Dawn

Dawn

Directed by Laila Pakalniņa • 2015 • Latvia

At once an homage to and a subversive reimagining of Soviet cinematic heritage, Laila Pakalniņa’s Dawn is one of post-independence Latvia’s most crucial films. Pakalniņa draws on the Stalinist propaganda myth of Pavlik Morozov: an ardent Pioneer who was killed by his family after denouncing his own father as a traitor to the Soviet cause. This parable of communist conviction – which was famously the basis for Sergei Eisenstein’s unfinished Bezhin Meadow – is transported here to postwar Latvia, as Pakalniņa draws out the sinister and uncanny qualities of the source material.

DAWN • AUSMA
Written and directed by Laila Pakalniņa
Cinematographer by Wojciech Staron
Music by Vestards Šimkus
Starring: Vilis Daudziņš, Antons Grauds, Andris Keišs

In Latvian with English subtitles

Dawn
  • Dawn

    Directed by Laila Pakalniņa • 2015 • Latvia

    At once an homage to and a subversive reimagining of Soviet cinematic heritage, Laila Pakalniņa’s Dawn is one of post-independence Latvia’s most crucial films. Pakalniņa draws on the Stalinist propaganda myth of Pavlik Morozov: an ardent Pioneer who wa...

Extras

  • Laila Pakalniņa on the making of Dawn

    Klassiki meets with Latvian director Laila Pakalniņa to discuss her 2015 film Dawn. Laila tells us about her long history with the material, how the film relates to Soviet cinema, and the lessons she brought to the production from her work in documentary.

  • Notes on Dawn

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