Ulya is a Latvian/Estonian/Polish/Lithuanian coproduction, produced by Guntis Trekteris through Ego Media (Latvia), Pille Rünk through Allfilm (Estonia), Małgorzata Staroń through Staron Film (Poland), and Ieva Norvilienė through Tremora (Lithuania).

The script was written by Livia Ulman, Andris Feldmanis and Kārlis Arnolds Avots, who plays the lead role. Avots also originated the idea for the film after initially pitching the project to Kairišs and DoP Wojciech Staroń.

The cast also includes Alise Dzene, Dārta Cīrule, Chulpan Khamatova, Artūrs Krūzkops, Kaspars Dumburs, Aleksas Kazanavičius, and Madara Viļčuka.

The film was shot in Latgale (Eastern Latvia) and Riga in 30 days across three sessions: the winter of 2024, the autumn of 2024 and the spring of 2025.

The production is now in the editing phase with editor Armands Začs, followed by sound postproduction in Estonia and image postproduction in Poland at the end of this summer.

“With the 1960s and 70s rarely depicted on screen, capturing the essence of that Soviet-era period demanded extraordinary effort and creativity from both the production and costume design teams,” said Latvian producer Guntis Trekteris (Ego Media) in a statement to FNE.

Coordinating the multi-country coproduction also brought logistical and creative challenges, particularly in aligning schedules, postproduction workflows, and differing national funding requirements.

The film’s budget is 1.7 m EUR, with financing coming from the National Film Centre of Latvia, the Estonian Film Institute, the Cultural Endowment of Estonia (kulka.ee), the Polish Film Institute (pisf.pl), the Lithuanian Film Centre, and the Riga City Council.

An international premiere is planned for early 2026.

Production Information:

Producer:
Ego Media (Latvia)
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Coproducers:
Allfilm (Estonia)
Staron Film (Poland)
Tremora (Lithuania)

Credits:
Director: Viesturs Kairišs
Screenwriters: Livia Ulman, Andris Feldmanis, Kārlis Arnolds Avots
DoP: Wojciech Staroń
Editor: Armands Začs
Production designer: Ieva Jurjāne
Costume designer: Rūta Lečaitė
Make-up artist: Liisi Pollumaa
Main cast: Kārlis Arnolds Avots, Alise Dzene, Dārta Cīrule, Chulpan Khamatova, Aleksas Kazanavičius, Artūrs Krūzkops, Kaspars Dumburs, Madara Viļčuka