September 17th, 2013 - London, UK
The first Belarusian-British film was screened today in London.
The film was directed by Vladimir Shcherban.
Connection is a result of collaboration between the Guardian and the Young Vic. The screenplay was written by the Belarus Free Theatre and adapted for the British audience by playwright Laura Wade.
The film shows a meeting in a London airport terminal: a Belarusian, who needs a connecting flight to Minsk, meets a Brit, who has returned back home. The movie star helps the Belarusian to find the departure gate for the flight from London to Minsk. The Belarusian receives a telephone call and understands he cannot return home.
The film stars prominent British actor Jude Law and head of the Belarus Free Theatre Nicolai Khalezin.
“We lost our home in Belarus involuntarily, without imagining that it could happen to us. The presidential elections in Belarus in 2010 resulted in thousands of arrests, long-term jail sentences, and hundreds of socially-active people fleeing persecution. That is how the creators of Belarus Free Theatre ended up in exile. The film Connection is a metaphor for our story,” Belarus Free Theatre director Natalia Kaliada explains why the film was made.
