We’re Still Here (2013)

A documentary that chronicles twin brothers searching for their absent father in faraway Russia. Having very few leads, the twin brothers – different in character and interests – are also looking for the ties that have never bound them as closely as they would have liked.

An ordinary old folks’ home on the Latvian border – one of many, where our parents, grand-parents and other relatives spend their old age. Theirs is the generation whose prime years co-existed with the Soviet Union, and who were promised: work, give all you can, and we’ll take care when you’re old. The system changed and the reality is different. How to live in this reality, accept the current rules, or live in the past and have regrets. We will touch upon their world, and the dreams and hopes of Vilnis, Imants, Alberts and Elizabete.

Viktors is an entrepreneur with a unique offer – he has built a bar, bakery, spa, hotel and an auto-shop in a former “sovkhoz” cafeteria in the village of Lone. Viktors understands life, and that his words carry weight – almost 500 village inhabitants are now employed. Lone is a lively place both day and night, full of youths and many other businesses. Viktors is very proud.

Latvia is home to almost one fifth of the world’s population of the lesser spotted eagle, yet their number is endangered. Uģis Bergmanis is one of Latvia’s best-known ornithologists, and he does his best to save the eagles in Latvia. He also has another passion – he hunts wolves. He can sit for hours in freezing temperatures until meeting his prey eye to eye. There are many stories in this man. And some of them are going to be told.

A film documenting contemporary Latvian reality along the banks of the river Gauja while channelling one of the first Latvian sound documentary films, Gauja (1934). “Along with producers Sandijs Semjonovs and Gundars Rēders and editor Atis Klimovičs, we witnessed incidents and events along the banks of the river some 80 years later. We captured them along with the views of folks on this river in a documentally poetic style reflecting the reality in Latvia,” explains director Mārtiņš Grauds.

For two months, the third-grade students at Cēsis’ New Primary School have been plan-ning and organizing their own graduation ceremony. Throughout this process, the teach-ers are only there to help, trusting in the children’s wisdom, responsibility and ability to organize themselves, make decisions and follow through. Preparations for the celebration involve all the school subjects, turning the school into a place of exciting discovery, where children learn by doing things that are important to them. They enthusiastically live life in the here and now, in all its difficulties and joy.

An attempt to understand the people chanting "Atlaist Saeimu!" (Sack the parliament!) year after year. Though rarely attracting a great deal of notice, there are always individuals collecting signatures for a referendum to dissolve the parliament for one reason or another, or simply standing outside the building and reciting their familiar mantra. Latvian governments change fairly often, but the parliament has been dissolved in line wth the Constitution only once, in 2010 (in 1934 it was dissolved unconstitutionally following a coup by Prime Minister Kārlis Ulmanis). The actual parliament building in Old Rīga was, however, attacked in January 2009 during a very rare violent protest which precipitated the fall of Ivars Godmanis' cabinet. The documentary zips back and forth in time giving portraits of various different people and political forces pushing the idea to "Atlaist Saeimu" for different reasons.

Six theater and hip hop teachers take on a five month challenge to show the Latvian public that young men behind bars are more than just that. While seeming impatient, full of disbelief and even rude at first, it turns out to be a superficial impression given off by their masks that must be kept on at all time as an underage colony is a difficult place to be. It has its own rules and it’s not easy being creative there. Teachers help inmates reveal the talents within them that help transcending the monotony of the prison walls.

The heroine is a widow and a fiancé who wants to begin a new and happy life. Conflicts in her family’s past prevent it, but she does not give up – she wants to clear away the ruins and do what she can. “Enough of looking for guilt, it’s time to find a solution,” she thinks, and takes action.

Nearly everybody has been to the circus to laugh about clowns, be afraid of the lions and to eat sugar cane. However, can anyone imagine that circus artists reside right there in the circus building - above the arena in the second floor hotel rooms - where they also prepare meals, do their laundry and try out their magic tricks? For over 125 years, despite the discomfort of non-renovated premises and ubiquitous animal odor, local and foreign circus artists follow their routine to create the circus miracle. Sugarcane, Coati and Monowheel is a film about those who dwell in Riga Circus and about what happens outside the arena before and after meeting audience under the circus dome.

