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29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival: 149 publications

Happy Birthday

Sarah Goher
2025

André Vital Pardue - 05-12-2025

Sharp political film tackles the harsh realities of Egyptian classism from the perspective of two young girls - from the 25th REC Tarragona International Film Festival [Read More...]

Clothes and control: wear it on your sleeve!

 

Piret Ilves - 30-11-2025

Advocate for Conscious Clothing Piret Ilves dissects the Norwegian entry at this year's Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival; she reveals the weight but also the responsibility that the characters and their attire must bear [Read More...]

Tallinn First Feature Competition: breaking out of emotional prisons

 

Paul Risker - 22-11-2025

Paul Risker looks back at the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival; he describes films filled with technical riches and an emphasis on imprisonment and entrapment [Read More...]

Doc@PÖFF International: human tales of the ordinary

 

Eoghan Lyng - 22-11-2025

Eoghan Lyng dissects the International Documentary Competition at the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, revealing his personal favourites as well as the strand's big winners [Read More...]

Our verdict of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival

 

Victor Fraga - 22-11-2025

As the latest edition of Northern Europe's most exciting film festival draws to a close, we share the winners, our exclusive coverage of the event's seven competitive strands, and much more [Read More...]

Tallinn Rebels with a Cause: transgression in its DNA

 

Anton Bitel - 22-11-2025

Anton Bitel delivers his verdict on the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black NIghts Film Festival, including the award winners and his personal favourites [Read More...]

Holy Destructors (Biodestruktoriai)

Aistė Žegulytė
2025

Joshua Polanski - 22-11-2025

Exquisite Baltic doc reveals the "unique and unrepeatable" beauty of microorganisms, with a very poetic sensibility - from the Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition at the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Tallinn Baltic Competition: high production standards and women’s voices

 

Joshua Polanski - 22-11-2025

Joshua Polanski delivers his verdict of the Baltic Competition, at the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival; the remembers the hidden gems and reveals his dirty favourites [Read More...]

Tallinn Critics’ Picks verdict: Finding joy in stories of redemption 

 

Victoria Luxford - 22-11-2025

Our PÖFF first-timer Victoria Luxford runs her eye over this year’s Critics’ Picks category, and all the emotions that came with it.   [Read More...]

Wheelie

Isis Mihrimah Cabolet 
2025

Victoria Luxford - 22-11-2025

A party-loving young man suffers an accident that leads to the world seeing him differently, and him facing up to adulthood - from the Just Film section of the 29th edition of the PÖFF Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival  [Read More...]

Sisa

Jun Robles Lana
2025

Victor Fraga - 21-11-2025

Filipino women resist American occupation and genocide, in Jun Robles Lana's riff on female power and colonisation - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Renovation (Renovacija)

Gabriele Urbonaite
2025

Joshua Polanski - 21-11-2025

Gabrielė Urbonaitė’s latest film is an aching and poetic detour into the bewilderment of turning 30, desire, and other sentiments - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

A Safe Place (Un loc sigur)

Cecilia Ştefǎnescu
2025

Paul Risker - 21-11-2025

Romanian woman reveals her soul through quiet observation, in this challenging yet extremely rewarding film - filthy genius drama is in the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

BIX Almost Nirvana

Emilis Vėlyvis
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 21-11-2025

Lithuanian filmmaker showcases a songwriter and his band at their most human and creative, In this clear and cohesive documentary - from the Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Borderline (Siena)

Ignas Jonynas
2025

Joshua Polanski - 21-11-2025

An ornithologist is forced into the world of crime, in Lithuania's weird and porous border with the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Lady

Samuel Abrahams
2025

Paul Risker - 20-11-2025

Mockumentary pokes fun at British privilege when a lonely aristocrat hosts a talent show at her mansion, and grabs her moment in the spotlight - in the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival/ REC Tarragona [Read More...]

Dump of Untitled Pieces (Isimsiz Eserler Mezarliği)

Melik Kuru
2025

Paul Risksr - 20-11-2025

Quirky photographer of hands blows up a storm - black-and-white gem from Turkey is in the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

A Summer Tale (Cuento de Verano)

Matías Szulanski
2025

Victoria Luxford - 20-11-2025

An irredeemable man fights to save his own skin in this terrifically dark tale of spectacular failure - from the Critics' Picks section of the 29th edition of the PÖFF Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival  [Read More...]

