One more chance to see two of the films from RPFF - Rīgas Pasaules filmu festivāls programme. On May 18 at Kino Bize - the military commission drama "Convictions" (dir. Tatiana Chistova, 2016) and life-affirming portrait "Songs for Kit" (dir. Ruslan Fedotow, 2017).
CONVICTIONS
Убеждения
Dir.: Tatiana Chistova
2016 | 61 min
Poland, Russia
Shooting location: Russia
In 1987, United Nations Commission on Human Rights approved the Resolution on Conscientious objection to military service based on “thought, conscience and religion”. In Russia, the right to have an alternative civil service was guaranteed for the first time by the 1993 Constitution.
According to the law, the right to object to the military service is not limited to the believers. Other citizens may declare that their personal convictions (pacifist, philosophical, moral, ethical, political) are incompatible with military service. Those serving the alternative service work as librarians, hospital attendants, archivists, circus and theatre workers etc.
Sounds great – the peaceful labour is wonderful. However, there is one problem: once you come to the enlistment office, you have to prove that your convictions are indeed what you say. It is up to the draft board to decide what do you really believe…
Four stories of young men’s encounters with army recruitment commissions. Ardent pacifist Roman is sent through a series of humiliating court trials. Losha and Viktor endure long and condescending deliberations that undermine their personalities. Finally, LGBT movement veteran, Johnny is bluntly rebuked and handcuffed. All are put to test by a bureaucratic machine that doesn’t sympathize with those who dispute the purposiveness of military service.
A sneak peak into what it really means to stand up for one’s beliefs in a re-militarized society that punishes conscientious objection under criminal law.
The film is screened in Russian with English and Latvian subtitles.
The screening will be followed by a Q&A with the director, Tatiana Chistova.
Tatiana Chistova is Russian director and screenwriter born in St. Petersburg. Graduated from St-Petersburg University (Philological department, Master’s degree). Worked as assistant director in Lenfilm production studio. As 1-AD worked with world-famous Russian directors as Alexander Sokurov, Sergey Bodrov, Alexey Balabanov. Made an archive research for TV3 (France) AMIP production company and was an assistant in “Downfall” directed by Oliver Hirschbiege. Later graduated Higher Courses for Film Directors in Moscow (the department of directing of feature and documentary movies) and started to write and direct her own films since.
SONGS FOR KIT
Песни для Кита
Dir.: Ruslan Fedotow
Russia
2017 | 57 min.
A homeless woman of indeterminate age fights to live a dignified life. We discover a woman with a striking, disarmingly cheerful and inventive character. But these qualities conceal another, far more vulnerable and lonely figure. She’s sometimes joined by a friend who looks awkwardly on she capers about, makes a fire from kindling and enjoys the fireworks on Victory Day. The woman may be sad about being fired from her cleaning job in a shopping mall, but that doesn’t mean she can’t enjoy the singing of the birds. In the end we always find her, heartbreakingly and inevitably, back on her own in her makeshift shelter in a bleak, dark stairwell.
The film is screened in Russian with English and Latvian subtitles.
RUSLAN FEDOTOW (1988) – born in Belarus, living and working in Moscow. Ruslan finished Belarus Academy of Arts and Moscow School of New Cinema, in both the cinematography department and right now working as DOP. Apart he is focusing on his author projects. His mid length documentary debut Salamanca was premiered in IDFA 2015 and in Hot Docs 2016. Songs for Kit is his second mid length documentary and was premiered in November 2017 in IDFA.