Laila Pakalniņa is a Latvian film director and screenwriter whose work spans documentary, short film and fiction features.
She graduated in 1986 from Moscow University, Department of TV Journalism, and in 1991 from the Moscow Film Institute (VGIK), Department of Film Direction. Since the early 1990s she has built an extensive body of work, directing more than forty films, including documentaries, short films and fiction features.
In 1996 she received the FIPRESCI Prize at the Cannes Film Festival for best short film with Prāmis (The Ferry). Her fiction feature Kurpe (The Shoe) was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1998 Cannes Film Festival. Over the years, her films have been selected for official programmes at major international festivals including Cannes, Venice, Berlinale, Locarno, Karlovy Vary and Rome, where they have received numerous awards.
Pakalniņa is known for a distinctive cinematic language marked by precise observation, formal rigour and an interest in everyday rituals and environments. Alongside her professional work, she often notes the balance between filmmaking and personal life with characteristic understatement. She lives in Latvia, continues to develop new projects, and remains one of the most singular voices in contemporary European cinema.
