“Joy Will Prevail”

“Joy Will Prevail” – International Premiere at PÖFF

7 November 2026 at 20:15
Apollo Kino Plaza, Hall 2

Joy Will Prevail will have its international premiere at the Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF). The event is part of the TAB 2026 Satellite Programme. The screening is presented in collaboration with the Louis I. Kahn Centre.

It is the first feature film made in the United States about a person from Estonia. The film centres on Kuressaare-born architect Louis I. Kahn and the last building project completed during his lifetime – the Korman House in Pennsylvania.

In 1971, Steve Korman, a young father from Philadelphia, asks Kahn to design a country home for his family. Despite initially turning down the commission, Kahn takes it on. Over three years of working together, both men reflect on home, family and creativity. Alongside this collaboration, the film explores Kahn’s complicated relationships with three women and their children.

For first-time feature director Max Korman, the story is personal: Steve Korman was his grandfather. Through the creation of the Korman House, the film brings together a family’s history and the final creative years of a world-famous architect whose life began in Kuressaare.

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Max Korman, producer J. Andrew Greenblatt and actors Ben Rosenfield and Griffin Dunne.

Director and screenwriter: Max Korman
Country and year: USA, 2026
Runtime: 107 minutes
Language: English
Subtitles: Estonian

Tickets and further information on the PÖFF website
Trailer and further information on the Louis I. Kahn Centre website
Discover the Korman House