The Moon is a Father of Mine (Mtvare Mamaa Chemi)

George Ovashvili
2025

Victor Fraga - 20-11-2025

Ex-prisoner seeks to reconnect with a son who doesn't remember him - poetic drama from Georgia is in the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Baronesses (Les Baronnes)

Nabil Ben Yadir, Mokhtaria Badaoui
2025

Anton Bitel - 20-11-2025

Mokhtaria Badaoui and Nabil Ben Yadir’s Brussels-set meta-theatrical tragicomedy has four Muslim grandmothers restaging Shakespeare - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival/ REC Tarragona [Read More...]

Nino in Paradise

Laurent Micheli 
2025

Victoria Luxford - 20-11-2025

A young man parties and stumbles through Paris, in this startling portrayal of modern-day life in Europe – from the Critics' Picks section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival  [Read More...]

Sunday Ninth (Zondag de Negenste)

Kat Steppe
2025

Paul Risker - 20-11-2025

Real life and fiction are interwoven in this heartfelt story about two estranged brothers reconnecting at old age - in the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

My First Love (Min Første Kjaerlighet)

Mari Storstein
2025

Paul Risker - 20-11-2025

Young disabled woman "seizes the day", in this well-intentioned but preachy Norwegian film - from the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Tallinn: where the fantastic film people meet

 

Davide Abbatescianni - 20-11-2025

European Genre Forum @POFF: Davide Abbatescianni talks to key industry stakeholders on the ground as the fantastic cinema talent agency reaches the final stop of its journey, in the Estonian capital [Read More...]

Flesh, Blood, Even a Heart

Alise Zariņa
2025

Joshua Polanski - 20-11-2025

Woman in her 30s struggles with physical image, health and love, in this Latvian film drawing parallels the collapse of the body and of the country - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Becoming

Zhannat Alshanova
2025

Joshua Polanski - 19-11-2025

Teen swimmer finds peculiar way of getting a hormonal boost and fulfilling her career ambitions, in this slow and patient coming-of-age tale from Kazakhstan - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Frog and the Water (Der Frosch und das Wasser)

Thomas Stuber
2025

Victor Fraga - 19-11-2025

German man with Down syndrome bonds with Japanese gangster, in this intriguing tale of fraternity - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Blindsight (Piatră Foarfecă Hârti)

Adrian Sitaru
2025

Anton Bitel - 19-11-2025

Romanian o(d)dyssey offers a nostalgic family portrait and a kaleidoscope of distorted memories, in a movie that will have you wanting to watch it again - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Muralist

Sengedorj Janchivdorj
2025

Victor Fraga - 19-11-2025

Lonely, balloon-bearing artist seeks to inject colour into his life by painting a large mural, in this poetic Mongolian drama - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Red Code Blue (Tumšzilais Evaņģēlijs)

Oskars Rupenheits
2025

Joshua Polanski - 19-11-2025

Latvian thriller points to heavenly justice, as a guilt-ridden police officer fails to deliver its earthly version - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Our dirty questions to Harald Hutter and Olga Kviatkovska

 

Nataliia Serebriakova - 19-11-2025

Nataliia Serebriakova interviews the director and lead actress of deeply experimental feature Leleka; they discuss leaving Ukraine without a destination, PTSD, a stork's nest, shooting on film, Abbas Kiarostami, and more [Read More...]

New Money (Uus Raha)

Rain Rannu
2025

Joshua Polanski - 19-11-2025

Estonians wake up filthy rich and imbecilically squander their fortune, in a comedy featuring some of country's finest actors - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Easy Girl

Hille Norden
2025

Paul Risker - 19-11-2025

Woman and her nymphomaniac childhood friend reconnect and journey into the past, unearthing some very dirty secrets - German gem is in the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Backstage Madness (Shermendelik Karnavaly)

Amanbek Azhymat
2025

Paul Risker - 18-11-2025

Black comedy about the pains of film writing pulls together genre tropes in order to create the perfectly silly movie - from the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Oh, What Happy Days!

Homayoun Ghanizadeh
2025

Victor Fraga - 18-11-2025

Family secrets spill across a virtual call, in this striking and groundbreaking Iranian film  [Read More...]

No Comment (Ingen Kommentar)

Petter Næss
2025

Victor Fraga - 18-11-2025

Spin doctor rescues scandal-hit prime-minister from impeding doom, in this silly and loud comedy from Norway - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

China Sea

Jurgis Matulevičius
2025

Victoria Luxford - 18-11-2025

A former kickboxer’s biggest battle is with himself, in this bold and emotional drama from Lithuania - from the Critics' Picks section of the 29th edition of the PÖFF Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival  [Read More...]

