Those Who Dare
The foreign minister of the tiny Icelandic nation fights for the independence of the Baltic states as they struggle to brake free from the USSR.
Three small nations by the Baltic Sea, then long forgotten in the minds of the West, were the first countries of the Soviet block to restore their independence as the USSR collapsed in 1991. Facing military suppression during their independence struggle and no support from the major democratic powers of the west, help came, unexpectedly, from two small nations: Iceland and Denmark.
An avid supporter of the Baltic states, Icelandic foreign minister Jon Baldvin Hannibalsson not only lent his voice to their cause in the international political arena to which the Baltic representatives were not admitted, - he also stood by their side in the streets of Vilnius when Soviet tanks invaded the Lithuanian capital. His struggle is at the core of this film, along with that of several individuals who carried the heaviest weight of bringing down the Soviet empire.
Three small nations by the Baltic Sea, then long forgotten in the minds of the West, were the first countries of the Soviet block to restore their independence as the USSR collapsed in 1991. Facing military suppression during their independence struggle and no support from the major democratic powers of the west, help came, unexpectedly, from two small nations: Iceland and Denmark.
An avid supporter of the Baltic states, Icelandic foreign minister Jon Baldvin Hannibalsson not only lent his voice to their cause in the international political arena to which the Baltic representatives were not admitted, - he also stood by their side in the streets of Vilnius when Soviet tanks invaded the Lithuanian capital. His struggle is at the core of this film, along with that of several individuals who carried the heaviest weight of bringing down the Soviet empire.
Company of Steel
The story in this film describes the truth about trauma experienced during the war and what it does to a human condition. It reveals that it's so much more than extreme pain to the physical, mental and emotional body.
Unable to go back to the life as they lived before, it forces to find meaning and to coin a new identity, because the old one is not enough to handle everything that happened.
The film has three protagonists, code names 'Shakhta', 'Dancer' and 'Potter', all part of the same regiment. The main arena is the Russia-Ukrainian War and one of the most important events was the Shyrokynske offensive operation, where the protagonists suffered losses that changed them forever. It's very important to realize that they aren't professional soldiers, they were volunteers with no military experience, who just wanted to serve their country. This film shows how a normal, non-military person, like us, went through such a horrifying experience.
The storyline of Dancer talks about post-traumatic growth, how a man can be shattered down and rebuild himself stronger, to serve others. Shakhta's is a story of becoming a businessman in a profession that reveals to be an atonement, out of the guilt of surviving, while others didn't and perhaps even because of him. And Potter's fight is about desperate attempt to prevent the war from taking his free, joyful spirit away. He is cling to his innocence, which the loss or change of him is yet to confront.
We follow them during their military operations and continue when they come back home, to the world that didn't change, not as much as they did. They are different people now, and they struggle to find themselves in the world that just doesn't understand how it is to have seen the violence, to follow precise objectives day after day, to make peace with their own death and to feel the pain of losing brothers in army. Nobody can empathize with their shame of living on, while their friends will remain forever on the battlefield.
Unable to go back to the life as they lived before, it forces to find meaning and to coin a new identity, because the old one is not enough to handle everything that happened.
The film has three protagonists, code names 'Shakhta', 'Dancer' and 'Potter', all part of the same regiment. The main arena is the Russia-Ukrainian War and one of the most important events was the Shyrokynske offensive operation, where the protagonists suffered losses that changed them forever. It's very important to realize that they aren't professional soldiers, they were volunteers with no military experience, who just wanted to serve their country. This film shows how a normal, non-military person, like us, went through such a horrifying experience.
The storyline of Dancer talks about post-traumatic growth, how a man can be shattered down and rebuild himself stronger, to serve others. Shakhta's is a story of becoming a businessman in a profession that reveals to be an atonement, out of the guilt of surviving, while others didn't and perhaps even because of him. And Potter's fight is about desperate attempt to prevent the war from taking his free, joyful spirit away. He is cling to his innocence, which the loss or change of him is yet to confront.
We follow them during their military operations and continue when they come back home, to the world that didn't change, not as much as they did. They are different people now, and they struggle to find themselves in the world that just doesn't understand how it is to have seen the violence, to follow precise objectives day after day, to make peace with their own death and to feel the pain of losing brothers in army. Nobody can empathize with their shame of living on, while their friends will remain forever on the battlefield.
Stitches of Freedom
In the Western world, the late 1960s is an era of open minds, sexual freedom, anti-war sentiments, civil rights urgency and exploding creative spirit. Pockets of freedom emerge behind the Iron Curtain, too. In 1968, the short-lived Prague Spring brings a gulp of fresh air to Czechoslovakia, with people attempting to exert control over their lives and reform the Communist system. In the Soviet Union, the free-spirited and colourfully-clad flower children from various Soviet republics come to Riga to listen to Western music and escape the drabness imposed by the regime led by morose men in ill-fitting suits.
Inna, a young transgender person in Soviet Russia, can no longer suppress the inner imperative to free themselves from the foreign body in which they feel imprisoned, and on their quest for freedom, they set off for Riga. A famous and ambitious Latvian surgeon with extensive connections within the Soviet elite, after reading Inna's desperate letter addressed to him, takes on the unprecedented series of operations to change their gender and help "correct nature’s mistake," thereby creating Innokenty in place of Inna.
The film, using unique archive footage and creative reenactments, follows the stages of Inna's transformation – their journey to Riga, the surgeon's doubts and his sources of inspiration, the sexually-charged “tests” of Inna’s femininity, preparation for the series of operations, and the operations unfolding.
The film's narrator is Innokenty, who has since reached old age and, feeling the end of their life approaching, turns to their "creator" in another letter, seeking support in the final transformations of their life. They find themselves back where they started – a regime that does not recognize an individual’s freedom to be themselves. The bond between Innokenty and the surgeon has a lasting pull, hence the need for a final letter. This bond has survived changes in government, family and society, and, ultimately, the surgeon’s death.
Inna, a young transgender person in Soviet Russia, can no longer suppress the inner imperative to free themselves from the foreign body in which they feel imprisoned, and on their quest for freedom, they set off for Riga. A famous and ambitious Latvian surgeon with extensive connections within the Soviet elite, after reading Inna's desperate letter addressed to him, takes on the unprecedented series of operations to change their gender and help "correct nature’s mistake," thereby creating Innokenty in place of Inna.
The film, using unique archive footage and creative reenactments, follows the stages of Inna's transformation – their journey to Riga, the surgeon's doubts and his sources of inspiration, the sexually-charged “tests” of Inna’s femininity, preparation for the series of operations, and the operations unfolding.
The film's narrator is Innokenty, who has since reached old age and, feeling the end of their life approaching, turns to their "creator" in another letter, seeking support in the final transformations of their life. They find themselves back where they started – a regime that does not recognize an individual’s freedom to be themselves. The bond between Innokenty and the surgeon has a lasting pull, hence the need for a final letter. This bond has survived changes in government, family and society, and, ultimately, the surgeon’s death.