Rue Mayskaya

Intensely beautiful polyphonic singing accompanies images of a snowy street as a car approaches in the distance. Time seems to have stood still in this sleepy little village in Belarus. A student named Kostia has just turned 18 and is preparing to vote for the first time. In voice-over, Kostia informs us of the less-than-rosy prospects he has for his future. He also has few illusions about the election results: democracy doesn't exist in Belarus, and the rule of the dictatorial President Lukashenko will certainly not end in this winter of 2015. Mayskaya Street features atmospheric observations of small-town life: families scraping by to make ends meet by day, and young people getting drunk by night. With this backdrop, details such as the eclectic wallpaper in Kostia’s childhood home burn into our retinas. Kostia’s thoughts are hesitant yet critical. A love for his homeland is evident, but it’s seeped with a sense of hopelessness. What happened to the backbone of Belarus? How's it possible that so little has changed over the past two decades? (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)