The 9th Annual New York Baltic Film Festival (NYBFF) presented by Scandinavia House: The Nordic Center in America returns this November continuing its tradition of bringing the best new films from the Baltic region to New York audiences!
Screening on Friday, November 6 in NYBFF, director Laila Pakalniņa’s documentary Scarecrows (Putnubiedēkļi, Latvia, 2025) is a gripping, visually composed tale of “runway rangers” and their encounters with beings of nature. Director Laila Pakalniņa will be present for a film talk and Q&A.
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)
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Laila Pakalniņa 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.