In the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, visual artist and filmmaker Alina Maksimenko finds herself alone in Irpin, a town near Kyiv, recovering from surgery with her leg in a cast. As bombs rain down and the city becomes increasingly isolated, she narrowly escapes with her cat in one of the last evacuation groups. She makes her way to a nearby village where her parents, Tetiana and Anatolii, are stuck.
At first, the family attempted to maintain a semblance of normalcy amid the escalating conflict. Tetiana continues teaching music lessons online, Anatolii cares for his many cats and the pets of neighbours who have fled, and Alina documents their lives and the surrounding events with her camera. However, as the front line draws closer, Alina captures the growing tension and the increasingly strained relationships as the family faces a heart-wrenching dilemma: stay or flee?
Reflecting the uncertain reality of the ongoing war in Ukraine, this cinematic diary of the Maksimenko family's struggle for survival reveals the profound impact of conflict on ordinary lives. Through a mesmerising interplay of visual storytelling and sonic improvisation on percussion instruments, the film probes themes of home, displacement, resilience, and the enduring bonds of family in the face of war's brutal disruption.
Alina Maksimenko, director, screenwriter, cinematographer and artist born in Kyiv, Ukraine. From 1985 to 1988, she studied at T.G. Shevchenko Art School and graduated from the Mykhailo Boichuk Kyiv State Academy of Decorative-Applied Arts and Design. Additionally, she completed her studies in documentary film directing under Sergey Bukovsky at the Radio Broadcasting and Press Institute, as well as the DOK PRO program at Wajda School.
