The film "Uļa", directed by Viesturs Kairišs in collaboration with actor Karlis Arnold Avots, has been included in the competition program "Un Certain Regard" of the 79th Cannes Film Festival, announced Kristine Matis, a representative of the National Film Center.
This was announced at a press conference dedicated to the official selection of films for the main festival competitions. The "Un Certain Regard" program is one of the two official competition programs of the Cannes Film Festival.
The film "Uļa" is based on the idea of Avots to portray a story of self-discovery and coming of age of a teenager, inspired by the biography of Latvian basketball player Uļjana Semjonova and telling her journey to global fame.
As emphasized by the head of the National Film Center Dita Rietuma, the Latvian film has managed to enter the official program of one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world. The film is a co-production of the three Baltic countries and Poland, and the creative contribution and financing from each country are important for its creation.
The film "Uļa" is produced by the studio "Ego Media" and is a joint project of Latvia, Estonia, Poland, and Lithuania with the participation of the studios "Allfilm", "Staron Film", and "Tremora".
The screenwriters of the film are Avots, Līvija Ulmane, and Andris Feldmanis, the director is Viesturs Kairišs, the cinematographer is Wojtek Staron, the production designer is Ieva Jurjane, the costume designer is Ruta Lečāte, the makeup artist is Līsi Polumaa, the editor is Armands Začs, and the sound engineer is Sīms Skepasts.
The roles in the film are played by: Avots, Chulpan Khamatova, Alekss Kazanavičius, Arturs Krūskops, Alise Džene, Darta Cirule, Madara Vilčuka, Kaspars Dumburs, and Shamil Khamatov.
In Latvia, the premiere of the film "Uļa" will take place this autumn.
