MO Museum (Pylimo st. 17, Vilnius)

On October 15 at 16.00, in a conversation entitled Petras Savickis: Directing Jazz musicologist and record producer Rūta Skudienė, Savickis’ colleague journalist Liudvika Pociūnienė, and long-time associate Antanas Gustys, producer of Vilnius Jazz, will reminisce about the television director and his creative work. The event will also be attended by the curator of the festival’s film program, film director Neringa Medutytė. Excerpts from the video recording of the project Voicescapes. Homage to MKČ, directed by Savickis and presented on the Vilnius Jazz stage in 2011, will be screened.

For almost four decades, Petras Savickis monitored from the director’s booth and carried out national broadcast of the most important jazz events in Lithuania, including the Vilnius Jazz festivals. He did not allow music lovers to go without jazz during the pandemic restrictions, when this music was played in empty halls or was completely banned from them. In 2021, the director was honoured with the Vilnius Jazz Award for his contributions to Lithuanian jazz.

Savickis graduated from the Lithuanian State Conservatory in 1979 as a television director. In 1981, he began working at Lithuanian Television, directing children’s shows and jazz programs. From 1999 to 2005, he was the director of the program Rusų gatvė (Russian Street), and in 1999 he and journalist Liudvika Pociūnienė started creating the historical journalism program Laiko ženklai (Signs of Time). This collaboration resulted in the films Pažvelk, tai Vilnius (Look, It’s Vilnius, 2006), Pasitikiu tavimi (I Trust You, 2008), Meninykai (Artists, 2009), and Meistras (The Master, 2011).

In 2005, both authors were awarded the St. Christopher statuette for promoting Vilnius’ cultural heritage, in 2006 – the Stasys Lozoraitis Award, and in 2004 and 2006 – the National TV and Radio Commission awards for the best cultural program.

Musicologist and record producer Rūta Skudienė, a participant in the afternoon of reminiscences, has been researching Lithuanian jazz for four decades. She compiled and released the first Lithuanian jazz anthology in two triple albums with detailed descriptions, presented Lithuanian jazz in English in The History of European Jazz, and created the internet portal jazzhistory.lt dedicated to the history of Lithuanian jazz. In 2017, the musicologist’s contributions to Lithuanian jazz were recognized with the Vilnius Jazz Award. In 2009, she was awarded the Vytautas Landsbergis Prize for her contributions to Lithuanian musical heritage.

Skudienė studied music history at the Lithuanian State Conservatory (now the Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre), worked as an editor at the Vilnius Record Studio and in the music section of the magazine Kultūros barai. Since 1996, she has been running her own music record label, Semplice.

Liudvika Pociūnienė graduated from Vilnius University’s Faculty of Philology with a degree in Lithuanian language and literature and worked as a translator. Later, she participated in the publication of Sąjūdžio žinios (Sąjūdis News), was a commentator for the radio station Radiocentras, and served as deputy editor-in-chief of the daily newspaper Lietuvos Aidas. In 1996, she began working in television as a producer for TV3, host of the program Detektorius (Detector), and director of LTV News. In 1999-2009, she and Petras Savickis created the historical journalism program Laiko ženklai (Signs of the Times). From 2020 to 2024, she was a member of the Seimas (Parliament).

Neringa Medutytė is a journalist and film director, a disciple of renowned British documentary filmmaker Dick Fontaine, who has immortalized many prominent jazz personalities in his films. She studied at the National Film and Television School in London and has made a number of documentary films.