EVENT
Docs in Tar Tartu, Estonia’s second largest city, will be the European Capital of Culture in 2024. This brings a lot of cinemarelated events to the small university town, including a documentary programme. We asked from Kaarel Kuurmaa, the head of the project, what exactly is in store. By Maria Ulfsak Photos by Argo Ingver
K
aarel, what is the Arts of Survival Documentary programme and its film competition that you run in collaboration with the Estonian Film Institute?
In December 2022 we gather ideas that have begun either in a Tartu filmmakers’ residency, or some other way, and invite the filmmakers to submit their short film treatment that would fit under a general title “Arts of Survival”. Our only requirement is that it should be shot in Tartu and / or Southern Estonia and it should be ready by the beginning of 2024. We have predicted the length of the short to be somewhere between eight and 22 min-
utes, but naturally it all depends on the topic, style, and technique. The Estonian Film Institute’s participation is essential, because it may happen that some idea would fly better as a full-length film, or a series, and would be more efficient if executed in some other format. I understand that all the finished short films will be put together on an “Arts of Survival” compilation. What does the title mean for you personally, or what does it refer to?
I like the concept of the Arts of Survival more and more. When I heard about it for the first time some years ago, it felt it was perhaps a bit too pessimistic and
Kaarel Kuurmaa
seemed to hint at some form of suffering and angst. But as time passes, it becomes more and more optimistic and joyful. Yes, it does encompass a strong ecological theme, but an additional strong political agency has emerged in my opinion. On the other hand, the overall title is wide enough to include sports, apps, handmade chocolate, or religion, if one is being creative. To each their own. As a curator of the project, I try to keep an open mind, but in the end, I feel like a film should make people’s lives better or more meaningful in some way.
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ESTONIAN FILM
