Dream Land

Colour, 35 mm
Latvia, 2004, 30 min
Section: Documentary Films in Competition

Synopsis

There are places that, given an initial fleeting glance, won’t surprise anyone. But if you spend a day, a week, a month, or even a whole year there, you’ll be rewarded with a rare beauty which will simply take your breath away. Laila Pakalnina chose a rubbish dump as the setting for her new film. Her visual compositions without human voices, capturing one day in the lives of the inhabitants of a slumbering refuse site – mammals, reptiles, birds and insects – have existential value as an account of life and death in a specific place.

About the director

Laila Pakalnina (1962, Liepaja, Latvia) studied journalism (1986) and film direction (VGIK, 1991). She has made many documentary films, along with two feature films. Selected filmography: The Ferry (1994, doc.), The Oak (1997, doc.), The Shoe (1998, feature), Papa Gena (2001, doc.), The Python (2003, feature), The Bus (2004, doc.). Her films have won numerous awards both at home and abroad (e.g. the FIPRESCI prize at Cannes for the film The Ferry).