TASSE FILM is very grateful to the the building materials, garden and household goods chain DEPO for being the general sponsor of our upcoming series SOVIET JEANS. Without their support, we would not have been able to carry out this magnificent work. SOVIET JEANS will be available to viewers early next year. 

www.depo.lv 

On 28 September, Ilze Kunga-Melgale's first feature film "My Freedom" premiered at Forum Cinemas.

Based on historical events, "My Freedom" tells the story of the late 1980s in Latvia - a time of awakening, when the winds of change were in the air. The prototype of the protagonist is one of the brightest stars of the revival period - the Polish social activist, journalist and politician Ita Kozakevica, in the film Alicija. The main role in the film is played by the actress Ērika Eglija-Grāvele from the Dailes Theatre.
The film is made in collaboration with Lithuanian co-producers M-Films and producer Marija Razgute. The film was supported by Creative Europe MEDIA, National Film Centre of Latvia, Lithuanian Film Centre and State Culture Capital Foundation.

In October 2022 we have finished shooting a short film by Ieva Norvele, based on a story by a Latvian writer Inga Gaile- Miru Falls in Love.

At the day of the premiere Miru, an assistant to probably the best theatre director in the whole Europe, has a long list of things to do: find missing props, take her two year old daughter to her grandmother, who’s not that keen to babysit, escort a young actress to a radio interview and manage her panic attack on the way. On top of it all Kaspich, one of the main actors of the play, is nowhere to be found. As his ex-girlfriend and the mother of his daughter, Miru takes it upon herself to find him. Meanwhile every bird in the city has conspired against her: on this day every birdsong Miru hears is about her inadequacy, guilt and inferiority complexes. Will Miru manage to do it all and single handedly save the theatre premiere?

Staņislavs Tokalovs’ sophomore feature Loveable which was released in Latvia in September 2022, will have its international premiere in Tallinn this November, after previously featuring in I@T&BE’s Works in Progress programme. Lead actor Karlis Arnolds Avots will participate in this year’s Black Nights Stars programme for young Baltic Sea acting talents. The plot sees a wayward younger man confronting the challenges and opportunities of new single-parenthood.

Bogdan George Apetri offers a rare, gripping Romanian thriller that tells an unpredictable, violent story while commenting on Romanian society.

The film was produced by The East Company Productions (Romania), and co-produced by Cineart TV Prague (Czech Republic) and Tasse Film (Latvia).

Karlovy Vary International Film Festival has announced their competition programmes. We are happy to announce that our co- production with Czech Republic and the Netherlands "A Certain Kind of Silence" has been selected for the East of the West competition.

 June has been an award season for Oleg - Juris Kursietis drama Oleg received National Grand Prix at the Brussels International Film Festival. Jury comments: "We were captured by a descent into hell, by a mise en scène that fuses form and substance by aligning a disturbing acting duo, inside a machiavellian relationship, giving a vivid claustrophobic portrait of contemporary Europe." Oleg also was praised in the Valleta Film Festival where it received the Best Narrative Feature Film Award. The jury lead by European Film Academy managing director Marion Döring had this to say: “For taking us us on an insightful journey into the underworld of a European reality with a uniquely visceral and honest approach, fueled by outstanding performances and a whirlwind narrative.”

“Dzīve pārtraukta” ir pazīstamās īsfilmu un dokumentālo filmu režisores Ilzes Kungas-Melgailes pirmā pilnmetrāžas spēlfilma.

Filma vēsta par brīvdomīgu un uzņēmīgu jaunu sievieti, kura nonākusi skaudrās attiecību un politisko ideālu krustugunīs. Stāsts norisinās laikā no 1988. līdz 1990. gadam – gaisā virmo Atmodas gars.  Galvenās varones prototips ir jaunā Latvijas poļu žurnāliste un politiķe Ita Kozakēviča, viena no Latvijas Atmodas laika spožākajām zvaigznēm. Viņas mūžs aprāvās netaisnīgi strauji – vien 35 gadu vecumā, liekot uzdot jautājumus, ko šī sieviete būtu paveikusi, ja būtu dzīva. 

Kā galveno lomu atveidotāji izvēlēti Ērika Eglija-Grāvele, Andris Morkāns un Gints Grāvelis. Filmas veidotāju komandā ir operators ir Maksims Efross no Sanktpēterburgas, mākslinieks Jurģis Krāsons, kostīmu māksliniece Līga Krāsone. savukārt filmu producē studija “Tasse Film”, kuru pārstāv Aija Bērziņa.  

Lai filma drīzāk nonāktu pie skatītājiem, neparastajos Covid-19 pandēmijas apstākļos veiksmīgi uzfilmēts pirmais filmas pieteikuma video rullītis – tīzeris, kas tiks iesniegts Nacionālā Kino centra konkursam par atbalsta piešķiršanu filmas turpināšanai 2021. gadā. Projekta attīstīšanu ir atbalstījis Valsts Kultūrkapitāla fonds. Filmas pirmizrāde iecerēta 2022. gada rudenī!

On May 17th Juris Kursietis drama "Oleg" premiered at the 51st Director's Fortnight as a part of the 72nd Cannes Film Festival.

Present in Cannes was the director Juris Kursietis, actors Valentin Novopolskij, Dawid Ogrodnik, Anna Prochniak, Guna Zariņa, Adam Szyszkowski, the DOP Bogumil Godfrejow, production designer Laura Dišlere, producers Aija Bērziņa, Alise Ģelze, as well as other team members.

