Indrek Taalmaa
History
Indrek Taalmaa (born 9 July 1967) is an Estonian stage, television, voice, film actor, and theatre director whose career began in the early 1990s.'
Indrek Taalmaa was born and raised in the town of Viljandi. He graduated from Viljandi Secondary School No. 4 in 1985. In 1986, he entered the Drama School of the Tallinn State Conservatory (now, the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre), but was conscripted into the Soviet Army and spent two years deployed to Afghanistan during the Soviet–Afghan War.
Taalmaa's first significant television role was as Carl Danhammer in the 2005 Ilmar Raag-directed Eesti Televisioon (ETV) television film August 1991; a dramatization of the failed Soviet attempt to suppress the independence movement in Estonia. The following year, he portrayed Konstantin Päts, the first head of government, in the twelve-part ETV historical drama television mini-series Tuulepealne maa. Also, in 2006, he appeared on Finnish television in the role of Igor Golitsyn in the Tapio Piirainen-directed crime drama film Bodomin legenda.
Taalmaa began his film career in several short films and as a voice actor in animated short films in the early 1990s. His first significant film role was that of Oskar Elevant in the 1997 historical comedy Minu Leninid (All My Lenins), directed by Hardi Volmer. Other roles followed in the 2005 Rainer Sarnet-directed thriller Libahundi needus (Curse of the Werewolf) and the 2006 Elmo Nüganen-directed comedy Meeletu (Mindless); both of which were originally aired on Estonian television, then released theatrically. In 2007, he played the role of Talesh in the Peeter Simm-directed biographical drama film Georg, which chronicled the life of Estonian singer and actor Georg Ots. In 2008, he played the role of President of Estonia Konstantin Päts in the Ain Mäeots-directed Exitfilm biographical drama Taarka, based on the play of the same name by Kauksi Ülle about the difficult life of Seto folk singer Hilana Taarka.
Taalmaa has appeared in over thirty short films, animated films, and feature films. Notable appearances include roles in the 2009 Andrus Tuisk-directed road-movie Pangarööv (Bank Robbery), the 2013 René Vilbre-directed family film Väikelinna detektiivid ja valge daami saladus, the 2017 Sulev Keedus-directed drama Mehetapja/Süütu/Vari (The Manslayer/The Virgin/The Shadow), the 2017 Andres Puustusmaa-directed comedy Rohelised kassid (Green Cats), and the 2018 Moonika Siimets-directed period drama Seltsimees laps (The Little Comrade). In 2021, he appeared in the role of Landlord in the Ergo Kuld directed comedy film Jahihooaeg (Hunting Season) alongside Harriet Toompere, Mirtel Pohla and Grete Kuld. The following year, he appeared in the Ergo Kuld directed romance-drama Soo (The Bog), screen written by Martin Algus and based on the novel 1914 novel of the same name by Oskar Luts.
In 2012, when the 1994 Disney animated musical film The Lion King was dubbed into the Estonian language, Taalmaa voiced the character Pumbaa.
Indrek Taalmaa is in a long-term relationship with actress Karin Tammaru. The couple have two sons and reside in Tallinn.
Jakub
Young artist Toomas Haava returns from Paris, back to his brother's bog farm and wraps himself unintentionally in a conflict with the violent and terrifying Madjak, who is harassing a local girl, Hilda, also known as Wildcat. Enchanted by the mysterious beauty, Toomas finds himself in the middle of a fight for love.
Landlord
Eva, 45, has recently divorced and is now afraid of losing both her son and her best friend to her ex’s new young, successful and brilliant sweetheart Isabel. To win back her positions, Eva goes on a road trip with her friend Marleen and Isabel, which makes the women confront different men, comical mishaps, even more comical quarrels, real hunting and most importantly themselves, forcing them to realise in the Christmas bustle what is most precious in life.
Meelis, a modern countryman in search of his lost dog, comes upon a village where a mysterious crime has taken place. While trying to figure out the truth behind the strange events, a growing suspicion tempts to claim another victim.
Liiva Heino
Andres is a sensitive teenager raised by his strict grandparents in a small bland Soviet Estonian town. He is being bullied at school and his only friends are the drunkards, whores, and thieves living next door.
Finn
Artur is an Armenian guy who dreams about a career in filmmaking, but his grandfather wants him to take over the family wine business. When a bad review from an Estonian critic threatens to ruin the family business, Artur has to go to Tallinn to set things straight. There he meets the feisty Ingrid and things take an unexpected turn.
Uncle Artur
In the midst of Stalinist tyranny, six-year-old Leelo's mother is sent to a prison camp. Haunted by her mother's last words telling her to be a good kid, Leelo vows to be on her best behaviour in the confusing grown-up world in the hope that it will bring her mother back.
