Rainer Sarnet

Rainer Sarnet is known for his distinctive fusion of folklore, spirituality and dark humour, creating poetic explorations of human psychology and the human soul. He frequently writes his own screenplays, often adapting literary works, while drawing inspiration from Orthodox mysticism and the films of Rainer Werner Fassbinder.

Sarnet’s internationally acclaimed November (2017) intertwines Estonian pagan mythology with Christian symbolism. The film premiered in the official competition of the Tribeca Film Festival, where it received the Best Cinematography Award.

His latest feature, The Invisible Fight (2023), premiered in the official competition of the Locarno Film Festival. Set in a Soviet Orthodox monastery in the 1970s, this kung fu comedy reflects Sarnet’s characteristic blending of seemingly opposing worlds: humour and sanctity, Black Sabbath and monastic chants, pop culture and religious iconography, rebellion and humility. The Invisible Fight marks Sarnet’s third collaboration with Homeless Bob Production, following The Idiot (2011) and November (2017).

Beyond film, Sarnet has directed theatre productions based on authors such as Stanisław Przybyszewski and Elfriede Jelinek, and considers reading a vital part of his artistic life. He describes art as “a poetic way to describe human psychology”, a sensibility deeply embedded in all his work. In recent years, Sarnet has staged both Dostoevsky and Shakespeare. In March 2023, Notes from Underground (after Fyodor Dostoevsky) premiered in Tallinn City Theatre and in February 2026 Sarnet directed Shakespeare’s Hamlet in the Estonian Drama Theatre. The latter was lauded by critics as “an outstanding, engaging, and impressively cohesive stage work”.

Since 2026, Rainer Sarnet has been the Professor of Liberal Arts at the University of Tartu. Sarnet is currently developing the feature film Sacred and Profane Love, a melodrama based on the fourth volume of A. H. Tammsaare’s novel cycle Truth and Justice.