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The Babushkas of Chernobyl

Country
USA/Ukraine
Year
2015
Runtime
70 min

Synopsis

In the radioactive Dead Zone surrounding Chernobyl’s Reactor No. 4, a defiant community of women scratches out an existence on some of the most toxic land on Earth. They share this hauntingly beautiful but lethal landscape with an assortment of interlopers—scientists, soldiers, and even ‘stalkers’—young thrill-seekers who sneak in to pursue post-apocalyptic video game-inspired fantasies. Why the film’s central characters, Hanna Zavorotyna, Maria Shovkuta, and Valentyna Ivanivna, chose to return after the disaster, defying the authorities and endangering their health, is a remarkable tale about the pull of home, the healing power of shaping one’s destiny and the subjective nature of risk.

Award

  • Los Angeles Film Festival – Special Jury Honor Award for Directing 2015
  • Santa Fe Independent Film Festival – Best Documentary 2015
  • Woodstock Film Festival – Best Editing of a Feature Documentary