Five: Tales of KGB
Na hlavní vilniuské třídě stojí palác, za jehož neoklasicistní fasádou dlouhou dobu sídlilo ústředí litevské KGB a její věznice. Dnes je v budově muzeum obětí litevské genocidy. Turisté z celého světa procházejí vstupními dvěřmi s úsměvem a zvídavým pohledem, aby uvnitř vystřízlivěli tváří k nečekané podívané. Přesně tose stalo také jendomu z turistů, Italskému filmaři, který se po prohlídce vězeňských cel ve sklepení muzea rozhodl, že se setká s lidmi navázanými na KGB během poslední dekády SSSR. Tento film je medailonkem pěti litevských občanů, kteří měli vůči režimu ambivalentní vzath. Je to rozporuplný pokus infiltrovat se do jejich svědomí a pochopit jejich pozici. Je to zároveň inspirativní obraz optimismu a také strašlivé pravdy, která může být na mnohé působit nepatřičně.
Baltic UXO
Munition dumping into the seas and oceans was a crude yet common practice after the first and second world wars. 70 years later, this heritage rears its head - spreading disease among Baltic fish, stopping marine construction projects, and endangering the coastal economy and tourism. Small disparate groups of scientists collect countless data to bring the subject of munition clearance into the political and military agendas.
The film takes the audience on a journey where step by step the viewers are exposed to the dangerous secrets of the Baltic. It dives into the life of small microorganisms and continues to the bigger and bigger and more prominent areas affected by the munitions, unveiling the scale of this ecological, political, and economic problem. Everything all the way up to giant marine construction projects and militaries are now dealing with consequences of the decisions made in the past.
The affected areas, organisms, and human activities themselves act as the main protagonists of the film – inviting the viewer into a visual journey, underscored by a sci-fi-ish underwater-like soundscape, for them to leave with questions such as: Could this have been avoided? Can this be resolved? Or are humans made for slow self-destruction either way?
The film takes the audience on a journey where step by step the viewers are exposed to the dangerous secrets of the Baltic. It dives into the life of small microorganisms and continues to the bigger and bigger and more prominent areas affected by the munitions, unveiling the scale of this ecological, political, and economic problem. Everything all the way up to giant marine construction projects and militaries are now dealing with consequences of the decisions made in the past.
The affected areas, organisms, and human activities themselves act as the main protagonists of the film – inviting the viewer into a visual journey, underscored by a sci-fi-ish underwater-like soundscape, for them to leave with questions such as: Could this have been avoided? Can this be resolved? Or are humans made for slow self-destruction either way?
Maria is on TV
In a Mexican restaurant in Vilnius, TV sets are playing old telenovelas. Renata, 40, sits down for dinner with her two early teen daughters who are dumbfounded by the visuals. She tells them how she was obsessed with these TV series when she was little.
The film follows several Lithuanian women from different generations who were all big fans of Latin American telenovelas in the 1990s. Telenovelas shook women's inner worlds across many post-Soviet countries. Stores would close, streets would empty, even cows were milked according to the telenovela schedule. In contrast to the Communist propaganda on TV, Mexican telenovelas presented women who were passionate, sensual, and expressive.
To understand the origins of this mass media product, the film takes us to Mexico where we meet the legendary actress Veronica Castro from The Rich Also Cry. She tells us about the telenovela business, her 1992 trip to Russia, and how she was shocked by the “machismo” culture in the region, just like in Mexico.
“Telenovelas literally helped me survive,” Renata tears up as she recalls how she used to daydream of her real father appearing to save her from the physically abusive stepdad, just like in telenovelas. Now, a renowned TV host, Renata works on social reality show “TV Aid” helping ordinary people solve their issues. In Lithuania, every third woman experiences domestic violence and Renata is working to prevent it.
Renata joins the documentary crew on her first trip to Mexico, where she meets her childhood telenovela stars. But more importantly, through chats with regular women, she explores the gender issues in Mexico, and asks how and why a product created by and for Latin American societies became so popular in Eastern Europe? And what can we learn from each other today?
Using telenovelas as an unexpected lens, the film dives into the issues of domestic abuse, gender roles, the evolution of femininity, sexuality, romantic relations, and feminism in the post-Soviet region.
The film follows several Lithuanian women from different generations who were all big fans of Latin American telenovelas in the 1990s. Telenovelas shook women's inner worlds across many post-Soviet countries. Stores would close, streets would empty, even cows were milked according to the telenovela schedule. In contrast to the Communist propaganda on TV, Mexican telenovelas presented women who were passionate, sensual, and expressive.
To understand the origins of this mass media product, the film takes us to Mexico where we meet the legendary actress Veronica Castro from The Rich Also Cry. She tells us about the telenovela business, her 1992 trip to Russia, and how she was shocked by the “machismo” culture in the region, just like in Mexico.
“Telenovelas literally helped me survive,” Renata tears up as she recalls how she used to daydream of her real father appearing to save her from the physically abusive stepdad, just like in telenovelas. Now, a renowned TV host, Renata works on social reality show “TV Aid” helping ordinary people solve their issues. In Lithuania, every third woman experiences domestic violence and Renata is working to prevent it.
Renata joins the documentary crew on her first trip to Mexico, where she meets her childhood telenovela stars. But more importantly, through chats with regular women, she explores the gender issues in Mexico, and asks how and why a product created by and for Latin American societies became so popular in Eastern Europe? And what can we learn from each other today?
Using telenovelas as an unexpected lens, the film dives into the issues of domestic abuse, gender roles, the evolution of femininity, sexuality, romantic relations, and feminism in the post-Soviet region.
Two Of Us
To the world, journalist Vitalius and choir tenor Albinas present themselves as father and son, though they have been lovers for more than half a century.
They met in Soviet Lithuania, at a time when same-sex relationships were not only taboo but a criminal offense. It meant prison, disgrace, or exile. For decades they lived in plain sight while hiding their love, denied recognition by both family and society.
Today, Lithuania is still one of six countries in Europe that offers no legal recognition of queer couple partnership. Yet a recent Constitutional Court decision has opened a narrow path: same-sex partnerships can be recognized through the courts. After decades of hiding, Vitalius now dares to demand that the love of his life be legally acknowledged.
But as he fights for justice, Albinas slips further into illness. Living with dementia and near blindness, he grows weaker each day, while Vitalius holds on — caught between love’s endurance and the fear of a final goodbye.
They met in Soviet Lithuania, at a time when same-sex relationships were not only taboo but a criminal offense. It meant prison, disgrace, or exile. For decades they lived in plain sight while hiding their love, denied recognition by both family and society.
Today, Lithuania is still one of six countries in Europe that offers no legal recognition of queer couple partnership. Yet a recent Constitutional Court decision has opened a narrow path: same-sex partnerships can be recognized through the courts. After decades of hiding, Vitalius now dares to demand that the love of his life be legally acknowledged.
But as he fights for justice, Albinas slips further into illness. Living with dementia and near blindness, he grows weaker each day, while Vitalius holds on — caught between love’s endurance and the fear of a final goodbye.