Latvia Submits Animated Feature ‘Flow’ For Best International Feature Oscar Race
The Baltic state of Latvia has chosen Gints Zilbalodis’ Flow as the country’s official entry for the international feature film category of the 97th Academy Awards. The decision was made by the Latvian Selection Committee, a commission of film industry experts established by the country’s National Film Center.
The dialogue-free cg film, which premiered in the Un Certain Regard sidebar of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, was a big hit at Annecy in June, picking up more awards than any other title in competition this year: the feature film jury award, audience award, Gan Foundation Award for Distribution, and best original music for a feature film.
The $4.1 million Belgium/France/Latvia co-production has also been acquired for distribution in North America by Sideshow and Janus Films, which are planning a theatrical release later this year. Next month, the film will screen at both the Toronto Int’l Film Festival and Ottawa Int’l Animation Festival.
The animation was produced by Sacrebleu Productions (France) and Take Five (Belgium), while Zilbalodis produced through his own Latvian studio, Dream Well Studio.
The film follows a cat whose home is devastated by a flood:
Teaming up with a capybara, a lemur, a bird, and a dog to navigate a boat in search of dry land, they must rely on trust, courage, and wits to survive the perils of a newly aquatic planet. From the boundless imagination of the award-winning Gints Zilbalodis (Away) comes a thrilling animated spectacle as well as a profound meditation on the fragility of the environment and the spirit of friendship and community.
Flow marks the second time that Latvia has selected an animated film for the international category of the Academy Awards; the first time was in 2014 when it submitted Signe Baumane’s Rocks in My Pockets.
Zilbalodis’ film remains eligible to compete in the animated feature category as well. There is recent precedent for animated films competing in multiple categories. In 2022, the Danish feature Flee was nominated in three categories: animated feature, international feature, and documentary feature.
Last year, Latvian president Edgars Rinkēvičs became involved in the Oscar race by offering an endorsement for Baumane’s second feature My Love Affair with Marriage, which contended in the animated feature category. Ultimately, the president’s endorsement didn’t move the needle, but it did point to the growing recognition of Latvian animation at the highest levels of government. With all of the positive buzz surrounding Flow, Latvia’s president may find it worthwhile to become involved again in the Oscars this year.
