The Informatics Olympiad

Director's note

Informatics olympiads entered the film's context as a versatile symbol of youth competition and the desire for recognition in the adult world. Later, olympiad tasks began to intrigue me beyond a social metaphor. I started thinking of algorithms as a means of communication, with beautiful scientific fundamentals encoded within them. In our film, this becomes an odd, cryptic form of dialogue – the only means of communication left when all others fail.
Informatics was a natural choice for me, as I spent my adolescence competing in national and international olympiads. I also have experience working as a computer science researcher and software engineer, which helps me write a film in such an unusual context. It was written by combining autobiographical material with fiction: through personal experience, I seek to create an authentic texture and sense of reality, while the fictional elements dramatise and reflect, helping to distil the social issues the film raises.
The film's protagonist is an "eternal boy" type of character. He is intriguing and fascinating to follow, yet he struggles to take responsibility and connect with adult life. This makes his attempt to assume the role of a teacher paradoxical. The "eternal boy" archetype is increasingly relevant today. As technology advances and material living standards improve, maturity is delayed. Today's generation of people in their thirties face challenges in taking on responsibility and postpone questions of starting a family. We live in an age that celebrates youth, one that frequently distracts us from the natural processes of life.

Producer's note

After producing 4 successful short films together, we are now embarking on the debut feature film journey with director Adas Burkšaitis and his new project Informatics Olympiad. Over the years, our collaboration has grown into a strong creative partnership built on trust, a shared artistic sensibility, and a commitment to telling emotionally honest stories with a distinctive cinematic language.

Adas has already established himself as one of the most promising voices of the new generation of Lithuanian filmmakers through his short films Mėta, Tušinukas, Panaši, and Ramiojo vandenyno salos. His work combines subtle humour, emotional precision, and a unique ability to observe characters caught between vulnerability and absurdity. With Informatics Olympiad, he takes a natural yet ambitious step into feature filmmaking.

As a producer, my goal during the development is to create a solid artistic and financial foundation for the film, as well as building the international distribution strategy at early stages. At the same time, we are actively seeking co-production partners and positioning the project within the European film industry through markets and co-production platforms. The story’s unique setting - the rarely explored world of informatics olympiads - gives the project a distinctive identity, while its core themes of identity, memory, expectations, and emotional isolation remain universally relatable.

Profile

Magic Film is a Lithuanian production company and a joint venture of producers Greta Akcijonaite, Aurimas Pukevicius and Ramojus Petrauskas, specialising in film, TV and commercial production. Together, the producers bring over two decades of experience in audiovisual production, film distribution and international co-productions. Magic Film combines creative ambition with high production quality, working across different formats and markets. The company has produced award-winning projects and films and continues to develop a diverse slate of new work. Active across the Baltics and internationally, Magic Film has a strong track record in arthouse cinema, TV production and commercial advertising.