On Friday we got amazing news that director Vytautas Katkus’ film CHERRIES together with 8 other works from all over the world will compete in the main short film competition program.
This is the director’s second presentation at this prestigious festival, and his previous short film COMMUNITY GARDENS (2019) became the first Lithuanian film to participate in the Semaine de la Critique program.
CHERRIES will compete with films from China, South Korea, Costa Rica, USA, France, Ghana, Hong Kong and Nepal. 9 works for the Cannes Short Film Competition were selected from more than 3,5 thousands works from around the world.
„The names of Lithuanian filmmakers, who appear more and more often in the programs of international film festivals, are always gratifying, and seeing the rapid growth of our film talent industry, it may soon cease to be a surprise” – smiles Marija Razgutė, producer of CHERRIES, M-Films) – „CHERRIES is the first Lithuanian film in the Official Short Film Competition program in Cannes. We are extremely happy and proud that the delicate story of the father and son captured in the film has convinced the programmers of the Cannes Film Festival.”
CHERRIES director Vytautas Katkus does not hide the fact that while making the film, it is as if he has gone to a certain test, how minimal can the story be in the end. „Therefore, the news about Cannes was a gratifying shock to me and the first confirmation that this story, which I deliberately told in a minimalist way, was finally read and welcomed. When making the film, I wanted to reveal a feeling – memories, saying goodbye to them. I did it without professional actors and a big storyline, so I kept wondering where the limit of minimalism is when a film doesn’t become a film, but just a story.”
CHERRIES synopsis. A recently retired father invites his son to help him with the cherry picking in the garden. The father is in no hurry to finish the cherry job though, as he tries to catch up with his son. The cherries remain in the background.
