Languages Archives: Russian

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Shorts 8: Architecture – Versions of Home

  Various

  France, New Zealand, The Netherlands, Ukraine, United States     77 minutes

Synopsis

In celebration of this year’s Chicago Architecture Biennial, this program tracks how we establish strong connections to a place, and the complications of staying in it. Featuring works by Camille Authouart, Mariia Ponomarova, Lloyd Lee Choi, and Ufuoma Essi.

An artist explores, observes, and draws scenes of La Défense, a neighborhood west of Paris whose large-scale public artworks constitute the largest open-air museum in Europe, in The Great Arc (France). Former residents remember happier times in a beloved apartment in Three Windows on South West (The Netherlands, Ukraine). Closing Dynasty (U.S.) follows a day in the life of a streetwise kid named Queenie as she navigates her own path through New York City. And Is My Living In Vain (U.K., France, New Zealand) explores the Black church as a site of personal and political belonging through portraits of communities across west Philadelphia and southeast London.

 French, Mandarin, Russian, Ukrainian with subtitles 

Screenings & Events

Virtual Screening

This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.

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Shorts 4: Documentary – In Motion

  Various

  Bhutan, Germany, Switzerland, Ukraine, United States     90 minutes

Synopsis

These short documentaries offer singular looks into lives that have been transformed by pivotal events. Featuring works by Mila Zhluktenko, Daniel Asadi Faezi, Sean Wang, Jon Siskel, Kevin Jerome Everson, Claudrena N. Harold, Arun Bhattarai, Francesca Scalisi, and Mark Olexa.

Displaced by war, Ukrainian children make a former military barrack their playground in waking up in silence (Germany, Ukraine). Nǎi Nai & Wài Pó (U.S.) is a moving portrait of an elderly pair, their quirky rituals, and their strong sentiments for life. The community of Highland Park, Illinois, commemorates those who lost their lives in the Independence Day shooting of 2022 in Memorial (U.S.). In Accidental Athlete (U.S.), Paulette Jones Morant recounts her athletic journey at the University of Virginia in the 1970s. Mountain Man (Bhutan) chronicles Phuntsho Tshering and his annual sacred journey to the Himalayas to track the movement of the glaciers. The poetry of the passage of time is seen on the faces of the elderly and in the voices of a youth choir in A reflection (Switzerland).

 Dzongkha, English, French, Mandarin, Russian, Spanish, Ukrainain with subtitles 

Screenings & Events

Virtual Screening

This program will be available to stream from October 16 at 12:00pm CT to October 22 at 11:59pm CDT.

Sponsors

Documentary Program Sponsors

Logo: WTTW (2019)Cynthia Stone Raskin

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The facade of a building is shown, three windows on each floor, partially in the sunlight and in the shade.

Three Windows on South West [short film]

  Mariia Ponomarova

  The Netherlands, Ukraine     8 minutes

Synopsis

Former residents remember happier times in a beloved apartment. A timely discussion of how to lose a beloved place unfolds in this photo-based documentary.

This film screens as part of the Shorts 8: Architecture – Versions of Home program.

 Russian, Ukrainian with subtitles 

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Close up of the crown of flowers on a girl's head, as she looks down. Behind her we blurry a late afternoon sky.

waking up in silence [short film]

  Mila Zhluktenko, Daniel Asadi Faezi

  Germany, Ukraine     18 minutes

Synopsis

Displaced by war, Ukrainian children explore their new home, a former Wehrmacht military barrack now serving as a refugee camp. Making the surrounding fields and parking lots their playgrounds, the children find ways to inhabit the space as their own existing between the historical resonances of two wars almost a century apart.

This film screens as part of the Shorts 4: Documentary – In Motion program.

 Russian, Ukrainian with subtitles 

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A family in a car together, all eyes on a little girl in centerframe. She holds out a note.

In the Rearview Skąd dokąd

  Maciek Hamela

  Poland, France, Ukraine     84 minutes

Synopsis

In the heart of battle-ravaged Ukraine, a minivan picks up civilians, each with their own unique story, as they journey away from their homes to safer points unknown. Filmed almost entirely inside his vehicle, Polish aid worker-turned-filmmaker Maciek Hamela eschews depictions of carnage in order to capture the psychological costs and tragic consequences of the Russian invasion. Squashed in Hamela’s backseat, a family sheds tears over abandoning their cow. A young man speaks stoically about being tortured by Russian soldiers. Five-year-old Sanya has stopped speaking. As Hamela’s taxi navigates checkpoints, minefields, and Russian attacks, In the Rearview displays faces — young and old, devastated and resilient — offering a moving and sublime reflection of humanity in the midst of war.

 English, French, Polish, Russian, Ukrainian with subtitles 

Screenings & Events

Media

Film Credits

Sponsors

Documentary Program Sponsors

Logo: WTTW (2019)Cynthia Stone Raskin