On Sunday, 18 July, New Zealanders will have the opportunity to enjoy a selection of award-winning short and feature-length films from Lithuania. Held for the first time and organised by a team of Lithuanian expats, the Lithuanian Film Festival will shine a spotlight on the rich cinematic stories from this Northeastern European nation. The festival will be held at Academy Cinema and six films will be screened over the course of the day.
The programme consists of two award-winning documentaries, the best Lithuanian film of 2020 and an exciting short animation for children. Audiences will be invited to two LIVE Q&A sessions with film directors. After the screening of animation, the children are invited to join a special event with the comedy magician Andy Wonder and experience his super spectacular Magic Show.
KIDS& FAMILY PROGRAMME:
10:30 AM - (37min)
The KIDS & FAMILY programme will present three short award-winning animated films. The Best European short film for children of 2020 MATILDA AND THE SPARE HEAD introduces us to a girl who wants to be the smartest person in the world. MILKSHAKE BAR tells a story about modern families, true friendship and cinnamon. The Best Lituanian animated film of 2017, RUNNING LIGHTS, provides a fantastic and picturesque answer to the question, “What is death?”. After the screening, the children and their parents are invited to meet with the magician Andy Wonder.
DOCUMENTARIES PROGRAMME:
12.00 PM - THE ANCIENT WOODS (64min)
The Best Lithuanian Documentary of 2018 THE ANCIENT WOODS was filmed for four years in one of the last remaining patches of old growth forest in Lithuania, where the boundaries of time melt and poetry is born. The film became the most popular documentary in Lithuanian film history and received numerous international awards. The festival will screen a shorter children’s version of the film so kids can visit the wolves’ caves, black storks’ nests and other natural wonders of the ancient forest.
2.00 PM - THE JUMP (85 min)
The newest award-winning documentary THE JUMP tells the story of Lithuanian sailor Simas Kudirka who in 1970 jumped off a Soviet vessel to board a US coast guard cutter, in search of asylum. His leap for freedom set off a chaotic series of events in the Cold War period. Director Giedre Zickyte will take us on this stranger-than-fiction journey that had stirring outcry in the world media reaching all the way to the White House.
THE BEST LITHUANIAN FILM OF 2020:
5.00 PM - NOVA LITUANIA (96min)
NOVA LITUANIA is a period drama which takes place during the interwar period and tells a story of real-life geographer Feliksas Gruodis, who had an original idea to create a “backup Lithuania” in Africa by establishing a Lithuanian colony overseas. The film won the Best Lithuanian Film of 2020 at National Film Awards
$2 per hour to a max of $12 on weekends and a $12 flat rate for weekday evenings at The Civic car park. Find out more.