RIGA: Nine titles from Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Ukraine, and Sweden have been chosen for the Feature Film Competition of the upcoming Riga International Film Festival (RIGA IFF, 16 – 26 October 2025).
Two domestic films will have their world premiere in the main competition of the festival: Jānis Ābele’s detective documentary The Last Will / Testaments, and the musical outdoor play All Birds Sing Beautifully / Visi putni skaisti dzied by Krista Burāne.
Brothers Ābeles’ animated film Dog of God / Dieva suns, Latvia’s candidate for the Academy Award in the Best International Feature Film category, is also in the main competition and will open the festival.
The Feature Film Competition Jury is composed of French curator and industry events programmer Thibaut Bracq, Estonian director Anna Hints, Latvian producer Alise Ģelze, Norwegian producer Gudny Hummelvoll, and Christian Jeune, Director of the Film Department at Cannes Film Festival.
RIGA IFF is made possible with the support of the State Culture Capital Foundation, Creative Europe – MEDIA, Riga City Council, the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia, the National Film Centre of Latvia, and the Investment and Tourism Agency of Riga.
Feature Film Competition:
The Last Will / Testaments (Latvia)
Directed by Jānis Ābele
All Birds Sing Beautifully / Visi putni skaisti dzied (Latvia)
Directed by Krista Burāne
Produced by VFS Films
Supported by the National Film Centre of Latvia, the Latvian Public Broadcaster LTV
Dog of God / Dieva suns (Latvia, USA)
Directed by Lauris and Raitis Ābele
Produced by Tritone Studio
Coproduced by Lumiere Lab
Supported by the EU’sRecovery assistance for cohesion and the territories of Europe (REACT-EU) by the National Film Centre of Latvia
Special Operation / Spetsialna Operatsiia (Ukraine, Lithuania)
Directed by Oleksiy Radynski
The Visitor / Svečias (Lithuania, Norway, Sweden)
Directed byVytautas Katkus
Produced by M-Films
Coproduced by Staer, Garagefilm International
Supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre, Creative Europe MEDIA, the Lithuanian National Radio and Television, Film Fond Nord, the Swedish Film Institute
Back to Family / Apsilankymas namuose (Lithuania, France, Poland, Latvia)
Directed by Šarūnas Bartas
Produced by Studija Kinema, KinoElektron
Coproduced by Mistrus Media, Cineline EDelivery, Message Film
Supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre, the Lithuanian Tax Incentive, Aide aux cinémas du monde – Centre national du cinéma et de l’image animée, Institut Français, the National Film Centre of Latvia
Solomamma (Norway, Latvia, Lithuania)
Directed by Janicke Askevold
Produced by Bacon Pictures Oslo, Bacon Pictures Copenhagen, Mistrus Media, Dansu, It’s AliveFilms
Supported by the Lithuanian Film Centre, the National Film Centre of Latvia, med støtte fra, Norsk Filminstitutt, Norsk Filminstitutt and YLE, in partnership with Post Control Helsinki, Norsk Filminstitutt
Weightless / Vægtløs (Denmark)
Directed by Emilie Thalund
Redoubt / Värn (Sweden, Finland, the Netherlands, Italy, Denmark)
Directed by John Skoog
Click HERE for a press release.