Prayer for a Home shows how everyone needs shelter and a home – people in Latvia, Europe and troubled regions throughout the world. The film relates the story of the distinguished Latgalian poet Anna Rancāne and her family – her daughter Terēze, her grandson Daniel, and Daniel’s father, Dara Muhammad Ali – who are trying to stick together despite unfortunate circumstances. Even though Terēze and Anna are Catholic, while Dara is a Muslim from Kurdistan, their love transcends religious, national and cultural prejudice. However, due to circumstances beyond their control, the family is not destined to remain together, despite doing everything they can to stay close.

“Hike '44" is a personal story by director Lauris Abele and cinematographer Marcis Abele about how to maintain humanity when the world falls apart. The protagonist of the film, Melita Abele (89), retraces her refugee path from 1944, when, at the age of 14, she had to leave her home at the beginning of winter. Asking strangers for shelter, spend nights in the woods until she found refuge and warm hearts. Through the use of animation, the viewer will be guided through Melita's memories on a journey through recent and present-day Latvia until a series of events brings Melita to what she has been trying to accomplish for 75 years.

The documentary “Residents” probes problems in Latvia in general and Latvia’s medicine in particular with the story of two energetic young interns, Kārlis and Laura.

After receiving an edict from the municipal authorities about the closing of their school, the students at Mežvidi primary school continue to attend lessons and exercise creativity and fun, but it’s all clouded in a sense of fatality. They aren’t many students, and because of that the school resembles a large family rather than an institution. Near the Russian border, deep in the Latgale region, this place will become a nowhere-land once the youth depart. In an intimate message about a national problem, the story focuses on three sisters for whom life is about to drastically change. Through their daily lives and small adventures we try to understand the real meaning of the contention that “the countryside is dying”. And we see hope.

"If a person doesn't go to church anymore, then the church should go to them," says Rinalds, a calm, smiling, young man with a good sense of humor. He is a priest from a small village in Latgale, Latvia's easternmost and poorest region, and the documentary Prīsters (The Priest) follows the routines of his daily life, his thoughts of life and religion and why he chose this path for himself.

Vārdotājas (Wordsmiths) traces the recent rise of women's stand-up comedy in Latvia, but it is by no means just for laughs. Feelings of discomfort, shame, shock, are just some of the subjects tackled.

Lords of Riga allows to see an insight into a passionate subculture of bike couriers. Weaving their way through the urban traffic, they have become silent and sometimes unnoticed witnesses of everyday life in Riga as well as examples of our modern-day society. What is freedom to this bunch of rebellious messengers and where it ends?

Director Aija Bley's "Brīva Vieta - T17" captures the unique testimony of the modern era of Riga - the life of "antisquoters". The film tells about the daily life and dreams of the youth community and a mute fish, the so-called commune T17. The community lives in a non-landscaped building, so its occupation is a real challenge. The house is located under the paspārns of the association " Free Riga ", whose movement is based on a responsible attitude towards nature and the careful use of resources. Here, the community is motivated by the conviction that so few resources in everyday life should be consumed in the urban environment. The film follows the everyday life of the community members, who use their lifestyle to use the resources of nature, material, culture and time.

In this film a young man and his curmudgeonly grandfather are going 1,800 km to northern Russia in an old Zhiguli car, hoping to find the grave of their great-grandfather, who was deported. The grandfather Andris is sceptic over the lofty quest, initiated by his grand-son, as it’s not known what awaits them at their destination. Andris thinks they won’t find anything and will come back to Latvia without ever learning what happened to his father. However ever-optimistic Kārlis wants to use the journey not only to find answers about the past but also become closer to his grandfather who raised him. They both lost their parents as children.