Our dirty questions to Andrés Clariond

 

Nataliia Serebriakova - 18-11-2025

Natalia Serebriakova interviews the Mexican director of Versalles, a sharp satirical drama about a politician and his wife morphing into fantasy monarchs - live from the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Mira

Nour-Eddine Lakhmari
2025

Victor Fraga - 18-11-2025

Supported by the forest ghost of her loving father, Moroccan girl fights for the protection of birds and immigrants - subversive children's movie is in the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

MieMie ~She Can See~

Katsutoshi Furuya
2025

Anton Bitel - 18-11-2025

Katsutoshi Furuya’s weightless multi-genre mash-up makes a spirit war and a monster movie of a young modern romance - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Fränk

Tõnis Pill
2025

Joshua Polanski - 18-11-2025

First loves go unrequited and impossible, in this utterly vile "coming-of-age" tale from Estonia - in the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Catalonia: a new film model emerges

 

Davide Abbatescianni - 18-11-2025

As Tallinn celebrates the autonomous region of Spain, Davide Abbatescianni reveals how a fast-expanding, internationally-Driven ecosystem Is redefining European cinema  [Read More...]

Turn Up the Sun

Jamie Adams
2025

Anton Bitel - 18-11-2025

Improvised feature from Britain starring James McAvoy sees different artists coming together in a manor house haunted by a tragic history - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

This Is Not Happening (To Się Nie Dzieje)

Artur Wyrzykowski
2025

Paul Risker - 17-11-2025

Claustrophobic thriller about a father trying to save his son shreds its audiences nerves with unrelenting suspense - from the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Lo-Fi

Alican Durbaş
2025

Anton Bitel - 17-11-2025

Experimental feature debut shows an apartment echoing with memories, and its occupant caught in lovesickness and loneliness - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Silent Virgin (La virgen silenciosa)

Xavi Sala
2025

Victoria Luxford - 17-11-2025

Politics and sexuality clash in a compelling Mexican drama that feels ripped from the headlines - from the Critics' Picks section of the 29th edition of the PÖFF Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival  [Read More...]

Hunger Strike Breakfast (Badautojų Namelis)

Karolis Kaupinis
2025

Joshua Polanski - 17-11-2025

Media workers go on a awkwardly uncomfortable hunger strike after the Soviet Union attacks a newly independent Lithuania - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Duality (Doganeh)

Abbas Nezamdoost
2025

Victor Fraga - 17-11-2025

One car ride could change the fate of three people... or not! Visually dazzling drama from Iran is in the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

That Burning House 

Yin-chuan Tsai
2025

Victoria Luxford - 17-11-2025

Real life experience informs this hard-hitting story of systemic damage in a Taiwanese children’s home – from the Critics’ Picks section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Veins (Nervures)

Raymond St-Jean
2025

Victor Fraga - 17-11-2025

Mad doctor toys with the pains of vulnerable villagers, in this very finely-crafted and surprising body horror from Canada - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Running Man

Edgar Wright
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 17-11-2025

Glen Powell is miscast in this turgid adaptation of a Stephen King book - Edgar Wright's un-British new creation is on VoD on Thursday, January 1st [Read More...]

Versalles

Andrés Clariond
2025

Nataliia Serebriakova - 17-11-2025

Set in the aftermath of a failed presidential bid, this sharp satirical drama from Mexico transforms political disappointment into grotesque pageantry - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival/ REC Tarragona [Read More...]

Interior (Interjöör)

Pascal Schuh
2025

Paul Risker - 17-11-2025

A very studious burglar films their victims from inside their own home, in this dark and voyeuristic German gem - from the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Hercules Falling (Herkules Falder)

Christian Bonke
2025

Paul Risker - 16-11-2025

Danish soldier struggles with PTSD while trying to reconnect with his family, in this delicate and compassionate drama - from the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Honey Don’t!

Ethan Coen
2025

Paul Risker - 16-11-2025

Energetic story about a series of bizarre deaths struggles to make an everlasting impression - now on various VoD platforms [Read More...]

Leleka

Harald Hutter
2025

Anton Bitel - 16-11-2025

Harald Hutter’s abstract road movie takes two female friends on a trans-European odyssey towards war-torn Ukraine - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Stories

Abu Bakr Shawky
2025

Victor Fraga - 16-11-2025

Egyptian director of Yomeddine intertwines personal stories with his country's history, in this heartwarming family drama - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival/ the 5th Red Sea International Film Festival [Read More...]

