First Women Filmmakers in Lithuania
The “First Women Filmmakers in Lithuania” program of the Media Education and Research Center Meno Avilys presents six newly restored documentaries created by female directors: Antanina Pavlova, Diana and Kornelijus Matuzevičius, Janina Lapinskaitė, Jadvyga Zinaida Janulevičiūtė and Bytautė Pajėdienė. The films of the program, curated by Dr. Lina Kaminskaitė, unfold by developing original themes, distinct documentary genres, and different aesthetic means. Pavlova’s observational documentary, The Birth of a Character (1967), captures the everyday life of kindergarten children. A Local (2001) by Matuzevičius explores the hybrid identity of a Klaipėda region resident, Hilda Spalvienė. Lapinskaitė’s Venus with a Cat (1997) offers three portraits of sitters in which different life experiences and bodies transpire. Beatričė (1968) by Janulevičiūtė is a multifaceted portrait of the singer Beatričė Grincevičiūtė, crafted with sensitivity and care. Pajėdienė’s Every Night I Dream (1979) follows five weavers from a silk factory who decide to break a weaving record. Lapinskaitė’s Nude (2000) observes the photo shoot of one of the photographer Snieguolė Michelkevičiūtė’s models – a nude older man. This program aims to draw attention to little-known films of the first female filmmakers in Lithuania.
Dr. Lina Kaminskaitė is a film and culture historian, audiovisual media researcher, Associate Professor at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater, and the Head of the Department of Art History and Theory. In Meno Avilys, she curates archival film programs and initiates film studies, including the national digitization of audiovisual heritage, the project Sinemateka.lt, and an inquiry into gender equality in the Lithuanian film industry. Kaminskaitė is the co-author and editor of three books: Episodes for the Last Film: Director Almantas Grikevičius (with Dr. Aurimas Švedas, 2012), Cinema in Soviet Lithuania: System, Films, Directors (with Dr. Anna Mikonis-Railienė, 2015), and In Focus: Women in the Lithuanian Film (with Dr. Natalija Arlauskaitė, 2022).
ABOUT THE FILMS
The Birth of a Character
Director: Antanina Pavlova
Cinematography: Z. Putilovas
Lithuanian SSR, 1967, 10 min.
Early in the morning, the children start their journey to kindergarten, hand-in-hand with their parents. There is no shortage of activities for the little ones here – under the supervision of the kindergarten staff, they play sports, have health checks, dance, sing and play, and lunch and bedtime are not forgotten. Despite the common activities and the abundance of children in the frame, the different characters and interests of the children are slowly becoming apparent – from the closed-minded sensitives, to the company souls and the naughty ones who don’t want to go to bed, from those who are fascinated by medicine to those who are interested in the hairdressing trade. They are all individuals, and each one of them is observed by a silent camera.
Antanina Pavlova
Antanina Pavlova (1921–1982) was a Lithuanian film director and editor. She graduated from the Mosfilm Film Studio School in 1937, and in 1942, she finished her studies at a medical school. During World War II, Pavlova worked as a nurse. From 1946, she was an assistant to the editing director of the Lithuanian film studio and from 1955 – a director of the documentary chronicles “Tarybų Lietuva” [“Soviet Lithuania”], eventually publishing more than 250 series.
A Local
Directors: Diana ir Kornelijus Matuzevičiai
Cinematography: Kornelijus Matuzevičius
Editing: Vida Misiūnienė
Sound: Viktoras Juzonis
Lithuania, 2001, 26 min.
Hilda Spalviene, a resident of Šakininkai village, is a German from Klaipėda region. The cheerful old woman, who draws a cigarette with a mouthpiece, recalls her life: before the war she lived in Germany with her husband, after the war she was exiled to Siberia. Later, she was able to go back to Germany, but she returned to Šakininkai – to the land of her parents. Although the film focuses on Hilda’s story, it also subtly invites us to consider the issues of multiethnicity and national identity of the inhabitants of Klaipėda Region. Hilda, who speaks with an accent, stubbornly calls herself a local: she was born here and is ready to spend her last days here.
Virginija Diana Matuzevičienė
Virginija Diana Matuzevičienė (b. 1948) is a Lithuanian film director. From 1963 until 1964, she attended Juozas Miltinis drama studio in Panevėžys. Matuzevičienė also studied ceramics at Kaunas Stepas Žukas Technical School of Fine Arts (1967-1968). From 1984 until 1985, she studied directing at the Leningrad Institute of Theater, Music, and Cinematography. Matuzevičienė worked at the Lithuanian Film Studio as the director’s assistant in divisions of feature films, science popularization films, and documentary films. (1969-2003). Since 1990, she has been making documentary films with her husband, Kornelijus Matuzevičius.
Kornelijus Matuzevičius
Kornelijus Matuzevičius (b. 1944) is a Lithuanian film director and cinematographer. From 1963 until 1970, he studied at the Institute of Cinematography in Moscow. Matuzevičius worked at the Lithuanian Film Studio as an assistant cinematographer (1962-1963) and documentary cinematographer (1970-1989, mainly with director Henrik Šablevičius). Since 1990, he has been a documentary film director and cinematographer, making films with Diana Matuzevičius. Since 2001, Matuzevičius has worked as a lecturer at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater.
