The Highway Crossing

This documentary follows a bustrip from Tallinn to Kaliningrad. A route that was so common in the Soviet times now passes through 4 different countries and crosses 3 different borders.

The film is a portraiture of an old farmer at work doing his daily chores in an area that is completely flooded. The situation is catastrophic, but for the man it is only one of the many floods he has experienced in his life.

Hendrik is a responsible public servant who is deeply in love with his beautiful wife Evelin. Evelin, however, finds their protected life boring; she wants Hendrik to do something more exciting. When he returns from his business trip, Hendrik will find his schoolmate Berg in their balcony and will furiously throw his gloves to Berg's face. Soon it will turn out that this has been the challenge accepted.

At the end of the 1920-s the Finnish government proclaimed dry law which lasted 12 years. Estonian bootleggers living on the neighboring coast of the Gulf of Finland profited from prohibition......

The Hijacker lands the plane at the Rīga Airport. 7 year-old Tom, travelling on his own, voluntarily becomes a hostage. Along with the traditional demands, the Hijacker adds the demands of the little hostage – beginning with some local chocolate and a self-instruction tape for learning the native language, and ending with organizing a Song Festival and a special biathletes’ performance – all ideas originating from a CD on Latvia.

The first autumn snow is falling. At the same time a man passes away. Death comes with the beginning of winter.

Young and active nationalist Aleksander Kesküla makes up his mind to use Lenin, the Bolsheviks' leader, in order to start a revolution in Russia with German money and create a new national state of Estonia in the north-east of Russia. For security reasons, five doubles will be found and trained for Lenin. All of them are finally sent to Russia to instigate the revolution. How will the real Lenin put up with all this?

Twenty-five films from twenty-five European countries by twenty-five European directors.

The late 1950s. Every night, Soviet tractors comb the coast of Latvia looking for signs of anyone who could have infiltrated the Soviet border from the sea. One morning, three Soviet patrolmen discover a woman’s shoe in the sand and footsteps leading to the quaint little village of Liepaja.

"Revolution of Pigs" is an adventurous youth comedy, taking place in a Woodstock-like milieu. The main character is Tanel, a 15-year-old boy, who, taking part of a youth revolt against the system, finds himself and his love.

Just like ordinary people, whole nations often wonder why their neighbors are living better than they are. For example, where did the Estonians living on Mohni Island suddenly get bicycles and sewing machines? Could the answer have some connection with the Latvian cargo ship "Rasma", which sank near Mohni in 1941?

Portrait documentary about Jüri Sillart - an innovator, an expressionist, a bright filmmaker and a warm-hearted teacher for whom cinema meant not only a professional field but his whole life. Sillart's work was acknowledged in Estonia, in the former Soviet Union and abroad. Jüri was a sharp personality with a curious mind. Life with all its manifestations was a great source of inspiration for him - everyday events, painting, photography, history of various religions, philosophical and esoterical literature, history, astronomy, mathematics - he was interested in all of this. His colleagues, students and close ones share their memories in the documentary. There are excerpts from films that Jüri Sillart has added his creative contribution to.

Various people on the street stand stock still in front of the movie camera as though their photograph were about to be taken. This lasts just a few instants, then they nod as they look into the camera and move on. A family, a group of friends, men. In the background, city noises.

As soon as I finished my first marathon, I wanted to become a tripod in order to make a film about it. That is because words are certainly not the right instruments to tell us what it’s like to run a marathon. I think we can try to show it through the characters, noises, texts, lights, the absolute physical understanding of shadows and of the sun, the water, the motions and the serenity. For those who do not practice running in marathons because they don’t want to or because they can’t, I wish to bring something from inside the marathon, out; for example, for my Mum, whose legs ache. I am acting like a spy sent into the marathon.

Argo Okk's documentary looks at Estonia in 2008.

Legendary Russian writer Sergei Dovlatov's book "The Compromise" was published at the time of the author's emigration in USA and describes the period that Dovlatov himself has called "Interior emigration" - that is the years that he spent in Tallinn, Estonia as a journalist (1972-1976). The documentary interviews the prototypes of the book, including Dovlatov's former colleagues and friends who comment on the literary work. They share background information that helps to interpret both Dovlatov's destiny as well as the essence of the Soviet era.