Holy Culture!

So-called Houses of Culture are the epic and constant existing symbols of the USSR, famous culture and knowledge hubs, which survived the collapse of the Soviet empire and came back to life after a certain oblivion.

In 2016, the ruling party of Russia, United Russia, together with the Russian government decides to launch the program Rural House of Culture. Millions of rubles allocated for the revival of Houses of Culture in rural areas during 2017-2019. Authorities are busy with construction work inside and outside the buildings, and do not care about the creative content which has been the same for a very long time. Politicians are making an impression of deep involvement into culture, but in real they only do never-ending construction which has always been a very good reason to wash some money. Nothing is done for upgrading of the professional skills in the cultural sphere, the salaries there are extremely low. But despite everything workers of the Houses of Culture kept their unstoppable enthusiasm since Soviet times and continue to work. These people are very passionate but very often their professionalism is just symbolic and they keep on making confusing aesthetic mess already for a while.

Do these places reflect Russian inability to change and the constant possibility of the raise of neo-sovietism?

A journey across rural Houses of Culture, through the most strange hobby clubs of self defence, twerking and folk singing. Exquisitely observed documentary puzzle of overenthusiastic and creatively stuck people; tragicomic glimpse behind the doors and stage curtains of powerful institutions where the culture for masses is made.