LifeLike (Bir Arada Yalnız)

Ali Vatansever
2025

Victor Fraga - 16-11-2025

Young man with terminal cancer seeks comfort in VR, while his parents find diagonally opposite ways to reconcile with his looming death - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Elena’s Shift

Stefanos Tsivopoulos
2025

Paul Risker - 16-11-2025

Gentle social realist drama from Greece packs a punch while offering a glimmer of hope in a world void of compassion - from the First Feature Competition of the 29th Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Imaginary Dog and the Lying Cat

Yukihiro Morigaki
2025

Victor Fraga - 15-11-2025

Traditional Japanese family grapple with grief and guilt, in this long and meditative drama - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

La Carn

Joan Porcel
2025

Anton Bitel - 15-11-2025

Young gay dancer risks losing himself as he cruises the virtual meat market, in this thoughtful drama from Spain - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Admission

Quentin Hsu
2025

Paul Risker - 15-11-2025

Taiwanese parents panic after school rejects their small child, in a cleverly assembled story that toys with our curiosity and voyeurism - from the First Feature Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Therapy (Terapia)

Paavo Westerberg
2025

Joshua Polanski - 15-11-2025

Two relationship therapists watch their own marriage break into pieces, in this amusing Finno-Estonian co-production - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Good Daughter (La Buena Hija)

Júlia de Paz Solvas
2025

Victor Fraga - 15-11-2025

Teenage daughter quietly breaks down after their parents separate, in this very familiar tale of toxic masculinity told with infectious vigour - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Megalomaniacs

Spiros Stathoulopoulos
2025

Anton Bitel - 15-11-2025

Spiros Stathoulopoulos’ strange, quirky and at times irritant sort-of sex comedy finds in its present (and future) endless echoes of the past - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Juana

Daniel Giménez Cacho
2025

Paul Risker - 15-11-2025

Ambitious first feature about trauma and femicide cold cases technically pops and stuns - from in the First Feature Competition at the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Street Wanderers (Los Caminantes de la Calle)

Juan Martin Hsu 
2025

Victoria Luxford - 14-11-2025

Two officers from different sides of the world take on the Chinese mafia, in this South American thriller based on true events - from the Critics' Picks section of the 29th edition of the PÖFF Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival  [Read More...]

Think of England

Richard Hawkins
2025

Victor Fraga - 14-11-2025

English actress is forced into making a pornographic movie for WW2 soldiers, in this colourful and ambitious riff on war and libido - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Round 13 (13ème Round)

Mohamed Ali Nahdi
2025

Victoria Luxford - 14-11-2025

Mohamed Ali Nahdi’s heartbreaking drama explores strength in impossible circumstances – from Critics' Picks section of the 29th edition of the PÖFF Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival  [Read More...]

The Dashed Lines (As Liñas Descontinuas)

Anxos Fazáns
2025

Victor Fraga - 14-11-2025

Middle-aged woman bonds with her house burglar on a very unexpected level, in this warm and tender LGBT+ Galician-language drama - from the Official Competition at the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival/ REC Tarragona [Read More...]

The Activist (Aktyvistas)

Romas Zabarauskas
2025

Joshua Polanski - 14-11-2025

The final instalment of Romas Zabarauskas's queer trilogy is a multifaceted and inventive crime thriller - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Twice as many reasons to laugh and cry

 

Davide Abbatescianni - 14-11-2025

DOC@PÖFF doubles down: Davide Abbatescianni gets inside the Tallinn Black Nights’s fast-growing hub for documentary film, which now boasts a brand new strand entirely devoted to Baltic non-fiction [Read More...]

Vache Folle

Hugo Diego Garcia, Lorenzo Bentivoglio
2025

Anton Bitel - 13-11-2025

Damaged war-veteran-turned-cowherd reluctantly fights for his dreams, in this dirty gem of a Franco-Swiss production - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Invisibles

Junna Chif 
2025

Victoria Luxford - 13-11-2025

A Montreal sex worker finds new direction when she takes on a different kind of client, in this sweaty and passionate drama – from the Critics' Picks section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival  [Read More...]

