Stairway to Heaven
Time is our own invention. If we die, there is no more time.
Spread your hands on a bicycle and you will revisit your past. This is what Uu hears from a sick almost 88-year-old painter Georg. The dying senile man mumbles about non-existent time. Surrounded by bleak routine Uu hasn’t ridden a bicycle in a long time and doesn’t believe in miracles.
Whenever he tries this whispered trick and doesn't fall off, Uu witnesses his naive boyhood on a carefree summer with sunny dreams of becoming a footballer or composer as Georg paints erotic nudes and his still sane father plays basketball. Disgruntled Uu drives back to first loves, brotherly fights, arousing passions, wet kisses, thirsts for independence, illegal music records, and bumpy KGB interrogations. Every time he is more radical, free, and fearless to fuck everything up.
Constant bicycle rides in different seasons reveal the beauty of Tartu. Mart Kivastik nostalgically compares two eras from a forbidden and controlled past to an accessible and gloomy present. Led Zeppelin, Slade, Electric Lights Orchestra, The Sweet, Deep Purple, Suzi Quatro, and Army of Lovers play melodies for youthful authenticity. A painting of a girl in a yellow dress connects both timelines, but who is she really?
Edvinas Pukšta
Mart Kivastik (1963) is an acknowledged scriptwriter and author of many theatrical plays who also directed short films. After graduating from the University of Tartu in 1989, Mart Kivastik has been working as a freelancer. His first book was published in 1993. The novel "Vietnamese Recipe" was published in 2012 and was named the Best Travel Book of the Year. Starting from 1997, his plays have been staged in various Estonian theatres and abroad. His previous two feature films "A Friend of Mine" and "When You Least Expect It" were screened at PÖFF.
Filmography:
Üks mu sõber (PÖFF 2011), Õnn tuleb magades (PÖFF 2016), Taevatrepp (2023)
Award for Best Baltic Film, grant of 5000€ from Piletilevi
