ALMATY INDIE FILM FESTIVAL
Three August Days
Overview
In the midst of the political upheaval of the early 1990s, an Estonian girl and a Russian boy reach across cultural lines to unite over a shared bottle of American soda.
Director Biography — Madli Lääne
Madli Lääne, originally from Estonia, has directed several documentaries and short films. Her short ABC premiered at Berlinale film festival 2012 and screened at over 25 international film festivals, including the competition program at Palm Springs International ShortFest. Her first feature length documentary THE COLOURS OF ISLANDS won main awards at the film festivals in Canada (EstDocs) and Poland (Tranzit). Madli is currently a last year MFA Film Production student at the University of Texas at Austin. Her first film at UT Austin WALK IT OFF won the Grand Prize at Texas Union Film Festival 2014. Her next film THE CONSEQUENCES OF SPOONING won the 2nd Prize at the same festival next year and aired on ESPN’s Longhorn Network.
Director Statement
THREE AUGUST DAYS is a very personal story, based on my own experience of being born in what was then the Soviet Union and witnessing the re-birth of my country, Estonia. Since then, I have been interested in how children perceive and experience a historical moment of political change, when their background and life experience is too limited to fully understand the significance and importance of such events.
Last August marked the 25th Anniversary of Estonia’s independence, and the events leading up to and surrounding our breaking away from the USSR form the backdrop of THREE AUGUST DAYS. Through my story I would like to not only evoke the memory of the unifying experience of fighting political injustice, but also have it serve as a reminder about the pointless hatred it provoked between two nations. Given the current European immigration crises, USA-s political situation and Russia's aggressive military behavior these past several years, it's useful to look back at a not so distant historical event in the hope of avoiding mistakes made in the past.
Credits
- Director
- Madli Lääne
- Producer
- Anneli Ahven
- Director of Photography
- Lotta Kilian
- Composer
- Jesús A. Gerdel
- Key Cast
- Caroline Kruberg
- Key Cast
- Dima Bespalov
Specifications
- Project type
- Student, Short
- Genres
- drama, coming-of-age, period, romance, family
- Runtime
- 20 minutes
- Completion date
- March 11, 2018
- Production budget
- 50,000 USD
- Country of origin
- Estonia
- Countries of filming
- Estonia
- Language
- Estonian, Russian
- Shooting format
- Digital (4K)
- Aspect ratio
- 1:2.39
- Film color
- Color
- First-time filmmaker
- No
- Student project
- Yes
- Digital Cinema Package
- Unavailable
Awards & Festivals
SXSW
Austin, Texas
United States
March 11, 2018
World Premiere
Uppsala International Short Film Festival
Uppsala
Sweden
October 27, 2018
Swedish premiere
AWARD: Best Children Film
Valletta Film Festival
Valletta
Malta
June 19, 2019
AWARD: Best Short Film
Rabat International Author Film Festival (FICAR)
Rabat
Morocco
November 18, 2019
AWARD: Best Short Film
20minmax International Short Film Festival
Ingolstadt
Germany
April 2, 2019
AWARDS: Youth Jury Award + Special Mention
Independent Film Festival Boston
Boston, Massachusetts
United States
April 28, 2018
AUDIENCE AWARD: Best Narrative Short
CIVIS Media Prize
Berlin
Germany
June 7, 2018
AWARD: Best Fiction
Beirut International Women Film Festival
Beirut
Lebanon
March 11, 2019
Arab premiere
AWARD: Special Jury Mention
Boston International Kids Film Festival
Boston
United States
November 18, 2018
AWARD: Best International Film
Palm Springs International ShortFest
Palm Springs, California
United States
June 22, 2018
Official Selection
Pasadena Film Festival
Los Angeles, California
United States
March 12, 2019
Nominated: Best Director
Taiwan International Children's Film Festival
Taipei
Taiwan
April 2, 2018
Nominated: Best Dramatic Short
Sarasota Film Festival
Sarasota, Florida
United States
April 14, 2018
Reykjavik International Film Festival
Reykjavik
Iceland
October 3, 2018
European premiere
Filem'On
Brussel
Belgium
October 26, 2018
Belgian premiere
Nomination: Best ECFA Short Film
PÖFF Shorts
Tallinn
Estonia
Estonian premiere
Nomination: Best National Short
Tehran International Short Film Festival
Tehran
Iran, Islamic Republic of
November 9, 2018
Middle East premiere