazā roka) by Ilze Vidauska, Comet 2 (Komēta 2) by Anna Viduleja, and Life No. 2 (Dzīve nr.2) by Kristīne Želve.

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