18 Holes to Paradise (18 Buracos para o Paraíso)

João Nuno Pinto
2025

Victor Fraga - 13-11-2025

Portuguese family test their values, ambitions and allegiances as they spend one last summer together in their posh villa - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Emergency Exit

Lluís Miñarro
2025

Anton Bitel - 13-11-2025

Top-drawer ensemble takes a bizarre coach trip to the other side, in this metacinematic arthouse fare from Spain - from the Rebels with a Cause section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

One Day I Wish To See You Happy

Maryna Nikolcheva
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 13-11-2025

Separated by geography and war, a filmmaker records conversations with her husband in their shared pursuit of happiness - from the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Anemone

Ronan Day-Lewis
2025

Paul Risker - 13-11-2025

Man's search for his brother is thematically elusive and with too few redeeming qualities tests - from the Best of Festivals at the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Mo Papa

Eeva Mägi
2025

Victoria Luxford - 13-11-2025

A touching, beautiful follow up to Estonian hit Mo Mamma, Eeva Mägi’s second in a thematic trilogy is just as magnificent - opening film of the Critics' Picks section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Lost Stars of the Horoscope

Katrina Lehismäe
2025

Marina Richter - 13-11-2025

Ukrainian immigrants find shelter and solace in Estonia, despite tussling with non-belonging sentiments - from Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival - the Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Hungarian Wedding (Magyar Menyegző)

Csaba Káel
2025

Victor Fraga - 13-11-2025

Young Hungarian rocker asks for the hand of Romanian girl in exchange for a very peculiar something, in this music-infused and harmless crowdpleaser - from the Official Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Electing Ms Santa

Raisa Răzmeriță
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 13-11-2025

Political hopeful has to overcome gender prejudices by dressing up as a Christmas icon if she has any hope of becoming mayor - Moldovan documentary premieres in the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Happiness is Living in our Land (Õnn on Elada me Maal)

Indrek Spungin
2025

Joshua Polanski - 13-11-2025

Appropriately messy and entertaining doc about Estonian punk band that supposedly helped to trigger the demise of the USSR lacks in historicity - Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Laguna

Sharuna Bartas
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 12-11-2025

Sharuna Bartas and his daughter embark on a self-appointed pilgrimage to Mexico in order to honour their late Ina Marija, killed at just 24 - filthy genius doc shows in the Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Edge of the Night (Ööäär)

Vladimir Loginov
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 12-11-2025

From sex parties to rubbish collection: documentarist uncovers the dark secrets of the cold Estonian night - from the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

No Other Choice

Park Chan-wook
2025

Paul Risker - 12-11-2025

Park Chan-wook's revenge thriller has its playful moments but wears its audience down with an indulgent streak - in cinemas on Friday, January 23rd [Read More...]

Far Away

M. Tayfur Aydın
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 12-11-2025

A Turkish director returns to the town he once called home, and encounters a place horribly scarred by an armed conflict - from the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

My Family and Other Clowns (Minu Pere ja Muud Klounid)

Heilika Pikkov, Liina Särkinen
2025

Marina Richter - 12-11-2025

The family life of Estonia's top two clowns isn't all smiles and laughter - from the DOC@PÖFF Baltic Competition of 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Eyes of the Forest (Metsasilmad)

Anna Veisman
2025

Lotta Raidna - 12-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: young woman searches for a man gone missing in the forest at night, in Estonian film packed with meaningful colours and supernatural elements - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Don’t Look Away (Ära Vaata Eemale)

Joonas Lind
2025

Alice Lokk - 12-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: tension quickly builds as a young streamer uses his camera as a catalyst for danger - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Peanuts (Maapähklid)

Loviisa Jännes
2025

Eloise Kello - 12-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: young and timid woman feels shunned at her own birthday party, but tables are about to turn - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Wishful Thinking

Gergana Dyankova
2025

Susanna Teimann - 12-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: mother and daughter engage in a fierce duel for a magically conjured male - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Lunch: a Letter to America

Gianluca Vassallo
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 11-11-2025

Italian filmmaker captures fragments of country riven by political clashes; the outcome is a movie that's funny, poetic and yet over simplistic - from the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Time to the Target (Chas Pidlotu)

Vitaly Mansky
2025

Nataliia Serebriakova - 11-11-2025

Vitaly Mansky’s new film extends his long-standing exploration of post-Soviet identity and human endurance into the deeply personal terrain of his native Lviv, in Western Ukraine - from the Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Stiina

Elisabeth Kužovnik
2025

Helen Murd - 11-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: young mother has to prioritise her nanny job ahead of her own daughter, in this harsh yet hopeful Estonian film - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Last Will (Testaments)

Jānis Ābele
2025

Marina Richter - 11-11-2025

Latvian erotic and crime writer Anatols Imermanis died in 1989 without visiting the Pigalle; now a group of artists have set out to scatter his ashes there - from the Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Plans for Tomorrow (Plaanid Homseks)

Jasmin Kulagina
2025

Villem Vesingi - 11-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: two friends anxiously wait for their fling to show up at their boozy party, in a film with strong echoes of a big Estonian hit - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Am I Ukrainian Enough? (Kas ma Olen Piisavalt Ukrainlane?)

