The exhibition includes analyses of 21 Estonian movies, from comedies to dramas, animations and family movies. In their analyses, the project's participants focused on the portrayal in the films of old age, masculinity and femininity.

In joint discussions held, the emphasis on negative portrayals of elderly characters' concerns or quirky habits, along with the characters' frequent health problems and tendency to experience loneliness caused sharp discussion.

The idea for the exhibition originally came from a research project at Tallinn University, which focuses on representations of ageing and masculinity in film. The working group that created the exhibition is also mainly made up of students.

"The idea is to discover, through these films, how ageing is conceptualized, what values and worldviews they reflect and how that relates to the general stereotypes about ageing in Estonian society, now and in the present," explained the exhibition's curator Sten Kauber.

"At the exhibition, visitors can get to know the films and through them understand what these elderly characters in the films are like, as well as what their relationships are like, their values and worldviews are," Kauber continued.

Visitors to the exhibition are also able to and express their own perceptions of what old age means and how it is understood.

The "Best Before Passed?!" exhibition will remain on display at the Estonian Film Museum until October 5, 2025.

More information about the exhibition is available here.

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