The documentary chronicles the life stories of two brothers, Kristaps and Krists. Kristaps, the elder brother, is disabled and has trouble talking, but he can rap. His younger brother Krists is one of the best freestyle BMX bikers in Latvia.

Um ladrão que rouba segredos corporativos por meio do uso da tecnologia de compartilhamento de sonhos, recebe a tarefa inversa de plantar uma ideia na mente de um Diretor Executivo.

Com o nosso tempo no planeta Terra a aproximar-se do fim, uma equipa de exploradores é enviada na missão mais importante da história da humanidade: viajar para além da nossa galáxia para descobrir se a humanidade tem futuro entre as estrelas.

Baseado no anti-herói não convencional da Marvel Comics, Deadpool conta a história da origem do ex-agente das Forças Especiais que se tornou o mercenário Wade Wilson. Depois de ser submetido a um desonesto experimento que o deixa com poderes de cura acelerada, Wade adota o alter ego de Deadpool. Armado com suas novas habilidades e um senso de humor negro e distorcido, Deadpool persegue o homem que quase destruiu sua vida.

Com o Tenente Jim Gordon e o Procurador-geral Harvey Dent, Batman decide destruir o crime organizado. Mas surge um criminoso em ascensão, Joker, que leva Gotham à anarquia e força o Dark Knight a ficar perto de passar de herói a vigilante.

Homem de Ferro, Thor, Hulk e os Vingadores se unem para combater seu inimigo mais poderoso, o maligno Thanos. Em uma missão para coletar todas as seis pedras infinitas, Thanos planeja usá-las para infligir sua vontade maléfica sobre a realidade.

Loki, o irmão de Thor, ganha acesso ao poder ilimitado do cubo cósmico ao roubá-lo de dentro das instalações da S.H.I.E.L.D. Nick Fury, o diretor desta agência internacional que mantém a paz, logo reúne os únicos super-heróis que serão capazes de defender a Terra de ameaças sem precedentes. Homem de Ferro, Capitão América, Hulk, Thor, Viúva Negra e Gavião Arqueiro formam o time dos sonhos de Fury, mas eles precisam aprender a colocar os egos de lado e agir como um grupo em prol da humanidade.

Apesar de não ter mais os movimentos da perna, o ex-fuzileiro naval Jake Sully ainda sente que pode ser um guerreiro. Sua intuição começa a se tornar realidade quando ele viaja anos-luz até a estação espacial montada no Planeta Pandora. Habitado por grandes seres azuis, os Na´vi, o local tem uma atmosfera fatal para qualquer terrestre. Por isso, oficiais criaram o programa Avatar, em que um corpo biológico, híbrido de humano e Na´vi, pode ser comandado a distância.

Após os eventos devastadores de "Vingadores: Guerra Infinita", o universo está em ruínas devido aos esforços do Titã Louco, Thanos. Com a ajuda de aliados remanescentes, os Vingadores devem se reunir mais uma vez a fim de desfazer as ações de Thanos e restaurar a ordem no universo de uma vez por todas, não importando as consequências.

Abduzido da Terra quando ainda era criança, Peter Quill fez carreira como saqueador e se auto denominou "Senhor das Estrelas". Quando rouba uma esfera, na qual o poderoso vilão Ronan, da raça kree, está interessado, passa a ser procurado por vários caçadores de recompensas. Para escapar do perigo, Quill une forças com quatro personagens fora do sistema: Groot, uma árvore humanóide (Vin Diesel), a sombria e perigosa Gamora, o guaxinim rápido no gatilho Rocket Racoon e o vingativo Drax, o Destruidor. A esfera roubada é capaz de mudar o destino de todo o universo.

Isolado, intimidado e desconsiderado pela sociedade, o fracassado comediante Arthur Fleck inicia seu caminho como uma mente criminosa após assassinar três homens em pleno metrô. Sua ação inicia um movimento popular contra a elite de Gotham City, da qual Thomas Wayne é seu maior representante.

