110 min, Latvia, color, 2016, Latvian with English subtitles, world premiere
Director Renārs Vimba and actress Elīna Vaska (above) are available for interviews

In his strong debut feature MELLOW MUD, Latvian director Renārs Vimba carefully handles the delicate theme of coming-of-age of a teenage girl. Living in the muddy fields of the Latvian countryside with her grandmother and her younger brother Robis, Raya (17) faces the bittersweet pleasure of first love - while dealing with circumstances that even a grown woman would hesitate to tackle.

Vimba sought the help of Miguel Machalski, widely recognized script consultant in Europe – he has worked on films like Clint Eastwood’s MILLION DOLLAR BABY, Stephen Daldry’s BILLY ELLIOT and others. The actors for the film were searched for throughout Latvia. Out of more than 1,500 candidates, non-professional actors Elīna Vaska (Raya) and Andžejs Jānis Lilientāls (Robis) were chosen.

The original score was written by the prominent Icelandic musician and producer Valgeir Sigurðsson, the founder of the studio Greenhouse who has been co-operating with artists like Bjork, Damon Albarn, Sigur Rós, Coco Rosie and many others. He has taken part in creation of soundtrack for Spike Jonze’s film BEING JOHN MALKOVICH and Lars von Trier’s DANCER IN THE DARK.