Feature film
Looking for: Co-producers
Russian Old Believers (Starovers) who fled from the reforms of the Russian Orthodox Church to the western shores of Lake Peipus have lived in Estonia as a closed community for hundreds of years.
However, the Soviet occupation following World War II, compulsory collective farms and brutal atheism leave their archaic world thoroughly shaken.
A young Estonian communist, Raimond, who has been appointed as the local militia chief, starts building up his personal power base under the guise of the new regime. To do this, he needs to dethrone the current head of the community: village chief and religious leader Arhip.
The fates of Arhip’s children, Serafima and Bogdan, are inextricably linked to Raimond from that moment on. Serafima is forced to marry Raimond, and Bogdan falls victim to an NKVD assault orchestrated by Raimond which leads to their father Arhip’s death.
The years go by – the collective farming system and epidemic of alcoholism lead everything once regarded as sacred by the locals to crumble at a frightening speed. However, as the standard of living
gradually starts to rise, most abandon their religion and resign themselves to the incessant thieving and fraud. But this is not the case with Arhip’s successor Olimp. With his stubborn belief in divine justice, Olimp fails to understand the main issue: such moral deterioration cannot be stopped, because it forms the foundations of the Soviet system.
Serafima, worn down by Raimond’s tyranny, decides to end her life. However, purely by chance she is reunited with Bogdan, who has been hiding in the nearby bog for decades. Bogdan, who has acquired the renown of a mystic ‘wise man’, unleashes a fateful obsession in Serafima – Raimond must be destroyed! This incident steers the characters towards an inevitable apocalypse.
However, the Soviet occupation following World War II, compulsory collective farms and brutal atheism leave their archaic world thoroughly shaken.
A young Estonian communist, Raimond, who has been appointed as the local militia chief, starts building up his personal power base under the guise of the new regime. To do this, he needs to dethrone the current head of the community: village chief and religious leader Arhip.
The fates of Arhip’s children, Serafima and Bogdan, are inextricably linked to Raimond from that moment on. Serafima is forced to marry Raimond, and Bogdan falls victim to an NKVD assault orchestrated by Raimond which leads to their father Arhip’s death.
The years go by – the collective farming system and epidemic of alcoholism lead everything once regarded as sacred by the locals to crumble at a frightening speed. However, as the standard of living
gradually starts to rise, most abandon their religion and resign themselves to the incessant thieving and fraud. But this is not the case with Arhip’s successor Olimp. With his stubborn belief in divine justice, Olimp fails to understand the main issue: such moral deterioration cannot be stopped, because it forms the foundations of the Soviet system.
Serafima, worn down by Raimond’s tyranny, decides to end her life. However, purely by chance she is reunited with Bogdan, who has been hiding in the nearby bog for decades. Bogdan, who has acquired the renown of a mystic ‘wise man’, unleashes a fateful obsession in Serafima – Raimond must be destroyed! This incident steers the characters towards an inevitable apocalypse.
Genre:
Drama
Length:
120min
Budget:
3 000 000€
Director:
Veiko Õunpuu
Scriptwriter:
Olle Mirme, Vahur Afanasjev, Veiko Õunpuu
Production stage:
In Development
Attached finances:
Estonian Film Institute, Cultural Endowment Of Estonia
