The Noisemaker


The Noisemaker is a Lithuanian short film written and directed by Karolis Kaupinis and released in 2014.

Plot

A distant provincial school is waiting for an official delegation from the Ministry. They're about to bring a new school bell. This is not what the school needs though. Having shrunk throughout the years, it lacks two pupils to satisfy the governmental quota established for any school in the country to exist.
The gift from the capital is a threat for the survival of the school. Anticipating the arrival of the delegation, the principal makes his best to mask the lack of pupils and avoid the unavoidable school closure.

Production

The Noisemaker is the debut short film of Karolis Kaupinis and his first collaboration with Lithuanian producer Marija Razgutė.
Both of the director's parents were schoolteachers, leading him to make a short film about the closure of schools in rural areas, a common phenomenon in Lithuania since the 1990s. The short was filmed in an elementary school in the city of Vilnius, Lithuania.
The Noisemaker was the first Lithuanian film to be selected for the Locarno Film Festival in 20 years, since 1994.

Awards and Recognitions

AwardDate of ceremonyCategoryRecipientsResult
2Annas International Short Film Festival 20142014Best Baltic Short FilmKarolis KaupinisWon
Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival 20142014Baltic Films categoryKarolis KaupinisNominated
Locarno Film Festival 20142014International categoryKarolis KaupinisNominated
Lithuanian Film Academy "Silver Crane" Awards 20152015Best Lithuanian FictionKarolis KaupinisWon
Lithuanian Film Academy "Silver Crane" Awards 20152015Best ActorValentinas MasalskisWon
Vienna Independent Short Film Festival 20152015Special Jury MentionKarolis KaupinisNominated
Vilnius International Film Festival 20152015Best Lithuanian ShortKarolis KaupinisWon
Premiers Plans Festival in Angers 20152015International categoryKarolis KaupinisNominated