Um homem deprimido que sofre de insônia conhece um estranho vendedor de sabonetes chamado Tyler Durden. Eles formam um clube clandestino com regras rígidas onde lutam com outros homens cansados de suas vidas mundanas. Mas sua parceria perfeita é comprometida quando Marla chama a atenção de Tyler.

Pulp Fiction retrata três histórias interligadas que seguem as desventuras de dois assassinos baratos, da insinuante mulher do seu patrão e de um desesperado boxeur em fuga.

Django é um escravo negro alforriado que, sob a tutela de um caçador de recompensas alemão, se torna num mercenário e parte para encontrar e libertar a sua esposa, ainda escrava, das garras de Calvin Candie, um inescrupuloso proprietário de uma plantação no Mississíppi onde escravas são negociadas como objetos sexuais e escravos são colocados para lutar até à morte.

Em 1946, Andy Dufresne, um banqueiro jovem e bem sucedido, tem a sua vida radicalmente modificada ao ser condenado por um crime que nunca cometeu, o homicídio de sua esposa e do amante dela. Ele é mandado para uma prisão que é o pesadelo de qualquer detento, a Penitenciária Estadual de Shawshank, no Maine. Lá ele irá cumprir a pena perpétua. Andy logo será apresentado a Warden Norton, o corrupto e cruel agente penitenciário, que usa a Bíblia como arma de controle e ao Capitão Byron Hadley que trata os internos como animais. Andy faz amizade com Ellis Boyd Redding, um prisioneiro que cumpre pena há 20 anos e controla o mercado negro da instituição.

Harry Potter é um garoto órfão que vive infeliz com seus tios, os Dursley. Em seu aniversário de 11 anos ele recebe uma carta que mudará sua vida: um convite para ingressar em Hogwarts.

Tony Stark é um industrial bilionário, que também é um brilhante inventor. Ao ser sequestrado ele é obrigado por terroristas a construir uma arma devastadora mas, ao invés disto, constrói uma armadura de alta tecnologia que permite que fuja de seu cativeiro. A partir de então ele passa a usá-la para combater o crime, sob o alter ego do Homem de Ferro.

Através de três turbulentas décadas, Forrest cavalga numa cadeia de eventos que o levam da incapacidade física até ao estrelato no futebol, de herói do Vietnam a empresário de pesca de camarão, de honras na Casa Branca aos braços do seu verdadeiro amor. Forrest é o símbolo de uma era, um inocente à solta numa América que está a perder a sua inocência. O seu coração sabe o que o seu limitado QI não consegue saber. O seu compasso moral nunca balança. Os seus triunfos tornam-se numa inspiração para todos. Forrest Gump, é a história de uma vida.

O príncipe T'Challa retorna a Wakanda para ser coroado rei. Assumindo o manto de Pantera Negra, ele vai à caça de um vilão que roubou um precioso metal de seu país.

Em um futuro próximo, Thomas Anderson (Keanu Reeves), um jovem programador de computador que mora em um cubículo escuro, é atormentado por estranhos pesadelos nos quais encontra-se conectado por cabos e contra sua vontade, em um imenso sistema de computadores do futuro. Em todas essas ocasiões, acorda gritando no exato momento em que os eletrodos estão para penetrar em seu cérebro. À medida que o sonho se repete, Anderson começa a ter dúvidas sobre a realidade. Por meio do encontro com os misteriosos Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne) e Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss), Thomas descobre que é, assim como outras pessoas, vítima do Matrix, um sistema inteligente e artificial que manipula a mente das pessoas, criando a ilusão de um mundo real enquanto usa os cérebros e corpos dos indivíduos para produzir energia. Morpheus, entretanto, está convencido de que Thomas é Neo, o aguardado messias capaz de enfrentar o Matrix e conduzir as pessoas de volta à realidade e à liberdade.

Um artista pobre e uma jovem rica se conhecem e se apaixonam na fatídica jornada do Titanic, em 1912. Embora esteja noiva do arrogante herdeiro de uma siderúrgica, a jovem desafia sua família e amigos em busca do verdadeiro amor.