The film has already received favorable reviews from international press, such as Hollywood Reporter, Screen Daily, Cineurope and others. "Oleg" will premiere in Latvia on October 4th.

On May 21st J-P Valkeapää drama "Dogs Don't Wear Pants" premiered at the 51st Director's Fortnight as a part of the 72nd Cannes Film Festival.   

"Dogs Don't Wear Pants" is co-production between Helsinki Filmi and Tasse Film. This is the second film of Tasse Film to premiere at the Director's Fortnight.  "Dogs Don't Wear Pants"  is a story about Juha, who has lost his wife in a drowning accident. Years after he still feels numb and unable to connect with people. Meeting Mona, a dominatrix, changes everything. Dogs Don’t Wear Pants is a darkly humorous story of loss, love and the sweet pain of being.

Oleg, a movie by Juris Kursietis and co-produced by Latvia, Belgium, Lithuania and France, was on April 23 included among the films represented in the Directors’ Fortnight, a parallel section of the Cannes Film Festival running from May 15 to 25.

Oleg (Latvian: Oļegs) tells the true story of an eponymous Latvian non-citizen, a butcher by trade. He goes to Belgium to work but becomes enslaved by Polish thugs. The film chronicles his attempt to flee these unbearable circumstances.

It casts a multi-national ensemble of actors, including Valentin Novopolskij, Dawid Ogrodnik, Anna Próchniak, Adam Szyszkowski, Guna Zariņa, and Edgars Samītis.

Directors' Fortnight is a parallel section of the Cannes Film Festival, established in 1969. Up until now, Laila Pakalniņa's and Rolands Kalniņš' films have been included in the festival, but Oleg is the first Latvian movie to be included in the parallel prize.

Oleg will premiere in Latvia on October 4.

Kursietis' (1983) previous feature film, Modris (2016), received a number of accolades in his native Latvia and abroad.

Mihael Idov's debute film "The Humorist", which was co-produced by Tasse Film, premiered on 22nd of April in Riga.  "The Humorist" is a fictional story of one of the most famous stand-up comedians in Soviet Union and his battle with both his inner demons and Soviet regime, using dark  humor as his armor.To the premiere arrived both  the director Mihail Idov and the actor of the main role - Aleksej Agranovich. 

The Tasse Film project - Staņislavs Tokalovs film "Lovable", which currently is in development, for the film's production has received funding from the National Film Center.

More information - http://nkc.gov.lv/finansejums/konkursu-rezultati/ 

Proud and happy to announce that Vilis Daudziņš has won the Best Actor in the National film award "Lielais Kristaps" for the film "Foam At The Mouth".

Actor Vilis Daudzins travelled all the way to Astana (Kazahstan) to represent the film "Foam at The Mouth" (directed by Jānis Nords) at "Euroasia International Film Festival".

Producers Alise Gelze and Aija Berzina receiving “Film Critic’s Award” from “Moscow International Film Festival” for the film Ar putām uz lūpām (directed by Janis Nords).

The first period of production for Juris Kursietis' feature "Oleg" has started. "Oleg" tells a story about a butcher who leaves Riga for Brussels in order to earn a decent salary at a local meat factory, yet his hopeful life turns into a desperately hopeless one, when he gets under the control of polish criminal Andrzej.

"Oleg" is set as a coproduction between Latvia ("Tasse Film"), Lithuania ("In script") and Belgium ("Iota Productions").

Our co-production projects "Humorist" directed/written by Michael Idov and "The Sonata" directed by Andrew Desmond started the production in September.

"Humorist" is a feature film about the Soviet stand-up comedian Boris Arkadiev and is Russian (Metrafilms), Czech (Sirena Films) and Latvian (Tasse Film) co-production.

"The Sonata" is a supernatural thriller produced by "The Project" (France), "CTB Film Company" (Russia), "Featuristic Films" (UK) and "Tasse Film" (Latvia).

Family film "Paradise 89" (directed and written by Madara Dišlere) will be presented at "First Look on Baltic Cinema" (August 4th - 6th) - the Locarno Festival initiative aiming to showcase films in post-production.

Last friday "Mellow Mud" received "Best European Film" prize at "Prifest International Film Festival" in Kosova. Producer Aija Berzina represented the film in awards ceremony.

Feature film "Mellow Mud" directed by Renārs Vimba receives national award "Lielais Kristaps" for the best film in 2016.

Film "Mellow Mud" (directed by Renars Vimba) collecting  one more achievement -Audience Award on the 31st Independent Film Festival Osnabruck, Germany. 

Short film "Gardener" (directed by Madara Dišlere) recieves Format Court prize at Brest 31th European Short Film Festival.

We are proud that our feature film "Mellow Mud" (directed by Renars Vimba) won Grand Prix by International Jury at CinEast Luxemburg Film Festival.

The national premiere of Katrīna Neiburga's debut short documentary "Garages" will be on 13th of October in "Splendid Palace", the tickets are available on www.bilesuserviss.lv

Our feature film "Mellow Mud" (directed by Renars Vimba) has received 11 nomination for National Film Award "Lielais Kristaps" - Best Film, Best Director, Best Script, Best Director, Best Cinematographer, Best Actress, Best Actor, Best Production Designer, Best Costume Designer, Best Editor. The award ceremony will take place in "Splendid Palace" on 12th of October.

We have started the shooting period of our second feature film "FOAM AT THE MOUTH" (directed by Janis Nords). Release of the film is planned in 2017.