Kateryna Hantseva
2025

Getriin Kotsar - 11-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: Ukrainian filmmaker returns home, and investigates language as a resistance weapon - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

10,000 Steps to Smoking Area

Manfred Vainokivi
2025

Katrin Luuken - 11-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHP: a cigarette becomes the lifeline of an elderly radio star, in this thoughtful meditation on the failing human body - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Friction!

Chingiz Pasha
2025

Chingiz Pasha - 11-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: in a dystopian future, down-to-earth Alvar is made to choose between eternal love and gardening - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

A Microphone in the Head (Mikrofon Peas)

Robert Raska Ly
2025

Piret Ilves - 11-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: the sudden death of a man triggers a chain of absurd events, in a movie overflowing with symbolisms, topics and messages - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Border

Sasha Shprotser
2025

Matthias Veinmann - 11-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: young woman filmmaker undertakes a dangerous journey from her native Estonia to her gran's grave in Russia, in a movie bursting with originality and heartfelt simplicity - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

A Goodnight Kiss (Irena)

Giedrė Žickytė
2025

Anton Bitel - 11-11-2025

Giedrė Žickytė’s documentary portrait of late Lithuanian intellectual Irena Veisaitė is both a celebration and a lament - from the Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Death is Harder Than a Broken Heart

Indrek Spungin
2025

- 11-11-2025

FILM REVIEW WORKSHOP: mother has to come to terms with her mortality and with the figurative death of her son, in this heartwarming black comedy - from the PÖFF Shorts section of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Goodbye Sisters

Alexander Murphy
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 10-11-2025

Two siblings venture up the Himalayas in search of a fungus/insect hybrid, in a spiritual journey with parallels to the Spanish Camino - filthy genius doc premieres in the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Terra Vil

Luis Campos
2025

Edin Custo - 10-11-2025

Portuguese riverside turns sombre and gloomy as young boy struggles with alcoholic father - from the Just Film Youth and Children Film Festival, a sub-festival of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The many faces of Austrian film

 

Susanne Gottlieb - 10-11-2025

Susanne Gottlieb examines her country’s rich and multifaceted film culture, and discusses with Jessica Hausner the potential of Austrian movies, the repercussions of the latest budget cuts and more; the filmmaker attends the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival for a Masterclass [Read More...]

Not Made for Politics

Volia Chajkouskaya
2025

Nataliia Serebriakova - 10-11-2025

Women became the face of resistance as Belarus fought against Lukashenko, in this dirty doc dedicated to female Belarusians involved in politics - from the Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

It’s Winter

Sajad Imani
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 09-11-2025

High up on the mountains of Iran where men call the shots, an adolescent prepares herself for the forthcoming snow - immersive doc premieres in the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Days of Wonder (Päivien Lumo)

Karin Pennanen
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 09-11-2025

Finish woman pays tribute to her reclusive and artistic late uncle by trying to piece together his long-forgotten writings and clips - from the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Miss Jobson

Amanda Sans Pantling
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 08-11-2025

Bob Marley's friend and lawyer Diane Jobson lived a life far from the spotlight; now the 80-year-old showcases her work, religion, and learnings from the late Rasta - from the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Scarecrows (Putnubiedēkļi)

Laila Pakalnina
2025

André Vital Pardue - 08-11-2025

Airport workers negotiate the environmental conflicts of the shared airfield space, in this quirky Latvian documentary - from the Doc@PÖFF Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Feast of the Wolf

Jadran Boban
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 08-11-2025

A territory in Croatia is apparently haunted by wolves being flown in by helicopter, and maybe the EU is to blame for transporting the animals - from the Doc@PÖFF International Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Our dirty questions to Nikolaj Nikitin

 

Jeremy Clarke - 03-11-2025

The man at the helm of the highly successful Critics' Picks strand at the Tallinn Black Nights shares his secrets with Jeremy Clarke, who covered every edition of the new section since its inception in 2022 [Read More...]

The Baltic Competition reveals 11 titles

 

Joshua Polanski - 29-10-2025

Baltic film enthusiast Joshua Polanski looks at the newly announced Baltic Film Competition, from the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Tallinn Critics’ Picks selection announced: the world tells its stories

 

Victoria Luxford - 21-10-2025

PÖFF announces the 10 films of their Critics' Picks section (which we have covered since its inception three years ago); Victoria Luxford looks at the intriguing promise behind these very international titles [Read More...]

