PRODUCTION: Estonian Director Margit Lillak Shoots Becoming Roosi

18-07-2023

PRODUCTION: Estonian Director Margit Lillak Shoots Becoming Roosi

By Alexander Gabelia

Becoming Roosi by Margit Lillak credit: Margit Lillak

TALLINN: Estonian director Margit Lillak is currently in production with her long documentary Becoming Roosi / Varastatud tulevik, which has been shot in Estonia, Sweden, Germany, Denmark and France.

Becoming Roosi follows a teenage girl, Roosi, who grew up as a child of an activist and who struggles to cope with climate grief and guilt. She is torn between becoming an activist herself vs. finding her own life path through creativity and enjoying the teenage ecstasy.

"Roosi grew up as a child of an activist. Her mother Liina was the frontwoman of an eco-commune. Roosi hated her childhood there. Now, seven years later, she is stepping in the footprints of her mom. She battles the dilemmas of the unpredictable world. She is sensitive to injustice and wasting resources. Her emotional intelligence and maturity are rare for her age. She represents the more conscious part of Generation Z, who must accept the toxic cargo from previous generations. The subtext is her relationships with the parents who want the best for the children and make a mess of it anyway", Margit Lillak told FNE.

Becoming Roosi is produced by Margit Lillak through Estonian Tiny Desk Productions and coproduced by Estonian Hõbe Ilus and German Dirk Manthey Films in partnership with ARTE/SWR. Karolina Veetamm is the line producer.

The project is supported by the Estonian Film Foundation, as well as the Estonian Cultural Endowment, SWR/ARTE and the MOIN Film Fund Hamburg. The total budget is 360,362 EUR.

“We are supported besides the Estonian funds by the Hamburg Film Fund with 70,000 EUR and SWR/ARTE also with 70,000 EUR for the society slot. Also, additional support comes from Dirk Manthey, our German coproducer, and a Hamburg sound studio”, Margit Lillak also said.

Becoming Roosi is not the first project by Margit Lillak featuring Roosi. “I started filming Roosi when she was 8 for my previous documentary The Circle, where she was a side character. For Becoming Roosi the footage from 2014-2018 is more of a backstory, and the main narrative starts in 2021 when Roosi was 15”, Lillak added.

The shooting is scheduled to wrap in the summer of 2024 and the release of the film is set for the end of 2024 or the beginning of 2025.

Production Information:

Becoming Roosi by Margit Lillak, credit Margit Lillak Producer:
Tiny Desk Productions (Estonia)
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