Madis Ligema (born 1986) works at the intersection of documentary filmmaking, political communication, and semiotic research. He holds a BA and an MA in Semiotics from the University of Tartu, where his work focused on political metaphor, rhetorical strategy, and the construction of meaning in public discourse.

His research interest centres on how visual narratives — documentary film, political campaign media, and digital storytelling — function not merely as representations of reality, but as instruments that actively construct political perception. People do not primarily believe in politics because it is logically convincing, but because it feels true: this observation drives his current research direction.

As a filmmaker and director, he founded the production company Davai Laama in 2013 and has since produced and directed work for ARTE, VPRO and Estonian National Broadcasting, and works regularly with the Dutch public broadcaster HUMAN. His science documentaries use narrative and humour to carry serious subjects: Of Mosquitoes and Men (2019) was selected for the Moscow International Short Film Festival, the Rome Independent Prisma Awards and jellyFEST. He has also produced health communication for the University of Tartu and the North Estonia Medical Centre, and worked as a campaign creative director and communication strategist.

His current production, JJ: Every Inch a King (2026), is an archive documentary about the actor Jüri Järvet, told entirely in Järvet’s own voice: from interviews and roles, and partly recreated with AI from his own memoirs. The project is part of his research into how new technologies change who gets to tell a life.

His current PhD research proposal — Narrative Power: Visual Storytelling and the Construction of Political Reality — draws on semiotics, philosophy of discourse (Foucault, Debord, Nietzsche), and practice-based research methods to explore how narrative-based influence operates beyond argument, and how emerging technologies, including AI-generated media, are transforming narrative authority and public trust.

Research Interests

Visual semiotics and political perception  ·  Documentary as political argument  ·  Narrative vs. argument-based persuasion  ·  Practice-based research in film  ·  AI and narrative authority

Education

2013 – 2016
MA, Semiotics & Cultural Theory
Thesis: "The Strategy of Effective Political Campaign"
University of Tartu, Estonia

2006 – 2009
BA, Semiotics & Cultural Theory
Thesis: "On Political Metaphors"
University of Tartu, Estonia

2024 – 2025
AI Atelier
Industry@Tallinn & Baltic Event

Work Experience

2026 – present
Advisor to the Minister of Culture of Estonia
Ministry of Culture

2025
Advisor to the Deputy Mayor of Tallinn
Tallinn City Office

2021 – 2023
Creative director & producer
Creative Union / VURR / Newton

2020 – 2022
Campaign creative director
Local government election 2021 / General Elections 2023

2013 – present
Director & Producer
Davai Laama (independent production company)

2015 – 2018
Founder & CEO
"KUMA" soft drinks brewery

2014 – 2018
Founder & CEO
VÄLK – Events, Media & PR

2013 – 2014
"The Beach Institute"
BalticLab 2.0

2011 – 2013
Director & Producer
Production company "Kuukulgur Film"

Languages

Estonian (native)  ·  English (advanced)  ·  Russian, German, Finnish (conversational)

Clients & Collaborators

ERR, ARTE, VPRO, HUMAN, Tele2, Tartu Ülikool, Põhja-Eesti Regionaalhaigla, Guardtime, Reformierakond, Creative Union, NEWTON, Estonian Bank and many others

Selected Screenings & Awards

Of Mosquitoes and Men (2019)
Official Selection — Moscow International Short Film Festival
Official Selection — Rome Independent Prisma Awards
Finalist — jellyFEST 2021

Press & Writing Get in touch
Madis Ligema on set
Madis Ligema on set, Tallinn, 2024