PÖFF announces First Feature line-up

 

Paul Risker - 16-10-2025

Ahead of the 29th edition of the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival, between November 7th and 23rd, Paul Risker takes a glimpse at the 13 titles of the competitive debut strand [Read More...]

Tallinn reveals 12-strong Doc@PÖFF film selection

 

Eoghan Lyng - 14-10-2025

As the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival announces its competitive selection of international documentaries, writer Eoghan Lyng ponders a wide variety of film perspectives [Read More...]

PÖFF announces Official Competition titles

 

Victor Fraga - 13-10-2025

Northern Europe's most exciting film festival announces its main line-up of 17 worldly movies, with some recognisable names, familiar geographies and a lovely surprise from the United Kingdom [Read More...]

Couture

Alice Winocour
2025

Victor Fraga - 21-09-2025

Angelina Jolie and South Sudanese newcomer Anyier Anei star in tender French-American drama about the pitfalls of fashion and the pains of cancer - from the Red Sea International Film Festival [Read More...]

This isn’t child’s play!

 

Susanne Gottlieb - 15-09-2025

Susanne Gottlieb interviews Kärt Väinola and Alasdair Satchel, the two people at the helm of Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event’s children and youth arm Just Film Industry Days; they reveal the secrets of making films for kids, the new festival AI tool, the free software used in an Oscar-winning movie, why f**k-ups are vital for budding creators, and more! [Read More...]

Kabul, Between Prayers

Aboozar Amini
2025

Victor Fraga - 04-09-2025

Three Afghan brothers devote their lives to the Taliban's interpretation of the Quran, in this intimate doc about the casualness of indoctrination - from the 29th Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

The Voice of Hind Rajab

Kaouther Ben Hania
2025

Victor Fraga - 03-09-2025

Five-year-old girl trapped inside car with six dead relatives begs for help over the telephone, in Kaouther Ben Hania's horrifyingly real register of the Gaza Genocide - in cinemas on Friday, January 16th [Read More...]

Dead Man’s Wire

Gus Van Sant
2025

Victor Fraga - 02-09-2025

The spectacularisation of violence becomes a weapon for social change, in Gus Van Sant’s deliciously cathartic real-life drama - from the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

The Wizard of the Kremlin (Le Mage du Kremlin)

Olivier Assayas
2025

Victor Fraga - 31-08-2025

Quiet spin doctor helps Putin to strengthen his grip on power, in Olivier Assayas's star-studded and lifeless political thriller - from the 5th Red Sea International Fil;m Festival [Read More...]

Below the Clouds (Sotto le Nuvole)

Gianfranco Rosi
2025

Victor Fraga - 30-08-2025

A black cloud hangs over the head of those living near the Vesuvius, while time conveys both healing and destruction - Gianfranco Rosi's quiet and observational doc shows at the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

DJ Ahmet

Georgi M. Unkovsk
2025

Victor Fraga - 20-08-2025

Rural tradition and TikTok sensibilities clash to explosive results, in this very clever and uplifting comedy from North Macedonia - from the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

Christy

Brendan Canty
2025

Victor Fraga - 18-08-2025

Orphaned teen seeks to reconnect with his hesitant half-brother and cousins, in this thoughtful and heartwarming social realist drama from Ireland - on various VoD platforms on Monday, October 27th (also showing at the Tallinn Black Nights) [Read More...]

Dry Leaf

Alexandre Koberidze
2025

André Vital Pardue - 14-08-2025

Aided by an invisible friend, a desperate man searches for his missing daughter - monumental ode to the aimless souls of Georgia shows at the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

White Snail

Elsa Kremser, Levin Peter
2025

Daniel Theophanous - 13-08-2025

Two unlikely Belarusian lovers bond over their otherworldly appearance and lifestyle, in this heartwarming piece of autofiction - from the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Outcry (Bidad)

Soheil Beiraghi
2025

Victor Fraga - 09-07-2025

Lesbian singer confronts Iranian censorship with her voice, in a movie that sets out to break (nearly) every conceivable film taboo - from the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

The Visitor (Svečias)

Vytautas Katkus
2025

Victor Fraga - 07-07-2025

Lithuanian migrant in Norway struggles to reconnect with his birth nation as he returns in order to sell his family property, in this quiet and observational drama - from the Baltic Competition of the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Divia

Dmytro Hreshko
2025

Victor Fraga - 06-07-2025

Russian aggression defaces Ukrainian landscape and wildlife, in his non-narrative, sensory and hypnotic doc - from the 29th Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

Discovery Campus supports the Baltic New Wave: discover their dirty secrets

 

Redmond Bacon - 03-07-2025

The Discovery Campus at Black Nights Film Festival offers emerging filmmakers from the Baltic region and the rest of the world the opportunity to fine-tune and develop their projects. But as local funding cannot cover the entirety of a film’s journey, directors should think creatively and expansively in order to get their work over the finish line. Oh, and don't forget to check the Campus's extended deadlines! [Read More...]

