The Linen

The Linen is director Laila Pakalniņa’s graduation film from the All-Union State Institute of Cinematography in Moscow. It follows a delivery van driver who brings linen to a children’s hospital. As a backdrop to the deliveries, the film presents small details of the hospital’s daily routine that are filled with emotional power. The film introduces a style Pakalniņa would continue in her later work – meticulous frame composition, attention to visual detail, and carefully constructed sound design. The film became the first part of a trilogy completed by The Ferry and The Mail. (Karlovy Vary International Film Festival)