Investigator (Virgin)
The film consists of three chapters. The Manslayer takes place more than a hundred years ago. The leading character Maara is a young bride who is about to start her life in her new family. The Virgin, set in the spring of 1949, tells the story of a young woman called Elina, who has been deported from Ingria into Estonia during the previous war. The Shadow moves in the present, on the border of real life and fantasy. The main character, Luna Lee, has decided to flee from home. Is there anything besides emptiness somewhere? The film is led by the singularity of the leading character - Maara, Elina and Luna Lee are all played by the same actress.
Richard Molberg
This is a story of two old folks, who have spent most of their lives behind prison walls. Now, as seventy year old men, they have been granted amnesty. Both men have a passionate desire to change their lives according to certain plans.
Abductor
Jussi Ketola, returns to Finland from the great depression struck America only to face growing political unrest. One summer night of 1930, nationalist thugs violently abduct Ketola from his home. Beaten and forced to walk the Eternal Road towards a foreign Soviet Russia, where cruelty seems to know no end, his only dream is to return to his family cost it what it may. Hope dies last.
Aivar Lohu
In a quiet resort town Haapsalu four kids are spending their summer holidays together. Suddenly they are dragged into events that started in the 15th century in the local bishop's stronghold. The children must solve a difficult mystery of a clock robbery and they have to find a treasure that has been lost for centuries and contains a formula of making gold.
Father Üllar
Romantic country boy Lembo lives in a far away village, where men are drunkards and women are dreaming about the bright city life. Lembo has fallen in love with the village beauty Liisu and decides to propose her. The story takes an unexpected turn when Liisu's father and the vodka loving dog steps in. During one night lives and dreams will change and nothing will be like it used to be before.
Wedding Father (segment "Silver Wedding")
A three-film cassette, "Daisy Petal Game 2" looks at three different lifetimes where a person is forced to make decisions that will affect the rest of their lives. Such moments come as suddenly and dramatically as the first falling in love. How to deal with these crises in youth, early middle age and golden years?
Hannes' Father
When a former fistfighter Madis leaves the prison, he feels he will get another chance in life. Nothing can go wrong this time. Madis will be accompanied by his nephew who has something completely opposite in his mind. A game begins where both the weak and the strong get more and more opportunities.
Investigator
Seventeen-year-old Rass is growing up in an Estonian suburb. In the absence of a solid home life his family becomes a group of youngsters who are verging on being thieves. Drugs are an inseparable part of their lives, and when Rass agrees to distribute them, he gets tangled up in the narcotics trade. Small amounts suddenly become two-kilo packages that the mafia, to the misfortune of all involved, has not been paid for, and is ready to collect on by force…
Konstantin Päts
The first film in the Seto language in the world speaks about the brightest heroine of a small people, the folk singer Hilana Taarka, a woman who lived her whole life as an outcast in a small chimney-less hut; as an unmarried mother of children in poverty, begging her bread, doing odd jobs and singing. She always sang the truth, sometimes bitter, sometimes funny, sometimes cruel. She was feared, despised and coveted. Taarka sang throughout her remarkable life, throughout her fate, from a small Seto village to international fame. And she sang well. Really well. Taarka became the Mother of the Song, a legend. But as a woman, as a member of the community, the Seto people never really accepted her. Taarka - a despised woman and a worshiped singer.
Talesh
Unforgettable melodies, unique timbre and a memorable, soul-stirring voice. A mystery for women and authority for men, his talent was revered by the highest ranks of the Soviet Union and millions of ordinary people. Georg Ots took the stage when a huge country was recovering from the horrors of war, and his voice returned them faith in a bright future. Few people know what his life was really like.
Peeter
A rich businessman moves to countryside to give his life a meaning.
Marko
After being whacked on the head with a shovel, Valdis no longer shows interest in the things that used to make his life worthwhile: alcohol, techno, cars and fights. His friends desperately try to help him regain his memory, but nothing works.
Citizen
As a young woman, Claire left her hometown in disgrace. Now she is old and unimaginably rich, as for the first time she returns. The town is nearly bankrupt and in urgent need of money. Everybody hopes Clara will come to the rescue. And she will. However, there is a condition: somebody must kill the man who was her lover all those years ago.
Father of Twins
A family comedy about a 7-year-old boy, who's a devoted viking fan.
Karl Menning
Liina is a young actress at Vanemuise Theatre who gets Tiina's part in the new, postmodernist version of the play "Werewolf" by August Kitzberg. The theatre is haunted and the rehearsals seem to be cursed, artificial blood becomes real blood. The play won't be complete before the murder mystery is unsolved - and Liina is being taken back to the old theatre legends and intrigues of the past century.
Jonas von Richthoffen
Drama, Short 1999
Oskar Elevant
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?
