16-11-2021

FESTIVALS: Lithuania’s Techno Mama Wins 2021 Scanorama New Baltic Cinema Short Film Competition

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    Techno Mama by Saulius Baradinskas Techno Mama by Saulius Baradinskas

    VILNIUS: The Lithuanian short film Techno, Mama (2021) by Saulius Baradinskas won the best film prize in the New Baltic Cinema (NBC) competition of short films at the European Film Forum Scanorama, which took place in Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipeda and Šiauliai 4-14 November 2021.

    The winning film, selected from 19 films representing 9 countries, received a prize worth 5,000 EUR funded by the festival.

    “The award was given to a film, in which the camera talentedly and masterfully reveals the emotional impulses of the characters, realistically shows how the hate spoils a person. The constant intertwine of love and violence creates a dance that twists the heroes of Techno Mama”, said the chairman of the jury Gyda Velvin Myklebust (Norway), Head of New Nordic Films, one of the top Scandinavian film fairs. 

    The film was directed and written by Saulius Baradinskas and produced by Viktorija Seniut. The DoP was Vytautas Katkus, and the editor was Karolis Labutis. Music was by Rob Meyer, sound design by Andrius Kriščiūnas​, and production design by Daumantas Levickas. The cast included Motiejus Aškelovičius, Neringa Varnelytė, Kasparas Varanavičius, Urtė Strolaitė, and Algirdas Galkus. 

    The jury that chose the winning films also included Nanako Tsukidate (France, Japan), film critic, short film programmer at the Cannes and Venice Film Festivals and film journalist, as well as film director and producer Alina Gorlova (Ukraine).

    The New Baltic Cinema (NBC) short film competition jury also selected the experimental film Alizava (2021) by Andrius Žemaitis as the best Lithuanian short film. The film received a prize of 3,000 EUR established by the Lithuanian Film Centre. The DoP on Alizava was Andrius Žemaitis and the composer was Albertas Navickas. It was produced by Andrius Žemaitis. The cast includes Matilda Žemaitytė and Albinas Uzdanavičius.

    The festival’s industry section included a panel on legal issues for young professionals and a discussion on casting.

    Scanorama 2021 Winners:

    Best Short Film:
    Techno, Mama (Lithuania, 2021)
    Directed by Saulius Baradinskas
    Production Company Viktoria Films

    Best Lithuanian short film:
    Alizava (Lithuania,2021)
    Directed by Andrius Žemaitis
    Producer: Andrius Žemaitis