Filming will also take place in the cinema town of Cinevilla, where the facade of the Riga Latvian Society building has been reconstructed in a special way for this project. After the filming is over, it will be possible for anyone to see it. Scenes from the stairs will be shot in Straupe Castle, which will serve as a parade staircase for the needs of the film.
The young and promising composer Jēkabs Jančevskis has created a composition for a folk song Sun, sun, moon – it was written as a choral song, which is performed unanimously in the film. The soundtrack of the feature film is intended to create several new works.
“Although the great work on the soundtrack is still ahead, I had the great pleasure of being on the set on Sunday and experiencing the actors performing the song! I thought it would be a lot harder, but on a snowy night the voices warming up around the campfire sounded fabulously beautiful! ” the composer is happy to tell.
Sun, sun, moon plays a unifying function in the film. In the scenes just filmed, the heroes of the film, frustrated by the burnt rye, which has been rehearsed until then, unite in a mixed choir. Actress Marta Lovisa Jančevska and the world-famous Latvian opera diva Marina Rebeka also filmed by the fire. The lyrical heroines they portray in the film mark the plot line, which reveals the opportunities for Latvian women to self-determination provided by the Song Festival. The scenes shot in Tirza illustrate and tell the story of the Latvians of the time in the countryside, raising the issue of the role of women in society and their passion for singing both as a regular distraction in the dark winter evenings and as a healing and common activity. The filming team will continue to shoot this storyline at the end of February in Inešu parish.
Several foreign actors are participating in the feature film. An Estonian was already filmed in Tirza Priit Pius, who plays one of the main roles – conductor Jurģis. Straupe will join the cast Arūnas Valinskas from Lithuania, but in Cineville – Polish actor Bohdan Robert Graczik (Bohdan Robert Graczyk) and Alexander Okunev (Aleksandr Okunev) from Estonia. In the second stage of filming, two mass screenings will be shot in Straupe and the cinema town of Cinevilla.
“The film focuses on important aspects of the Song Festival tradition. It was a cohesive festival that brought together men’s and women’s choirs from almost all regions. The involvement of women in the first Latvian Song Festival was a progressive step at the time: It was this unification and the ability to organize quickly, make extraordinary and ambitious decisions that helped to understand who Latvians were at the time. to announce and encourage awareness of what we as a nation are capable of and what we have already done, “says Maris Martinsons, the film ‘s director, about the process of making the film.
Popular actors such as Vilis Dodiņš, Andris Bulis, Ainārs Ančevskis, Andris Keišs, Ģirts Ķesteris, Nauris Brikmanis and others will also live in the characters of the film. Co-author of the script – Dainis Īvāns.
About movies The land that sings composer Jēkabs Jančevskis takes care of the musical design. The cinematographer of the film is Jānis Jurkovskis, the costumes are created by Katrīna Liepa, and the make-up artist is Beata Rjabovska. The film is made in the studio K Movies, its producer is Linda Krūkle.
The premiere of the film is expected in 2023, marking the 150th anniversary of the General Latvian Song and Dance Festival. The film is supported by the Latvian National Film Center and the Latvian National Culture Center, the film technology partner – SIA Latvian Mobile Phone.
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