The avant-garde "Autumn Ball" has won the Orizzonti Prize at the Venice Film Festival, the highest accolade ever bestowed upon an Estonian movie. The sombre film was praised by the festival jury for its true-to-life characters. The movie, entitled "Sugisball" in Estonian, is set in Tallinn, where its troubled characters struggle through their relationships. It will be released here on Sept. 13.
The trial of a British man accused of murdering an Estonian woman in London started on Sept. 7. The man, Garath Davies, 22, is accused of raping and killing Egeli Rasta in July 2006 as the young Estonian woman went jogging through a park. Police alleged the man had been seen acting suspiciously near Rasta's house before the murder, and said her blood was found on his clothes and hat. Davies has pleaded not guilty. Rasta, 27, had lived in London for two years, and previously worked at the Harrods department store.
Another major foreign operation is to pull out of Estonia. On Sept. 7, the Hilton hotel chain said it would close its international call center. The call center employed 120 staff who handled bookings and customer inquiries across the world. Hilton said the high call prices in Estonia and the "low language skills of the staff" were behind the decision. It is the latest in a string of foreign companies to close their factories and offices in Estonia.
