On Lāčpleš day, 11 November, the autobiographical film “Janvāris” by Viesturs Kairis will be premiered on the screens of Latvian cinemas. In anticipation of the premiere, the film’s creators offer a look at the series of behind-the-scenes photos taken during its creation and reveal interesting facts about the nuances of filming the film.
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The inspiration was born in two important conversations
Although “Janvāris” is the story of one of the most important moments in the recent history of Latvia – the time of the barricades, the director Viesturs Kairiss admits that the film is about the struggle for freedom of the Latvian people at the time, but at the same time it is the story of the growth of a young cinematographer.
“On the one hand it is a super-personal film, on the other not. A lot has happened to me, not a lot. But nothing is invented. It is not an autobiographical film in the classic sense, but I would say it is emotionally autobiographical”, says Viesturs Kairišs.
The idea of the film is rooted in two conversations: Viestura Kairis ‘conversation with composer Arturas Maskats and the producer’s conversation with Jura Podnieks’ granddaughter, Alisa Podnieci.
“After the filming of the film” Melania’s Chronicle “, in a conversation with Alisa Podnieci, we talked about the fact that the time has come for a film about January 1991, which was a historical turning point for several generations of Latvia. Time has passed , and we talked to Viestura Kairis, who had her own memories of that period, and work started on the script created in collaboration with Estonian screenwriters Līvija Ulmani and Andri Feldmani, “recalls Inese Boka-Grūbe, producer of the film studio Mistrus Media, the beginning of the making of the film four years ago.
A meeting of old friends
More than 500 people from both the Riga and Latvian regions participated in the mass shooting; those who were on the barricades in their youth and wanted to meet again and return to the feelings of then, and young people who only heard stories about the barricades from their parents. Filming for the film took place between late 2020 and early 2021, restoring the atmosphere of the barricades in Old Riga and filming in Vilnius.
Since the film was shot during a pandemic, it was impossible to gather thousands of mass viewers and creative solutions had to be found by looking at the archive and thinking about how we see this material or how it is remembered. The artistic solution of the film was created in the reconstruction of the era of the barricades, drawing inspiration from the 1991 materials of the cameraman Zigurdas Vidin, the journalist Ilze Strenga, the cameramen Kristaps Liepiņš and Aleksandar Demčenko.
The weather color of the barricades is gray
Film artist Ieva Jurjāne studied at the Latvian Academy of Art during the barricades and wrote a diary every day. She was guided by it, restoring the environment of that time in the film. You have sought above all those details that express the desire for freedom and escape of young people.
On the other hand, the main makeup artist Ilze Trumpe remembers many gray colors: “Everything is gloomy, gray, without colors. There is no such modern order. For example, there is no hair conditioner. The hair is not bright. And it’s for everyone. And as soon as it’s for everyone, the whole mass of people looks gray, tired. We made sure there weren’t many colors in the environment. That there are six colors like pencils. Not, say, thirty.
The series of behind-the-scenes photos show the work of director Viesturs Kairis on set, as well as the actors Source by Carl ArnoldAlise Dzene, Baiba Broka, Lauris Dzelzītis and others, hearing the historical events of 1991.
The film tells of young filmmakers during the 1991 barricades, when they become involved in the political events taking place in Riga, trying to get close to them and at the same time looking for their own visual language. The film was shot in the “Mistrus Media” film studio, its cameraman is Vojcehs Starons, artist – Ieva Jurjāne, costume designer – Rūta Lečaite, make-up artist – Ilze Trumpe, composer – Juste Janulīte, producers – Inese Boka-Grūbe and Gints Grūbe.
The film will be screened in cinemas across Latvia and several special screenings are scheduled until November 20, during which there will be a meeting with the directors and actors.
A story of international resonance
“Janvāris” is a joint production of Latvia, Lithuania and Poland. “” January “is a film that demonstrates that history can be told in an intelligent, engaging and emotional way, using cultural codes that also touch the international audience. This is demonstrated by the results obtained at the festivals”, said Dita Rietuma, head of the Center National Cinema, at a press conference. “This is not just a story about history. We have many of them. The film very precisely incorporated codes of personal experience and references to the history of film culture. The essence of this is a film that is consciously written in the context of cinema. In my opinion, this is also one of the reasons why it is aimed at an international and professional audience “.
The film has already received wide international interest: the world premiere took place at the Tribeca Film Festival in the United States, where the film won the award for best foreign film, several prizes were also won at the Warsaw Film Festival and at the Rome International Film Festival. This autumn, the film’s journey will continue in many European and Asian festivals: on the evening of November 18, the film will be screened at the Black Nights film festival in Tallinn, and in December the premiere will take place in France, at the “Les Arcs Film Festival” , as well as a special screening of Oscar-nominated films at the “Scandinavian House” cinema in New York.
