I take the opportunity to copy paste – again – a text from FilmNewEurope of yesterday, written by Alexander Gabelia about a Latvian director, whose documentary carreer I have been following for decades: Dāvis Sīmanis. here iot goes:

RIGA: The acclaimed Latvian director Dāvis Sīmanis is currently in post production with the Latvian/Czech documentary Death of Death. Balancing an existential road film with a humorous science fiction, the doc is expected to be released in the autumn of 2024.

The COVID-19 pandemic, the gradual alienation from fellow human beings and the growing fear of his own death make the author go on a research trip to see if there is an opportunity to prolong his life scientifically. This is the starting point of an existential yet hysterical journey to uncover the business of eternal life in the world of today. While meeting characters who range from crazy futurologists to crafty “death” businessmen, the director realises that his role as an investigator becomes a personal obsession.

“It would not be an exaggeration to say that most people feel a physiological fear of ageing, disease and death. A special interest attracts scientists and more or less sane enthusiasts to distance or even cancel the inevitable end of our physical existence. Our film will examine these natural yet unrealistic human thrives. We can definitely say that a film about the search for the transfer of consciousness and immortality will attract a lot of interest from the audience”, producer Guntis Trekteris told FNE.

He is producing through Latvian Ego Media in coproduction with Radim Prochazka through the Czech company Kuli Film, with a total budget of 261,426 EUR.

The project was co-financed by the National Film Centre of Latvia and the Czech Film Fund.

Death of Death was shot in 2022/2023 in several countries including Latvia, Russia, the USA, the Netherlands, Czech Republic, Italy, Austria and the UK.

In February 2024, Maria’s Silence / Marijas klusums by Dāvis Sīmanis, which had its world premiere in the Forum section, received the Ecumenical Jury Award at the 74th edition of the Berlin International Film Festival. The film was produced by Mistrus Media and coproduced by Lithuania’s Broom Films.