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On Thursday, 7 April 2016, 6.30pm Hackney Picturehouse (270 Mare Street, E8 1HE) will host the screening of The Gambler and a Q&A session with its lead actor Vytautas Kaniušonis. The Gambler received numerous awards in Lithuania, amongst them – awards for best film, director and actor in leading role, and was the first Lithuanian film to participate in the prestigious San Sebastián International Film Festival in Spain.

The main character in the film Vincent (Vytautas Kaniušonis) is the best employee at a medical centre. He does, however, have a passion for various forms of gambling. Persecuted by his debtors, Vincent comes up with a game that will help him to repay the money he has lost: gambling on his patients’ lives. At first this macabre game is popular amongst his colleagues, and then it rapidly expands. Even though it fixes Vincent’s financial problems, Ieva (Oona Mekas), his fellow doctor and partner, is opposed to it. As the stakes get higher, Vincent has to choose between gambling and love. According to the film’s writer Kristupas Sabolius, he and director Ignas Jonynas wanted to “unveil the hypocrisy that is broadcast by the media, seen in politicians, performed by the people who surround us and witness in ourselves every day”.

Throughout his long career, Vytautas Kaniušonis (b. 1963 in Murmansk, Russia) has worked predominantly in the theatre, directing numerous plays and acting extensively in various Lithuanian theatres. The role of Vincent in The Gambler was his cinematic debut, leading him to receive the Sidabrinė Gervė award for Best Actor in a Leading Role in 2014. The actor describes his experience in The Gambler as one that intensively challenged his identity and beliefs.

For more information and ticketing booking, click here: https://www.picturehouses.com/cinema/Hackney_Picturehouse/film/the-gambler-plus-qanda

This event is supported by the Lithuanian Culture Institute