Lithuanian Filmmakers to Showcase Exclusive Works at the Venice Film Festival

Today marks the opening of one of the world’s most prestigious cinematic events – the Venice Film Festival. This year, the festival’s independent program will feature the world premiere of Šarūnas Bartas’ film Laguna, while the extended reality competition will showcase the VR experience Creation of the Worlds. In addition, the industry segment will see the Baltic countries presenting co-production opportunities.

The Venice Film Festival is one of the five most prestigious and longest-running film events in the world, alongside Cannes, Berlin, Toronto, and Sundance, attracting renowned filmmakers, industry leaders, and cinema enthusiasts from across the globe every year.

As part of the festivals’ independent section Giornate degli Autori, audiences will be introduced to Šarūnas Bartas’ Laguna – an intimate documentary essay dedicated to the memory of his late daughter, Ina Marija Bartaitė.

In the film, Bartas embarks on a journey to Mexico’s Ventanilla Lagoon on the Pacific coast with his youngest daughter, Una Marija, revisiting the place where Ina Marija spent her final vacation with him. Immersed in the rhythm of nature and the life of the local community, father and daughter reflect on loss, memory, and the fragility of life.

Laguna is a Lithuanian-French co-production, developed by Studija Kinema (Lithuania) in collaboration with KinoElektron, So-Cle, and ARTE France Cinéma (France). Lithuanian producers include Šarūnas Bartas, Alina Lu, and Jurijus Stančikas.

For the second consecutive year, Lithuanian works have been selected for the Venice Immersive competition, a program dedicated to extended reality (XR) projects. This year, the VR experience Creation of the Worlds, directed by Kristina Buožytė and Vitalijus Žukas, will represent Lithuania in the lineup.

This marks the directors’ second appearance at the Venice Film Festival. Their first project, Trail of Angels (2018), also drew from Čiurlionis’ artistic legacy.

Inspired by over sixty of Čiurlionis’s paintings, the latest experience blends immersive storytelling with interactive elements, inviting viewers into a dreamlike world. The atmospheric soundscape, composed by Rokas Zubovas (Lithuania) and Phil Von (France), creates an even richer journey.

In Lithuania, Creation of the Worlds is showcased in permanent venues in Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipėda, and Druskininkai, as well as through traveling installations reaching more than 50 towns and cities nationwide.

As part of the festival’s industry segment, the Baltic countries will present the region’s co-production opportunities, highlight its advantages, and showcase film financing structures to international professionals. Representing Lithuania are Laimonas Ubavičius, CEO of the Lithuanian Film Centre; Deimantas Saladžius, Head of its Film Production Department; and Emilija Sluškonytė, producer at AUSTRÈ STUDIO.

Sluškonytė will share her experience working on the Lithuanian-Italian-Estonian-German co-production Barracuda, directed by Tomas Vengris. Set to premiere in Lithuanian cinemas in autumn 2026, Barracuda marks the country’s first true-crime feature, portraying the dramatic story of Loreta Gedvilaitė, the wife of a notorious mafia figure.

On the cover – a still from Laguna.