Film Collection

• Director: Lennart Meri
• Writer: Lennart Meri

Veelinnurahvas or “The Waterfowl People” is a documentary by Estonian Lennart Meri (1929-2006) released in 1970. It depicts the contemporary life of several Finno-Ugric and Samoyedic people in Northern Europe and Siberia. 

Meri later produced six other documentaries about these people. These films area available on DVD with English subtitles under the title Lennart Meri soome-ugri rahvaste filmientsüklopeedia DVD (“Lennart Meri’s Finno-Ugric Peoples Film Encyclopedia DVD”). 

• 7:30 – 8:00. Nenets woman cutting decorative patterns from reindeer hide.
• 9.00 – 10:05. Khanty man checking fish traps.
• 10:05 – 13:10. Khanty man hewing and sewing a boat.

• 18:35 – 27:40. Komi hunter skiing with traditional skis, setting and checking traps & making a fire during the winter.
• 27:40 – 32:45. Mari people processing hemp fibres, making bast shoes.
• 43:10- 50:00. Karelian woman making bread. Karelian wood architecture.

• Veelinnurahvas with a Finnish dub, Part I
• Veelinnurahvas with a Finnish dub, Part II

Scriptwriter, director, camera and producer: Liivo Niglas
Produced in 2003
Duration: 58 min
In Russian and Nenets languages
Copies available with English, Russian, French and Estonian subtitles
DVD

• Documentary about the situation and problems of Finno-Ugric languages
• Script: Mart Meri, Mart Rannut
• Director: Mart Taevere
• DVD 28 min
• Polarfilm 2009