Khranatop

ADAMAU YABLYK

ADAM’S APPLE

Regie | Director Alena Yasinskaya, 2016                              Laufzeit | Duration 15 min

A mythical tale: an antique hunter pilfers valuable objects from an abandoned house, provoking the ire of all kinds of spirits in the process. Both remarkably implemented and impressively animated, the film alludes to the Biblical story: after eating an apple the protagonist’s world starts to unravel. MM

BELAYA VYAROUKA

WHITE ROPE

Regie | Director Aliaksandr Debaluk, 2015                          Laufzeit | Duration 5 min

A bitter satire rich in black humor: an oversized Soviet flag bearing the words “Glory to the Soviet Union” hangs on the wall. Having said “wish me luck” the husband goes to battle, the scene of which is a pigsty. The war is won, the meat is piled high and yet his sense of jubilation is diminished by a sense of remorse. MM

BELPORNO

BELARUSSIAN PORN

Regie | Director Janusz Gawryluk, 2016                                  Laufzeit | Duration 8 min

How do foreigners react to all things Belarusian? Andrzej shares a flat in Warsaw with Zmicier, a student from Minsk. He’s annoyed by his flatmate’s egocentric guest, when Zmicier suddenly makes an unexpected request. Taking a conventional approach, the film adopts an unmistakable position in the form of Andrzej’s criticism of the Belarusian system. MM

LEGENDA PRA MASHJEKU

THE LEGEND OF MASHEKA

Regie | Director Aliaksandra Vishniavetskaya, 2016        Laufzeit | Duration 7 min

An alternative look at the history of a city: two storks fly over the city of Mogilev, the historical legends of which they narrate in a highly unconventional, at times absurd fashion. Director Vishniavetskaya makes use of a traditional narrative form that soon finds itself shattered by her merging of different genres and stylistic devices. MM

MASTAKI

ARTISTS

Regie | Director Andrei Kudinenko, 2015                            Laufzeit | Duration 5 min

The last supper? Director Kudinenko makes use of an experimental visual language and simultaneously foregoes dialogue. Embedded within a celebratory gathering of artists, he combines Christian motives with recent trends in the Belarusian arts scene, pulling no punches in his criticism of its works and even the very existence thereof. MM

POKHRONY UYA

UJ’S FUNERAL

Regie | Director Andrei Kudinenko, 2015                            Laufzeit | Duration 4 min

Tradition reloaded: four women mourn the death of Sidar, who at one time or another was romantically involved with all of them. Whom did he love the most? The subsequent argument draws to an unexpected close, accompanied by “adapted” versions of traditional Belarusian songs. This satire speaks of the cinematic freedom strived for both in terms of subject matter and language of form. MM

PROVERKA NA DOROGYE

TRAFFIC CONTROL

Regie | Director Aliaksandr Debaluk, 2016                          Laufzeit | Duration 6 min

A night-time traffic check with an unhappy ending: on a highway somewhere in Belarus an intoxicated driver is pulled over. The reason behind his condition can be found in the boot: a talking fish. Director Debaluk skillfully combines a typical present-day situation with century-old Belarusian fairy-tales. MM

RZHA

RUST

Regie | Director Andrei Kudinenko, 2015                            Laufzeit | Duration 6 min

Myths turned reality? Two men are travelling along a highway when they discover a half-naked woman. Their initial joy at having stumbled across such a stunner soon evaporates however. Kudinenko, the brains behind the independent art project Chronotope, experiments here with myths and the unknown, drawing inspiration from traditional stories. MM

TAYAMNITSA GARBATAY YAMY

THE SECRET OF BROCKBACK HOLLOW

Regie | Director Janusz Gawryluk, 2015                                               Laufzeit | Duration 6 min

The reckoning: a forest, a car, two men. One of them has a gun in his hand, the other is destined to die. Dzima, no contract killer, is extremely nervous and attempts to buy time. Just pull the trigger, but how when you've known your counterpart since childhood? A classically staged gangster film that broaches a thematic taboo: sexual abuse. MM

VENOK

THE WREATH

Regie | Director Pavel Nedzvedz, 2016                                Laufzeit | Duration 15 min

A video blog with deadly consequences: a secluded wooden house in the middle of nowhere. Hanna lives here with her father. An American video blogger has been wandering across the Belarusian swamplands for weeks now. On encountering Hanna he hopes to be able to charge his smartphone, and yet things turn out differently. A mystical drama devoid of dialogue. MM

YAICHNITSA PO BELORUSSKI

BELORUSSIAN OMELETTE

Regie | Director Valeriya Teleshevskaya, 2016                  Laufzeit | Duration 4 min

A Belarusian take on Russian roulette: a policeman catches his wife in bed with another woman and swiftly reaches for his weapon. What now? Having been caught red handed, his adversary has to make him an omelette. With close-up shots that draw us close to the action, this satire broaches a social issue hitherto considered taboo: same-sex relationships. MM