The Riga City Council’s “Rīdzinieks of the Year 2024” award was presented this year to filmmaker Gintas Zilbalodis for outstanding achievements in the creation of animation art, promoting Riga and Latvia’s name recognition in the world, told Riga City Council.
The chairman of the Riga City Council Viļnis Ķirsis (JV) says that Zilbalož’s moving film “Straume” has already received recognition from ordinary viewers and cinema professionals.
Kirsis wishes that, in addition to the awards that “Straumes” has received so far, it will also receive the award of the European Film Academy and an Oscar statue.
Zilbalodis said in his video speech that he could not come to the concert in Riga because he is at a film festival in Spain and plans to go to New York soon, because the movie “Stream” will start appear in cinemas in the US.
Zilbalodis expressed gratitude for the honor of being chosen as City of the Year in Riga.
He confirmed that most of the film “Straume” was made by a relatively small crew in Riga, and the film has now traveled around the world.
“I want to thank everyone who supported me, I feel encouraged and the whole team is motivated. We are ready to continue our work and start the next project that will continue to bring the name of Latvia to the world,” emphasized Zilbalodis.
Gints Zilbalodis is an animator, film director and artist. His latest animated film “Straume” has been a great success with 100,000 viewers in Latvia and 16 international awards, including a victory at the animation film festival “Animation is Film” in Los Angeles, where the film won the main jury prize.
At the same time, during the solemn meeting, four Letters of Recognition from the Riga City Council were also awarded.
Among them, Raimonds Strokšs received a letter of commendation for creating the biggest motor sports festival in Riga and popularizing the capital of Latvia in the world. Juris Dambis also received a letter of commendation for his professional and long-term work in preserving Riga’s cultural and historical values.
Inese Grandāne received a letter of commendation for her significant contribution to the preservation of the cultural and historical heritage, researching the history of Riga and popularizing it among children and young people. In addition to a certificate of commendation Jurģis Cābulis was awarded for his significant contribution to promoting the international success of the mixed choir of the Riga Dome Choir School and the Riga Youth Choir “Kamēr…”, instilling Latvian cultural values in the young Riga and bringing the name of the capital of Latvia to the world.
A person of any nationality and nationality who has reached the age of 18 and who has contributed to the recognition of Riga and attracted public attention to the capital of Latvia with his talent and work can apply for the city award “Rīdzinieks of the Year”. Anyone from Riga could apply for the award.
To date, the “Rīdzinieks of the Year” award has been received by famous scientists, musicians, athletes, artists and representatives of other professions.
2024-11-18 17:41:00
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In what ways do you think awards like “Rīdzinieks of the Year” influence the perception of Riga’s artistic community on an international level?
We would like to conduct an interview with you about the Riga City Council’s “Rīdzinieks of the Year 2024” award ceremony and your recent success with the movie “Straume”. Could you share with us your experience of receiving this prestigious award and how it feels to be recognized on an international stage? Also, we would appreciate your thoughts on the importance of animation art in promoting Riga and Latvia’s name recognition worldwide.
Could you please tell us more about your creative process behind “Straume” and how you managed to capture the hearts of both viewers and cinema professionals? Additionally, what challenges did you encounter during the production, and how did your team overcome them? Furthermore, we would like to know about your plans for the future and any upcoming projects you are working on that will continue to showcase Latvia’s cultural heritage to the world.
Lastly, we would love to hear from you about the other award recipients and their contributions to promoting Riga’s cultural and historical values. How do you see the future of Riga’s cultural scene, and what role do you think initiatives like “Rīdzinieks of the Year” play in fostering a vibrant and diverse arts community?
