The beneficiaries of the first round of the Estonian Film Institute’s project funding for 2022 have been announced, with two feature films and four minority co-productions receiving funding. The grants given to the two features amount to €1.16 million and are divided between 2022 and 2023, while the minority co-productions receive €410 000 in total.

€660 000 went to the feature Lioness directed by Liina Trishkina-Vanhatalo. The film is described as a psychological thriller that exposes motherly love from a startlingly new perspective. With a script that is inspired by real events, Trishkina-Vanhatalo explains that: “I was intrigued by the idea of how far a mother would go to bring her child back from the brink of destruction.”

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With the film’s focus on parenthood, Trishkina-Vanhatalo continues to explore themes that she first visited in her 2018 debut fiction feature Take It Or Leave It [+leggi anche:
recensione
trailer
scheda film]. That film had a healthy run on the festival circuit, screening at the likes of Warsaw, Cottbus, Palm Springs, Göteborg and Seattle, and was also the Estonian Academy Award submission for 2019.

Lioness, which won Best Project Award at Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival's Co-Production Market in 2021, has a budget of €1.5 million and is produced by Tallinn based Allfilm.

€500 000 were allocated to the film Dog directed by Rasmus Merivoo. Taking place in Estonia in the near future, the film takes a bold look at the nature of hypocrisy and conformity in modern society. The allegorical tale will be the latest film from Merivoo whose previous effort was Kratt [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Rasmus Merivoo
scheda film], the well-regarded, dark children’s fantasy which screened at the likes of Fantasia.

Dog will have a budget of €1 million and is produced by Tallifornia.

Speaking about the two features receiving EFI funding, Piret Tibbo-Hudgins, EFI’s Head of Production said: “These two narratives are completely different from each other, but they have one thing in common – both are taking an unflinching and original look at society.”

For the minority co-productions, €80 000 went to the Finnish-Estonian co-production Orenda directed by Pirjo Honkasalo, perhaps best known for the 2004 documentary feature Three Rooms of Melancholia. The Estonian co-producer is Allfilm. 

Another Finnish-Estonian project is Never Alone, which will be director Klaus Härö’s follow up to his successful 2015 film The Fencer [+leggi anche:
trailer
intervista: Ivo Felt
scheda film]. The film will receive €130 000 and the Estonian producer is Taska Film.

€90 000 go to the Latvian-Estonian project Barbarians, which is Latvian director Juris Kursietis’ follow up to 2019’s Oleg [+leggi anche:
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intervista: Juris Kursietis
scheda film] which premiered in Directors’ Fortnight. The Estonian producer is Stellar Film.

French-Estonian co-production Apathy, directed by Alexandros Avranas, receives €110 000. The Estonian producer is Amrion.

The second round of feature film production grants begins on 26 April with €834 000 to be distributed. The second round for minority co-production projects begins on 13 September, with €190 000 available.