About Egija
I worked as a journalist for the Latvian National
Newspaper "Latvijas Avize" for many years, writing feature
articles, radio and TV show critiques. For example, I published portrait
interviews about Olympic Game participants, well-known Latvian theater and film
directors, and Latvian soldiers serving in Afghanistan.
I moved to America in 2006 where I continued my
passion to tell compelling stories. I worked as a free-lance journalist and sent
articles back to Latvia about the lives, experience and achievements of Latvian
Americans. After joining the Colorado University graduate program in Journalism
I decided to focus my energies on learning to be a documentarian, graduating
with an MA in 2011.
Please take a look at clips from my documentaries:
"Cultural Connection – Latvian Artists in
America" (2011)
A short
documentary, “Cultural Connection: Latvian Artists in America”, tells the
stories of three extraordinary and talented Latvian artists living in America
today. Lolita Ritmanis - film and TV music composer; Aldis Rauda - industrial
designer and Ingrida Levensteins - stained-glass window designer. The
documentary focuses on their lives and creative work, as well as on how they
keep the Latvian traditions alive and how they incorporate Latvian elements in
their work. Lolita Ritmanis and Ingrida Levensteins belong to the second
Latvian generation living in America and they share their stories of how their
parents escaped Communist-occupied Latvia and tried to fit in to American society.
Meanwhile Aldis Rauda came to America when Latvia was already a free country,
in the mid 1990s, and has a different story to tell: for him living in America
was by choice.
"Style Rider" (2009)
Style Riders explores the surprisingly diverse culture of custom motorbikes. It surveys the spectacular and often provocative designs, and it probes the motivations and passions of the custom motorbike builders and owners. The documentary also explores the “birth” of custom motorbike culture in America, its historical development, and the role of Hollywood in its public perception, as portrayed for example in “The Wild One” (1953) and “Easy Rider” (1969). Style Riders poses many questions about custom motorbikes, such as: is it art? Is it bad taste or good taste? Is it an expression of personality, or just an attention grabber?
Location:
Denver, Colorado
Phone: 609.802.5998
E-Mail: hartmae@colorado.edu
