25/11/2025 - We focus on the six projects from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania that were featured in the 23rd edition of the showcase unspooling alongside Tallinn Black Nights

Lex Julia by Laura Hyppönen

The 23rd edition of the Baltic Event Works in Progress showcase, held during the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, highlighted six projects originating from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The three-member jury–consisting of Zadig Paloyan, international sales executive at Le Pacte; Arnon Manor, Vice President of Visual Effects at Sony Pictures; and Amaia Serrulla, Head of Films and Documentation Department at the San Sebastián International Film Festival, subsequently selected the recipient of the €7,000 Best Project Award, which ended up being Dice-ching-o-mat by Kristijonas Vildžiūnas. This prize includes €6,000 worth of services by Studio Beep and a €1,000 travel allowance. The project also received the TRT Special Prize worth €5,000. As for the Audience’s favourite, Lex Julia by Laura Hyppönen was selected.

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Here is the complete run-down of all the projects that were taking part:

Dice-ching-o-mat by Kristijonas Vildžiūnas

Dice-ching-o-mat – Kristijonas Vildžiūnas (Lithuania/Estonia/Latvia)
Producer: Uljana Kim (Studio Uljana Kim) 
Dice-ching-o-mat is a fantasy drama about Vilis, a 55-year-old scholar of Asian Studies, who finds himself trapped in a mysterious, elevator-like structure called the CUBE. When the CUBE flips, Vilis loses his memory and is instructed via intercom to leave through some red doors and find the green doors outside. His journey leads him to Vilnius during the 2020 pandemic, where he encounters his family yet feels like a stranger in his own home. Directed and written by Kristijonas Vildžiūnas (Songs for a Fox [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Džiugas Grinys
interview: Kristijonas Vildziunas
film profile]), the film combines surreal, physically challenging set pieces with a deeply emotional odyssey. The CUBE, built to resemble a worn-out Soviet elevator, becomes a metaphor for the protagonist’s mind, creating a visually inventive and introspective cinematic experience. The project is seeking sales agents, broadcasters, distributors, and festivals to complete its journey to audiences.

Lex Julia – Laura Hyppönen (Finland/Poland/Estonia/Sweden)
Producers: Merja Ritola, Essi Haukkamaa-Judge (Greenlit Productions Oy), Magdalena Zimecka, Marta Krzeptowska (Orka Film) Marianne Ostrat (Alexandra Film), Daniel Lägersten (GötaFilm)
Lex Julia is a psychological drama that follows Julia, a woman in her early thirties, who travels to her new friend Anna’s isolated island villa for a late-summer weekend. There, she recognises Anna’s husband, JP, as the man who raped her fifteen years earlier. Both Julia and JP keep their past a secret from Anna, whose unease grows as tensions escalate over the weekend. Director and screenwriter Laura Hyppönen (Live East Die Young) draws on personal experience to examine the complexity of sexual assault and the compulsive currents that drive human transgression. The story is intentionally ambiguous, reflecting the unpredictable and nuanced realities of trauma. The project is currently seeking distributors, foreign broadcasters, festivals, and gap-financing.

Kingpins by Kristians Riekstiņš

Kingpins – Kristians Riekstiņš (Latvia)
Producer: Alise Rogule (Mima Films)
Kingpins is a crime-comedy about Paula, a struggling actress who decides to rob the bowling alley where she works as a waitress–not only for the money, but to prove she is capable of more than minor roles. When the heist goes wrong, Paula must deliver the performance of a lifetime to clear her name. Directed and written by debutant Kristians Riekstiņš, the film transforms the familiar crime genre into a story about creative ambition, using the heist as a metaphor for the risks we take to be truly seen. Riekstins draws on his own experience as an aspiring creative to explore early-adulthood alienation, combining fun, suspense, and tragicomic moments. The project is seeking foreign broadcasters, distributors, co-producers, festivals, and gap-financing.

Something Real – Evar Anvelt (Estonia/Lithuania)
Producers: Andreas Kask, Esko Rips (Nafta Films)
Something Real is a thriller-drama that follows Leo, a lonely man trapped in addiction, whose search for intimacy entangles him in a brutal blackmail scheme. As the stakes escalate, a tense stand-off unfolds between guilt, control, and the desperate need for human connection. Director Evar Anvelt adapts Martin Algus's novel, who also co-wrote the screenplay, into a visually gritty, suspenseful narrative, drawing inspiration from the Safdie brothers and early Scorsese. The film contrasts two versions of Estonia–sterile, modern cityscapes reflecting emotional numbness, and crumbling lower-town streets mirroring chaos and human detachment. The project is fully financed and is seeking distributors, sales agents, and gap-financing for international release.

Mo Hunt by Eeva Mägi

Mo Hunt – Eeva Mägi (Estonia)
Producers: Eeva Mägi, Sten-Johan Lill (Kultuurikuur, Kinosaurus Film)
Mo Hunt is a psychological thriller that follows Kore, a burned-out ballerina who becomes an illegal surrogate for a lonely priest. As she pushes her body to its limits in search of redemption, her relationship with her boyfriend unravels amid a quiet storm of sacrifice, faith, and forbidden desire. In her fourth feature, writer-director Eeva Mägi (Mo Mamma [+see also:
film review
interview: Eeva Mägi
film profile]) approaches the story from personal experience, blending formal intimacy with emotionally raw performances, shot in real-life locations with a minimalist crew. The project is seeking co-producers, festivals, gap-financing, and distributors to support the completion and international rollout of the film.

The Wedding Day – Marta Elīna Martinsone (Latvia/Czech Republic)
Producer: Guntis Trekteris (Ego Media)
The Wedding Day is a musical dramedy following Kleo, a struggling theatre actress navigating toxic love, addiction, and the chaos of late nights in autumnal Riga. When the legendary director Septimuss offers her a lead in Blood Wedding, Kleo is forced to confront jealousy, blurred boundaries, and the possibility of creative rebirth. Torn between destructive passion and the chance to reclaim her artistic voice, she must step into her own power–no longer a runaway bride, but a woman choosing herself and her art. Director and screenwriter Marta Elīna Martinsone (Tizlenes) draws on her theatre background to craft a vivid, emotionally resonant musical, blending raw realism with poetic song sequences. The film is almost fully financed, and is looking for post-production services, festival selection, and sales agents.