Directed by: Viesturs Kairišs
Genre: Drama
Cast: Kārlis Arnolds Avots, Alise Danovska, Baiba Broka, Aleksas Kazanavicius, Juhan Ulfsak, Sandis Runge
Written by: Viesturs Kairišs, co-writers Andris Feldmanis, Livia Ulman
Produced by: Inese Boka-Grübe, Gints Grübe
Country: Latvia, Lithuania, Poland
Language: Latvian (with English subtitles)
Runtime: 94 min
Synopsis:
It is 1991 in Latvia and nineteen-year-old aspiring cinematographer Jazis’s whole world is thrown into chaos as he is dragged into the people’s peaceful protests against the Soviet Army’s attempted takeover of power in his country.
“January” is an autobiographical take on the political upheaval in the early 1990s that changed the lives of the people of the former Soviet Union. Jazis and his friends Anna and Zeps are all aspiring filmmakers, trying to pursue their dreams of making movies and enjoying the freedom of young adulthood, when the collapse of the political system in the region upends their plans, family ties and friendship. Their experience and participation in the nonviolent resistance through the construction of barricades and human shields becomes the defining moment in their coming-of-age.
Winner of multiple festival awards, including:
TRIBECA Film Festival 2022 International Narrative Competition - WINNER BEST INTERNATIONAL NARRATIVE FEATURE
Warsaw Film Festival 2022 International Competition - WINNER BEST DIRECTOR
Rome Film Festival 2022 Competition - Progressive Cinema - WINNER BEST FILM / BEST DIRECTOR / BEST ACTOR
