“FLOWERS OF UKRAINE” TO OPEN DOK.LEIPZIG! FULL FESTIVAL PROGRAMME ANNOUNCED
The film by Adelina Borets is not the sole Polish production in this year's lineup for the German festival. The audience will also have the opportunity to see Tomasz Wolski's A Year in the Life of a Country, Alina Maksimenko's In Limbo, and Jan Grabowski's Minitourism.
DOK Leipzig stands as one of the premier events in the world of documentary and animated film. Each year, Leipzig hosts the latest cinematic productions from dozens of countries across all continents. This year's programme features 225 films and VR projects from approximately 60 countries, including Poland.
The Polish-Ukrainian Flowers of Ukraine by Adelina Borets is not only going to open the festival but has also been invited to compete in the international documentary competition.
Natalia, a 67-year-old, lives on a flower-rich plot of land in the heart of a Kyiv housing estate. She tends to goats and chickens, cultivates a garden, and has been battling investors – who wish to build yet another property where her home stands – for years. The sight of diggers, which Natalia chases away from her property with unwavering vigour, has become a daily occurrence. No amount of money can persuade her to change her mind. After all, it's about her home, and not merely a plot of land. And just when it seems that the fight against housing developers is the worst of her troubles, Russia launches its attack on Ukraine.
The Panorama: Central and Eastern Europe section will feature Tomasz Wolski's latest film. A Year in the Life of a Country explores the period known as the “long night of martial law” that descended upon communist Poland after 13 December 1981. Yet this era of state terror, aimed at suppressing the Solidarity movement, had multiple faces. Using solely archival footage, including both familiar and lesser-known material, the film peers behind the veil of these events. To the rhythm of military drums, it portrays daily life alongside propaganda and military operations, juxtaposing sounds of the streets, demonstrations, riots, and carnival celebrations. In doing so, it challenges the mythologised image of Polish society as merely victims of the system.
In Limbo by Alina Maksimenko will compete in the Doc Alliance Award section. The Russian invasion of Ukraine finds Alina in Irpin, near Kyiv. Bombed and cut off from the world, the city becomes a trap from which she manages to escape with one of the last evacuation groups. She reaches a cottage in a nearby village where her parents are stranded. For the first few weeks, they try to live a normal life. Her mother conducts online classes, her father looks after his cats and local animals, and Alina films current events. However, the front line is drawing ever closer. A decision must be made – stay or flee?
The DOK Neuland section will include a VR short by Jan Grabowski. Minitourism takes viewers on a trip around the world, which turns out to be a metaphorical journey set in a miniature park.
You can find the festival's complete program on its official website.