Baltic Boom, Latin American Streak: Tallinn Black Nights Fest Turns 30 With New Artistic Director

A new leadership chapter

Tramberg takes over the programming helm as artistic director for the festival’s 30th edition. She joined PÖFF more than 15 years ago as a program assistant, later becoming a program coordinator and helping build its international profile.

Founder Tiina Lokk remains the festival’s CEO and is concentrating on strategic and developmental direction. Tramberg says she is treating her first year as a chance to watch closely, rather than make many changes.

A broad anniversary lineup

The festival runs from Nov. 6 to 22, presenting 230 feature films and 259 short films from 87 countries. Its programs also include Just Film, for young audiences, and PÖFF Shorts, devoted to short-form work.

Together, the three events will screen 107 world premieres and 47 international premieres. The selection brings together new discoveries, films from the festival circuit and work that pushes boundaries.

Latin America and the Baltics

Latin American cinema has a particularly strong presence in this year’s international lineup. The festival is also putting a renewed focus on films from Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia.

PÖFF has run a Baltic Film Competition since 2008 and added a Baltic documentary competition last year. Tramberg says the anniversary edition aims to give regional films a stronger international platform and draw attention to the people making them.

Stories across different lives

Tramberg says the program presents people with varied lives and experiences, while offering stories audiences can connect with. The lineup reflects the festival’s effort to pair films from different places with themes that resonate more widely.