Exploring documentary forms

Documentary observation gains a special dynamic through the use of editing and an expressive soundtrack in Ansis Epners’ films – whether they are about sports, the work of choir conductors, or doctors’ struggles with people suffering from alcoholism. Conversely, House on Wheels can be seen as a playful manipulation of documentary material, where the boundary between the real and the staged becomes quite fragile. A different aesthetic is evident in Ansis Epners’ video diaries. As an active supporter of shifting technologies, Epners’s video diaries, the first one of those being From Everest to Paradise, offer intriguing insights from his travels across different continents.

Men’s game

Vīru spēle

A visually and emotionally intense portrait of the Riga hockey team Dinamo, featuring both a look back at the team’s history and footage of training sessions and the coach’s work with the team.

A House on the wheels

Namiņš uz riteņiem

A playful narrative both above and below street level, focusing on the employees who maintain the underground communications of the city of Riga.

Haemogram

Asinsaina

Patients under the influence of alcohol, doctors, blood, and Mozart’s Eine kleine Nachtmusik – there are mini-dramas taking place in a trauma center where intoxicated individuals are brought in.

Conductors

Virsdiriģenti

The 1985 Song Festival performance highlights the expressions of the chief conductors at various stages of the event, allowing us to experience the emotional nuances through the perfect combination of visuals and soundtrack, without any behind-the-scenes commentary.

From Everest to Paradise

No Everesta līdz Paradīzei

The first of Ansis Epners’s video diaries, capturing his travels to different continents, including his climb to a 5000 m base camp of Everest and his visit to Chitwan National Park on the Nepal-India border.