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Courage is a valuable commodity in Belarus: the courage to call for the Prime Minister’s resignation, the courage to speak up against an oppressive regime, the courage to live one’s life without lying to oneself. An independent troupe of stage actors rehearses for a highly political play despite the authorities’ repeated attempts to silence all who criticize the government. They know their protest is dangerous. Like other artists before them, they risk being arrested or worse, never being heard from again, but they cannot stay silent any longer. Their director joins them via video call, having been forced into exile. As the mass protests rage on in the streets, Pavel, Maryna, and Denis navigate between activism, their livelihoods, and taking care of their families—all of which take great courage too.

Previous Festivals: Berlinale

Official Website

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Screening Schedule:
  • Thu 01.07 | 14:30 | Cinematheque 1
  • Sat 03.07 | 14:45 | Cinematheque 4
  • Wed 07.07 | 16:15 | Cinematheque 4
  • Watch online | The film will be available From July 1st until July 31st

Aliaksei Paluyan was born 1989 in Belarus. In 2012 he moved to Germany and studied film and television directing at the Kunsthochschule Kassel (Academy for the arts). He has become known to audiences as a director of fiction short films and documentaries that have been presented at festivals worldwide. With his unique artistic signature, Aliaksei Paluyan has achieved to transform highly personal stories from his homeland into themes of universal meaning and relevance. In 2019, his short fiction drama LAKE OF HAPPINESS, a German-Belarusian-Spanish co-production, premiered in Clermont-Ferrand, won a numerous awards at international festivals, was a candidate for European Short Film at the 33rd European Film Awards in 2020 and also longlisted for the Oscars 2021. COURAGE is his documentary film debut.

Production: Jörn Möllenkamp
Production Company: Living Pictures Production
Editing: Behrooz Karamizade
Cinematography: Tanya Haurylchyk, Jesse Mazuch
Sound Design: Vensan Mazmanyan, Artyom Busel, Alexei Busel

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