SCARECROWS
Screening: November 6, 2026, 7:30 pm
Director Laila Pakalniņa will present a Q&A following the screening.
Scarecrows (Putnubiedēkļi)
Director: Laila Pakalniņa
90 min. Latvia, 2025
In Latvian and English with English subtitles
North American Premiere
Q&A to follow with the director.
A gripping, visually composed tale of “runway rangers” and their encounters with beings of nature.
The Riga International Airport is a paradoxical environment. In this urban citadel of travel bordered by lush forests, meadows and bodies of water, different species cross paths, each with their own route. Across four seasons in Latvia, the airport’s bird and wildlife control specialists—nicknamed “Scarecrows”—guide us through a chronicle of the flow of work and nature, reminding us that fences are built for humans, but cannot protect the lives of everyone and every kind.
“A contemplative and intriguing documentary on a life less lived, quietly hidden from the public eye, and ignored by the travelers who need the team’s service the most” - East European Film Bulletin
Director bio:
Laila Pakalnina was born in 1962 in Liepaja, Latvia, and graduated in 1986 from the Moscow University, Department of TV Journalism. In 1991, she graduated from the Moscow Film Institute (VGIK), Department of Film Direction. She won the FIPRESCI prize in Cannes in 1996 for the Best Short Film with Pramis / The Ferry. She makes both short and feature length documentaries and fiction films.