The annual Pärt & Film Festival begins today in Laulasmaa

Text Mark Taylor
Photo Andrei Chertkov

Today, August 22, marks the beginning of the 14th annual “Pärt & Film” festival at the Arvo Pärt Centre in Laulasmaa. This year’s programme, running until August 24, will feature three films, each showcasing Arvo Pärt‘s music in a unique audiovisual context.

The festival kicks off with Revoir Paris (Paris Memories), a sensitive and personal film by acclaimed French director Alice Winocour. Premiered at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival, the film serves as a therapeutic love letter to Winocour’s hometown of Paris, reflecting on the city’s resilience following the 2015 terrorist attack on the Bataclan concert hall. Arvo Pärt’s Fratres plays a significant role in the film, framing both its opening and closing scenes with powerful, extended excerpts.

On Friday, 23 August, the festival will present Japón, a 2002 film by renowned Mexican director Carlos Reygadas. Now considered a classic of 21st-century cinema, Japón combines sublime visual language with a minimalist documentary atmosphere, taking viewers on an existential journey through a remote Mexican mountain village. The film’s final scene, with its nod to Tarkovsky’s Stalker, is underscored by Pärt’s Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten and also features a performance of his Miserere.

The festival concludes on Saturday, 24 August, with Glass, My Unfulfilled Life, a documentary by Dutch director Rogier Kappers that premiered in November last year. This unexpectedly engaging and humorous film serves as a self-deprecating reminder that it’s never too late to pursue your dreams, even when those around you may not understand. The film highlights the global reach of Arvo Pärt’s music, showcasing it in surprising contexts, such as performances on an instrument made from drinking glasses, affectionately referred to by Kappers as a “glass organ.”

In a video message to the Arvo Pärt Centre, Kappers expressed his deep connection to Pärt’s music, which has been a lifelong inspiration. “Even though Pärt himself appears only briefly in the film, his music has accompanied me throughout my life. It was a major source of inspiration when I decided eight years ago to learn to play music on singing glasses. I wanted so much to perform Pärt’s music on the glass organ, and I did. This film revolves around music, exploring the profound impact it can have on a person’s life,” Kappers said.

Kappers also noted that while the film is a celebration of music, it also carries an existential dimension, touching on themes of life’s purpose and what we choose to do with our time. “Ultimately, this film aims to move viewers and make them laugh, reminding us not to take ourselves too seriously,” he added.

The Arvo Pärt Centre has been organising film evenings centred on Pärt’s music since 2011. All screenings take place at the Arvo Pärt Centre in Laulasmaa.

Revoir Paris and Glass, My Unfulfilled Life will be shown with Estonian subtitles, while Japón will feature English subtitles.

To learn more about this and similar topics
Arvo Pärt Centre Arvo Pärt Music Events in Estonia Film Festival Laulasmaa Pärt & Film Revoir Paris