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Dirt In Your Face
17-year-old Mihkel and his band go on a journey full of alcohol, protest and music to impress a group of foreign producers visiting Soviet Estonia at a music festival. It is a wild ride to finding oneself on the breaking point of a vanishing era.
Summer 1987, Soviet-occupied Estonia. 17-year-old Mihkel dreams of rock stardom, leading a metal band and clashing with his rival Hendrik. When a West German producer arrives in search of talent, the boys embark on a chaotic road trip to a rock festival across Estonia. Joined by Liisa—Hendrik’s girlfriend and Mihkel’s secret crush—plus their wild friend Reaper, idealistic drummer Ingvars, and a grumpy bus driver, the journey spirals into trouble at hotels, weddings, and beyond. Amid youthful rivalry, music, and love, Mihkel begins to question what he truly wants. At the festival, tensions erupt: Reaper sabotages their performance but seizes the moment to raise the banned blue-black-white Estonian flag, turning their failed gig into a bold act of rebellion.
Pitching team
Jaak Kilmi
Jaak Kilmi studied film directing at Tallinn University. He has co-directed and produced a string of successful short films; a number of documentary films and four feature films. His films have been awarded internationally and have enjoyed successful theater runs in Estonia. He has lectured film history and directing at the University of Tallinn and Estonian Academy of Arts. He has curated and created visuals for several museum expositions.
Tanel Tatter
Tanel Tatter is Estonian film producer and creative force behind many popular local productions, transitioning from marketing roles to helm a leading production company, with a rich portfolio of critically and commercially successful films. He deftly balances local cultural storytelling with international outreach, ensuring Estonian cinema continues to thrive beyond its borders. Notable Film Productions: ‘Melchior the Apothecary’ (2022), ‘Melchior the Apothecary The Ghost’ (2022), ‘Melchior the Apothecary The Executioner’s Daughter’ (2023) — part of the acclaimed ‘Apteeker Melchiori’ trilogy directed by Elmo Nüganen. The ‘Apteeker Melchiori’ films drew over 215,000 cinema-goers in Estonia (2022), along with over 180,000 home viewers and international festival visibility across 12 countries. Other major films are ‘The Bog’ (2022), ‘Hunting Season’ (2021), ‘Estonian Funeral’ (2021), ‘Where the Heart Is’ (2020), ‘Fools of fame’ (2023), ‘The Faulty Brides’ (2023), ‘The Vacationers’ (2023), ‘The Shadow’ (2024),’„Life and Love’ (2024); ‘Jan Uuspõld goes home’ (2025), ‘Perfect strangers’ (2026) and ‘The Old Man Movie’ (2019) Tatter produced this animated Estonian hit—recently noted as the most successful Estonian full-length stop-motion animated film, watched by over 86 000 viewers.
He is also the producer of feature films ‘Dirt in your face’ currently in post-production, dir. by Jaak Kilmi, and in development, ‘The God Killer’ directed Mikk Mägi.
