Spit in My Face

This small, personal, honest experiment on a minimalist budget is edited from 12 years of nostalgic archival footage and ironical pranks. Mostly it is Manfred behind the camera. He follows Kristjan’s encounters and drunken conversations with the self-proclaimed cinema pioneer Eedi. Chess master Eedi can barely walk and can’t hear, but bitterly scorns Kristjan for filmmaking. Unstoppable dreamer, Kristjan continues to imagine a long-postponed film about the painter Jüri Arrak with never-ending hope to leave a mark in Estonian culture.

Directed by Manfred Vainokivi, Spit in My Face leans on a strong ensemble — Kristjan Svirgsden, Edvard Oja, Manfred Vainokivi — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about documentary titles of 2023.