How do you find a way out of a relationship in which love and freedom are inversed? Marija is doing her utmost to find her life partner who has disappeared in a psychotic episode. Her desire to save the man is so unwavering that it is not swayed by anyone’s recommendation to slow down and let Vytas be. A tense chain of events that unrolls over 24 hours uncovers not the man himself but the fact that Vytas does not expect salvation, because he does not see any need for it.

‘Runner’, which premiered at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival and was nominated for the best film in the East of West competition programme, captures the audience with its masterfully dramaturgical pace, keeping up with the psychological nuances of which is worth every effort in order to let the truly intense film experience to finally sweep you off your feet. The film’s screenwriter and director Andrius Blaževicius has woven Marija’s inner world from his own life experience, thus creating strong base material for Žygimante Jakštaite who plays the lead character and has earned the title of European Shooting Star 2021 for the role.

Elise Eimre