Questions of National Identity in Contemporary Baltic Cinema

The study examines contemporary cinema of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia as a form of a representation of national identity of the Balts. The paper aims to elicit and define todays national identity of aforementioned nationalities through the application of postcolonial theory to cultural artefacts. Postcolonial approach to the analysis is a key element of this research as the Baltic states are considered here as a region that underwent colonial occupation which left a crucial trace on the Balts. The principal research methods used in the study are narrative and structural analysis. It is expected to prove through the film analysis that contemporary Baltic people represent themselves (possibly unintetionally) as nationalities with postcolonial thinking. This research consists of three main chapters apart from the introduction and the conclusion. In the first chapter, we will define the concepts of "nation", «identity» and "national identity" and see how the concept of national identity is connected with cultural representation. In the second chapter, we will address to the theoretical framework offered by postcolonial studies and try to answer the question of whether the Baltic States is a post-colonial space. The third Chapter includes an analysis of eight contemporary Baltic audiovisual works. We will look at the images and motifs in films that construct the national identity of Latvians, Lithuanians and Estonians.