27/02/2025 - The Baltic country’s animation sector has much more to offer, and Cartoon Movie’s Spotlight aims to prove this by showcasing three intriguing new projects by Latvian animators

Between 4 and 6 March, 16 animation directors, producers, institutional representatives, and other industry professionals will gather in Bordeaux, France, to represent the Latvian animation industry in the annual pitching and co-production forum, Cartoon Movie (read news).

Held in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, this prestigious event is one of Europe’s leading animation industry gatherings. Since 1999, it has facilitated the funding of more than 480 animated features worth €3.2 billion. Each year, over 850 industry professionals convene in Bordeaux to discover new animated features, to seek co-producers and financiers, and to secure distribution and sales deals.

Gints Zilbalodis’ Flow [+see also:
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film profile] was pitched at Cartoon Movie just three years ago, with Cineuropa among the first outlets to extensively cover its development. The Latvian-French-Belgian film began its journey in Cannes’ Un Certain Regard section last year and has since collected numerous trophies, including Annecy’s Grand Jury Prize, the Golden Globe for Best Animated Feature, and the European Film Award for Best Animated Feature. It has now been nominated for two Academy Awards: Best International Feature and Best Animated Feature.

Thanks to the global attention which Flow has drawn towards Latvian animation, the 2025 edition of the French industry gathering will celebrate the Baltic country’s artistry with a dedicated Spotlight on Latvia.

Between 5 and 6 March, three new Latvian animated features will be presented among the 55 projects selected from across Europe. The first is Born in the Jungle by Edmunds Jansons (produced by Latvia’s Atom Art, Poland’s Letko and Czech studio Hausboot), described as “a gorgeous and fascinating adventure story set in the jungle thickets.”

The second is the final instalment of Signe Baumane’s trilogy, which began with Rocks in My Pockets [+see also:
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interview: Signe Baumane
film profile] (2014) and My Love Affair with Marriage [+see also:
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film profile] (2022). Baumane’s latest effort, titled Karmic Knot, is being produced by Studio Locomotive (Latvia) and The Marriage Project (USA). Crafted in Baumane’s distinctive visual style, the film explores “the entanglements of family ties in circles of global and personal change.”

Finally, Studija Kokles will present Kārlis Vītols’ debut animated feature, The Northern Star, co-produced with France’s Yabunousagi. The film promises to be “a wonder-filled road story dedicated to the doctor, collector, and creator of the first Baltic museum, Nikolaus von Himzel.”

Meanwhile, the three production teams behind Flow - Latvia’s Dream Well Studio, France’s Sacrebleu Productions, and Belgium’s Take Five – have been nominated as European Producers of the Year at this year’s Cartoon Tributes. The awards will be voted on by industry representatives attending the event, with the winners due to be announced on 6 March.

The Spotlight on Latvia is being organised by the Latvian Animation Association, with support from the National Film Centre of Latvia and LIAA – Investment and Development Agency of Latvia.