Venus with a Cat
Director: Janina Lapinskaitė
Lithuania, 1997, 24 min.
Nadia, Teresė and Ramutė are the three heroines of this documentary. Although they are very different, they are united by their unusual work – for decades they have been making a living by posing for artists. For Janina Lapinskaite, it is not the exotic profession that is important, but the stories that have marked these women’s bodies over time. The heroines of the film talk openly about their choice of work, their colourful, albeit difficult past, and their equally difficult present – they bare not only their bodies, but also their souls to the camera.
Nude
Director: Janina Lapinskaitė
Lithuania, 2000, 24 min.
A significant part of photographer Snieguolė Michelkevičiūtė’s series consists of nudes of older men. In Nude, the director observes the photo shoot of one of the photographer’s models – his body, face, a silent devotion to the realisation of each new idea. But it is not only the beauty of the man’s imperfect body that unfolds before the camera. At the same time, the film is a portrait of the photographer herself, her relationship with her subject, and the creative process of the two people taking place before our very eyes.
Janina Lapinskaitė
Janina Lapinskaitė (b. 1953) is a Lithuanian film director, actress, screenwriter, and educator. In 1975, she graduated from the Lithuanian Conservatory as a director. From 1975 until 1994, Lapinskaitė worked as a director at the Lithuanian Television. Since 1995, she has been a lecturer at the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theater. Lapinskaitė has worked as the head of its Film and Television Department since 2002 and as an associate professor since 2007. Lapinskaitė’s television and cinema films are mainly based on her own scripts. Her film characters are people on the so-called fringes of society – hermits and eccentrics – whose extraordinary lives are emphasized by the contrast between theme and style and a unique angle. Lapinskaitė’s films are characterized by a combination of poeticity and realism. In 2004, she was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Lithuanian Grand Duke Gediminas.
Beatričė
Director: Jadvyga Zinaida Janulevičiūtė
Lithuanian SSR, 1968, 15 min.
The entire life of the singer Beatričė Grincevičiūtė is overflowing with music. The film is a multifaceted portrait of the singer, crafted with sensitivity and care. Beatričė is the most demanding critic for herself and a playful teacher for the little ones, affectionately known as “the aunt of music”. Surrounded not only by friends but also admirers of her talent, she remains modest and humble as she wants as many people as possible to experience the beauty of music and her favourite songs. Only a subtle final shot reminds us that Beatričė experiences the world without the help of her eyes.
Jadvyga Zinaida Janulevičiūtė
Jadvyga Zinaida Janulevičiūtė (1926–2020) was a Lithuanian television film director and screenwriter. From 1946 until 1950, she studied at the Lithuanian Conservatory (piano and music history class). In 1956, she graduated from Vilnius University (English Philology) and in 1968 – from the Leningrad Institute of Theatre, Music, and Cinematography (Film Directing). In 1950–68, she was a director at the Lithuanian Radio and Television, and in 1968–89 – at the Telefilmas branch of the Lithuanian Television. Created about 30 (mainly musical) television films, most of which were about famous Lithuanian performers.
Every Night I Dream
Director: Bytautė Pajėdienė
Lithuanian SSR, 1979, 10 min.
Five weavers from a silk factory decide to break a weaving record. The occasion in focus is the 100th anniversary of Lenin’s birth. Having achieved their goal, the weavers are undoubtedly delighted with the Lithuanian Communist Party’s appreciation and the names of meritorious industrial workers bestowed upon them. However, behind the ideological motif of the weavers striving for the good of the Soviet Union, a story of difficult working conditions, extreme fatigue and the lack of time, not only for their colleagues but also for the family waiting at home, unfolds.
Bytautė Pajėdienė
Bytautė Pajėdienė (1929–2015) was a Lithuanian film director and sports journalist. After graduating from Vilnius University in 1953 (Lithuanian Language and Literature), she worked in the editorial office of the “Žvaigždutė” [“Little Star”] magazine until 1956. From 1956 until 1958, she was a literature and language consultant at the Lithuanian Film Studio. Pajėdienė worked as a film chronicle editor in 1958–67, and in 1967–91, she was the editor-in-chief and director at the Lithuanian Film Studio. She edited about 600 documentary chronicles, prepared their texts, and directed about 200. Pajėdienė created over 20 documentaries (and wrote scripts for many of them). Her cinematic inquiry centres on the Soviet man and his work. Most often, these are documentary sketches about factory veterans and workers. She paid much attention to the problems of women’s work and equality and created portraits of artists and athletes.
For questions about screening or exhibiting the program, contact info@menoavilys.lt
This program is a part of the digitized and restored Lithuanian audiovisual heritage project Sinemateka.lt, carried out by Meno Avilys.
Curated by Dr. Lina Kaminskaitė / Meno Avilys
Coordinated by Gerda Paliušytė
Image restored by Jonas Zagorskas
Sound restored by Vytis Puronas
Information partner: LRT
Financed by the Lithuanian Council for Culture
The digitization and restoration of the program’s films were implemented in cooperation with the Lithuanian Central State Archive and the Lithuanian National Radio and Television.