02-10-2019

FESTIVALS: Nova Lituania Competes at Riga IFF

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    Nova Lituania by Karolis Kaupinis Nova Lituania by Karolis Kaupinis photo: m films

    VILNIUS: Writer/director Karolis Kaupinis's first feature film Nova Lituania will screen in the Baltic Sea competition at the Riga IFF, which runs 17 – 27 October 2019.

    The film is set in the late 1930’s. Foreseeing the upcoming war in Europe, Lithuanian geographer Feliksas Gruodis comes up with an idea to save his country by establishing a Lithuanian colony overseas. The plan is a massive exodus to the so-called Reserve Lithuania in case of occupation. Feliksas tries to sell his idea to one of the most important persons of the state, a grey eminence of the president, the Prime Minister. Having dismissed the idea at first, soon the Prime Minister experiences a stroke as the country gets the first signs of war at its borders. As the president uses the Prime Minister’s illness to turn him into a scapegoat, the Prime Minister gets back to Feliksas, persuades him to reveal his plan and offers his help. The cast includes Aleksas Kazanavicius, Vaidotas Martinaitis, Valentinas Masalskis, Rasa Samuolyte, Eglė Gabrėnaitė, Darius Meškauskas.

    The film was produced by Marija Ruzgutė, shooting took place in early spring of 2018. The film debuted in the East of the West competition at Karlovy Vary and won the best picture award at the Athens Film Festival, which concluded on 29 September 2019.

    The film was supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre with 312,000 EUR in 2017 and 242,000 EUR in 2018. The film also used the incentives scheme and received 112,040 EUR.

    Karolis Kaupinis holds an MA in Comparative Politics and works as an international news editor in Lithuanian National TV. His first short fiction film The Noisemaker was selected for the Pardi di domani competion of the Locarno Film Festival and has been travelling around festivals ever since, winning several awards in the Baltics.

    Production Information:

    Producer:
    M-Films (Lithuania)

    Credits:
    Director and Scriptwriter: Karolis Kaupinis
    DOP: Simonas Glinskis
    Cast: Aleksas Kazanavicius, Vaidotas Martinaitis, Valentinas Masalskis, Rasa Samuolyte, Eglė Gabrėnaitė, Darius Meškauskas
    Editing: Silvija Vilkaitė
    Production designer: Audrius Dumikas
    Sound director: Julius Grigelionis
    Producer: Marija Razgutė