''8 Views of Lake Biwa'' (

Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...

: ''Biwa järve 8 nägu'') is a 2024 romantic

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular ...

written and directed by

Marko Raat Marko Raat (born 1 July 1973 in Tallinn) is an Estonian film director, scenarist and cameraman. He has made as author documentaries, full-length features, video art works, directed in theatre and has been involved in several art projects. Film ...

. A co-production between Estonia and Finland, the film stars Elina Masing. It is loosely based on the novel of the same name by Max Dauthendy. It was selected as the Estonian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the

97th Academy Awards The 97th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on March 2, 2025, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. During the gala, the AMPAS presented Academy Awards (commonly r ...

, but was not nominated.

Synopsis

On the shimmering shores of Europe's otherworld, two young girls, Hanake and her best friend, talk about their first love interest while watching the yachts sailing toward

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

. Nevertheless, the magic is fading in their isolated fishing village as they deal with a recent disaster. It is clear that intimacy alone will not help them process their loss.

Cast

The actors participating in this film are: * Elina Masing as Hanake * Simeoni Sundja as Kiri * Kärt Kokkota as Merikarp *

Tommi Korpela (born 23 August 1968) is a Finnish actor. He has won the Jussi Award for Best Actor three times, a feat accomplished by only two other Finnish actors before him: Lasse Pöysti and Tauno Palo Tauno Valdemar Palo (born Tauno Brännäs; 25 Oc ...

as Platon *

Maarja Jakobson Maarja Jakobson (born 8 December 1977) is an Estonian television, stage and film actress whose career began in the late 1990s. Early life and education Maarja Jakobson was born in Tartu in 1977. She is distantly related to 19th-century writer and ...

as Jänesesilm * Hendrik Toompere Jr. as Roman *

Tiina Tauraite Tiina Tauraite (born on 2 June 1976 in Tallinn) is an Estonian actress. In 1998 she graduated from the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre. Since then, she has worked as a theatre actress at Von Krahl Theatre. Besides theatre roles she has app ...

as Õnne *

Jan Uuspõld Jan Uuspõld (born 14 December 1973) is an Estonian stage, television, radio and film actor and musician. Early life and music career Jan Uuspõld was born in Tallinn, the eldest of three sons of Ingar and Heidi Uuspõld. His mother is an accou ...

as Sora * Jarmo Reha as Okuro *

Jüri Vlassov Jüri Vlassov (April 23, 1948) is an Estonian actor and singer. Golden Trio In 1974, he together with founded the band Hõbedased kaksikud ("Silver Twins"), which in 1975 had become ("Golden Trio"), which existed for over 45 years, until the d ...

as Siimeon *

Peeter Tammearu Peeter Tammearu (born 31 July 1964 in Pärnu) is an Estonian actor. In 1986 he graduated from the performing arts department of the Tallinn State Conservatory. 2003–2009 he was the director of Ugala Theater. Since 2014 he is an actor and dir ...

as Timofei *

Meelis Rämmeld Meelis Rämmeld (born 4 April 1975 in Tallinn) is an Estonian actor. In 1997 he graduated from Viljandi Culture Academy Theatre Department. After graduating he worked in Ugala Theatre. Since 2015 he is working at Endla Theatre. Besides theatre ro ...

as Andrei *

Liina Tennosaar Liina Tennosaar (born 23 May 1965) is an Estonian stage, film and television actress. Early life and education Liina Tennosaar was born in Tallinn to Kalmer Tennosaar and Sirje Tennosaar (''née'' Arbi). She has one full sibling and one half-si ...

as Nina * Erki Laur as Ain

Production

Principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...

began July 28, 2022, and wrapped on September 10, 2022, at

Lake Peipus Lake Peipus is the largest trans-boundary lake in Europe, lying on the international border between Estonia and Russia. The lake is the fifth-largest in Europe after Lake Ladoga and Lake Onega (in Russia), Lake Vänern (in Sweden), and Lake ...

Estonia Estonia, officially the Republic of Estonia, is a country in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, and to the east by Ru ...

Release

It had its world premiere on January 31, 2024, at the

53rd International Film Festival Rotterdam The 53rd International Film Festival Rotterdam, is the 2024 edition of the International Film Festival Rotterdam, which began on 25 January 2024. The festival opened with ''Head South'' a New Zealand film by Jonathan Ogilvie. The complete line-u ...

, then screened on June 21, 2024, at the 23rd

Transilvania International Film Festival The Transilvania International Film Festival (TIFF; ) is the first international feature film festival in Romania, which is held annually in the historic capital of Transylvania, Cluj-Napoca. Founded in 2002 by the Romanian Film Promotion (), TIFF ...

, on July 24, 2024, at the 31st

Palić European Film Festival Palić European Film Festival is a European film festival that takes place in the town of Palić (a lake resort near Subotica, north Serbia). As of 2019, it has been held 26 times. The Festival includes nine programs: Official Selection, Young Spir ...

, and on September 22, 2024, at the

Helsinki International Film Festival The Helsinki International Film Festival – Love & Anarchy () is a non-competitive film festival held since 1988 in Helsinki, Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to ...

. It was commercially released on March 8, 2024, in Estonian theaters.

References

External links

* *
Official Page
' {{Estonian submission for Academy Awards 2024 films 2024 romantic drama films Estonian romantic drama films Finnish romantic drama films Estonian-language films Films set in Estonia Films shot in Estonia Films based on Japanese novels