The statement of the Sterling Award World Jury:
“A slice-of-f#@ked-up-life portrait, the director of this film clearly had fly-on-the-wall access to his subjects, but some scenes, shot from multiple angles, are so formally composed as to seem staged. That’s not a bad thing: For all the desperation and depravity of the story, the filmmaker rescues a narrative of deep sadness and yearning that’s as touching as the circumstances are shocking.”
For more about other Silverdocs winners, please visit the official website.
Silverdocs, USA
June 20 – 26, 2011
Related articles:
>Silver Eye winners at Silverdocs
Family Instinct
Director: Gauja Andris
Producer: Melberga Madara
Production company: Fa Filma
Ģimenes lietas, Latvia, 2010, 58 min, HD, Drama doc, Portrait, Social Issues
"Family Instinct" is a film about incest - an illegal act, social taboo and a violation of religious norms. Zanda is a 28-year-old woman, worn out by hard work. Surrounded by poverty and despair, she is trying to survive with her two children in a god-forsaken Latvian village. Her hardships can be traced back to living in a relationship with her brother Valdis. When Valdis is put in jail, the local community forces her to make a difficult choice: to stay with him or with her children. Despite her ill fortune, she manages to express her love for the children, still hoping to save her family. The film offers a tragicomic but highly authentic insight into the bleak reality of Latvian countryside today.
East Silver 2010 / East Silver Caravan 2010 / Silver Eye Winner 2010 / Docu Talents from the East 2010 /
