Hollywood’s go-to Latvian production servicer Forma Pro Films, producer of Kristen Stewart’s Un Certain Regard entry “The Chronology of Water” – alongside Stewart’s Nevermind Pictures, the U.K.’s Scott Free and France’s CG Cinema – is upping its game in the Euro co-production space.
The Riga-based outlet which also serviced the Cannes Premiere title “The Disappearance of Josef Mengele” by Kirill Serebrennikov, is lining up a handful of mega-European co-productions for 2025-2026, notably through long-standing relationships with auteur-driven powerhouses CG Cinema headed by Charles Gillibert, and Serebrennikov’s regular production banner Hype Studios.
First up is “Out of this World,” the English-language debut of Catalan filmmaker Alberto Serra (“Pacifiction”) produced by France’s Ideale Group and Les Films du Losange, alongside Spain’s Andergraun, Germany’s Pandora Film with backing from Eurimages and Arte.
Details of the storyline are still under wraps, although according a statement from Arte France Cinéma, it will revolve around the historic rivalry between the U.S. and Russia, with a US delegation sent to Russia in the midst of the Ukrainian war to try to find a solution to an economic dispute linked to sanctions.
Forma Pro Films’ head of production Max Pavlov said the five-week shoot in Latvia this summer will be “intense”, with filming almost every day to fit Serra’s demands. “Alberto likes to work with a small team,” so it will be an intimate shoot with a small crew from Spain, France and Latvia,” he said.
Next in line is “Minotaur” by Russian helmer Andrei Zvyagintsev, multiple Palme d’Or contender and winner of a Jury Prize in 2017 for “Loveless.” Filming in Latvia will kick off in October. “It will be very interesting to work differently again from the Alberto Serra small crew method and Hollywood’s giant teams,” Pavlov said. “Andrei ,who now lives in exile in France, has a typical Russian filmmaking approach, with a very long pre-production period as he plans his movie in detail, thinking every shot individually.”
The project is being produced by France’s MK Productions and CG Cinema, in co-production with Forma Pro Films and Germany’s Razor Film Produktion.
After the Cannes 2024 competitor “Limonov-The Ballad” and “The Disappearance of Josef Mengele,” Forma Pro Films will also service Serebrennikov’s first French-language project “Après.” The Hype Studios feature will be co-produced by Forma Pro Films’ president Igor Pronin and CEO Julia Zaytseva.
Cannes Spotlight
Discussing the company’s weighty presence in Cannes with Serebrennikov and Stewart, Forma Pro Films’ producer and head of development Svetlana Punte said: “We’re honored and proud to work with such outstanding directors.
The seasoned Kirill will once again surprise the audience with “The Disappearance of Josef Mengele,” as for Stewart’s directorial debut, it will be like “a diamond revealed to the world.” Of her experience of working as first AD – on top of producing “The Chronology of Water” – Punte said: “Kristen is one of the most prepared directors I’ve worked with. She is ready to compromise if needed, but always stays fully-focused on her vision.”
The movie was shot over 26 days in Latvia, with a few days in Forma Pro Films’ new outpost in Malta, although the full story on paper is U.S. set. “New York, Texas, Oregon – you name it – we recreated it all in Latvia-besides San Diego scenes, shot in Malta,” Punte said.
The Chronology of Water shoot. (L-R) Corey C Waters, Kristen Stewart, Svetlana Punte
Courtesy of Forma Pro Films
Latvian Filming Assets
For the seasoned film executive, Latvia is extremely competitive with its national cash rebates capped at 30% of eligible costs, expert cast and crew and wide-ranging locations. To offer their clients maximum filming comfort and options all year round, Forma Pro Films has also built post-COVID its own infrastructure, one of Europe’s largest LED Unit studios.
“We always push for the best, which is why we’ve become the biggest players in Latvia for U.S. shoots,” said Punte, who cited “Words of War,” executive produced by Sean Penn, which was fully shot in Latvia a few years back, and two mega-projects that recently wrapped filming locally under Forma Pro Films care: Olivier Assayas’ “The Wizard of Kremlin” starring Jude Law, Alicia Vikander and Paul Dano, and Cary Fukunaga’s “Blood on Snow starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Eva Green.
“Interestingly, both films shot almost entirely in Latvia, which proves that we can easily accommodate major productions at the same time,” Punte underlined.
Asked whether he was nervous about Donald Trump’s threat to impose 100% tariffs on movies produced overseas, Pavlov said: “Hopefully the tariffs won’t come into force. We’re just standing by.” Going forward, the head of production said his goal for Forma Pro Films is to tap into TV drama. “The market is changing; we know that series are growing rapidly, so we’ll explore this market in the future.”