The Disappearance of Josef Mengele (Das Verschwinden des Josef Mengele)

Kirill Serebrennikov
2025

Victor Fraga - 24-05-2025

Russian director dissects the heart of the unrepentant "Angel of Death", in this disturbingly vivid biopic - from the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

Romeria

Carla Simon
2025

Victor Fraga - 24-05-2025

Eighteen-year-old Marina retraces the footsteps of her biological parents in Galicia (Northwestern Spain) - Carla Simon's heartbreakingly honest, semi-autobiographical new film shows in various festivals [Read More...]

A Poet (Un Poeta)

Simón Mesa Soto
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 19-05-2025

A recovering alcoholic and former poet is charmed by a student's writings, but finds himself in hot water when she too takes to wine - from Tallinn [Read More...]

The Secret Agent (O Agente Secreto)

Kleber Mendonca Filho
2025

Victor Fraga - 19-05-2025

BEST DIRECTOR AND BEST ACTOR WINNER AT CANNES: Kleber Medonca Filho's crime drama about a dignified researcher on the run pays tribute to the films and the cinemas of yore, while also celebrating the director's native Recife, in Northeastern Brazil - from various festivals [Read More...]

The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo (La Misteriosa Mirada del Flamenco)

Diego Céspedes
2025

Eoghan Lyng - 16-05-2025

In 1980s' Chile, the child of a queer family wants to discover the cause of the "plague" villagers talk about - dazzling drama shows in various film festivals [Read More...]

Sirat

Oliver Laxe
2025

Victor Fraga - 16-05-2025

European whims are shattered into pieces, in Oliver Laxe's hauntingly beautiful and disturbing allegory of life on the edge - showing at various film festivals [Read More...]

Two Prosecutors

Sergei Loznitsa
2025

Victor Fraga - 15-05-2025

Young and dignified lawyer confronts Stalin's corrupt establishment, in Sergei Loznitsa's profound and sombre new film - from the 29th Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

Sound of Falling (In die Sonne Schauen)

Mascha Schilinski
2025

Victor Fraga - 14-05-2025

Aesthetically astounding German drama seamlessly blends the visual and the tactile, just as it weaves together three families from different eras - from various festivals [Read More...]

Flophouse America

Monica Strømdahl
2025

Marina Richter - 30-03-2025

Twelve-year-old has to find hope living inside a minuscule hostel apartment with his dysfunctional, all-American parents - heart-shattering doc shows at the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

Mr. Nobody Against Putin

David Borenstein, Pavel Talankin
2025

Lida Bach - 25-03-2025

Small-town teacher Pavel Talankin exposes Putin's militarisation of schools, in this extremely brave documentary about state propaganda - from the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

The Last Ambassador

Natalie Halla 
2025

Lida Bach - 22-03-2025

Afghan Ambassador to Austria finds herself powerless as a deeply misogynistic regime that few countries recognise takes over - from the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]

Timestamp (Strichka Chasu)

Kateryna Gornostai
2025

Victor Fraga - 20-02-2025

Young people forge a sense of normalcy despite the looming war, in this documentary about life in Ukrainian schools - from the 29th edition of the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival [Read More...]

The Blue Trail (O Ultimo Azul)

Gabriel Mascaro
2025

Victor Fraga - 16-02-2025

Clever granny evades old-age "colony" established by Brazil's authoritarian government, in this gently dystopian drama set in a terrifyingly near future - from various festivals [Read More...]

Fiume o Morte!

Igor Bezinović
2025

John Bleasdale - 04-02-2025

Igor Bezinović’s hybrid documentary takes on a key episode on the road to fascism and renders it both hilarious and terrifying - in cinemas on Friday, November 28th (also showing at the Tallinn Black Nights) [Read More...]

Club Zero

Jessica Hausner
2023

Victor Fraga - 22-05-2023

Teacher at an upper-class school convinces a small group students that they are better off without food at all, in Jessica Hausner's bizarre mockery of anti-capitalistic conspiracy - from the Tallinn Black Nights [Read More...]