Vogelfrei

Colour, 35 mm
Latvia, 2007, 93 min
Section: East of the West - Films in Competition

Synopsis

A collection of film stories by a quartet of young directors who capture four important moments in one man’s life. Teodors is first a small boy playing games in the summer holidays, then an adolescent hockey-player who starts up a relationship with a girl, a lonely but self-centred and manipulative manager, and finally a rural hunter of birds of prey. Yet he remains a man who is self-conscious and unsure of his surroundings. The stories seem quite ordinary, but they are left open-ended. The film has a wistful, dream-like atmosphere, emotions are kept hidden, festering below the surface. The mood changes – from the child’s carefree summer in the first film to the absurd character of the last film. All four stories are interwoven with a high measure of authenticity and sensitivity towards their insecure, withdrawn heroes. Vogelfrei won Latvia’s National Film Award for Best Screenplay, Best Photography and Best Film.

About the director

Anna Viduleja (b. 1972, Riga) studied direction at the Latvian Academy of Culture. She made the short films God’s Tears (1992), Wishes (1993), Candy (1995), Comet (1997), Greasy Spoon Caff (1999) and Nocturnal (2000).

Gatis Smits (b. 1963, Madona, Latvia) studied direction at the Latvian Academy of Culture and the Tisch School of the Arts in New York. He directed the shorts Never Let the Turkey Get You Down (2000), The Vision of Patricia M Logan (2000), Work (2001) and Agent Madly in Love (2002).

Janis Putnins (b. 1967, Riga) took courses in direction and media studies in the USA. He made the short film Sisyphus Said Yes (1992), the medium-length Investigation of Related Events (1993), the documentary Latvia So Close (1999) and his feature debut Hide and Seek (2001).

Janis Kalejs (b. 1965, Riga) attended the Latvian Conservatoire, then studied at Riga Motion Picture Studio. He made the film Matin dans une Forêt de Pins.