Alina Rudnitskaya

Broken Ties

The film Broken Ties, by independent Russian filmmaker Andrei Loshak, is an unflinching portrayal of families divided by war. It features seven different pairings, whose members speak periodically with Loshak, one-to-one, to explain their points of view. Their conversations extend over the war's first three months, during which time their opinions evidence no change. The film makes no attempt at dialogue -- on the contrary, it is a testimony to the absence of dialogue amidst an unfolding war, and an unsentimental diagnosis of the sickness of a society in which official propaganda proves stronger than even the most intimate family ties.

Belarus: Recalculating Route

On August 9, presidential elections were held in Belarus. The results, according to which Alexander Lukashenko won, were not recognized by 14 countries. Protests and mass detentions of protesters have been taking place in the country for more than two months. Documentary director Maxim Shved, in order to capture the mood of people and their political views, installed cameras in the cars of two taxi drivers, Pavel and Anna. They talk to passengers, and inevitably their dialogues come down to politics.

I Am Svetlana Tikhanovskaya

The presidential campaign in Belarus in 2020 did not bode well for surprises. The permanent (since 1994) head of state Alexander Lukashenko went to his sixth term. During this time, an authoritarian political regime was established in the country. None of the real applicants were registered as presidential candidates: some were arrested, others left the country. As a result, the only competitor of the incumbent president was the housewife, the wife of one of the political prisoners, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya.