Current Society of Fellows scholar Anastasia Kostina will host a spring 2025 Russian documentary film series and book celebration.

In the period from the early 2000s until 2022, independent documentary in Russia came to constitute one of the last free public spheres: a vibrant discursive space where people could exchange ideas and express views that ran counter to those of the state media. From daring political exposes to intimate, unfiltered glimpses into the lives of ordinary people to slow archival compilations to raw, ‘here and now’ projects, this new Russian documentary has confronted the country’s past and documented its present. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, followed by the crackdown on independent media made any domestic counter-discourse virtually impossible. The film series The New Russian Documentary: Reclaiming Reality in the Age of Authoritarianism, which is inspired by the collected volume of the same title (due February 2025), presents a curated selection of essential films that challenge the status quo and offer rare insights into contemporary Russia.

The SOF/Heyman is proud to present these exclusive screenings that explore Russia through the lens of its boldest filmmakers, and witness the untold perspectives that the state seeks to erase.

The New Russian Documentary: Reclaiming Reality in the Age of Authoritarianism Schedule

February 15

The first event in the series begins with a panel discussion about The New Russian Documentary featuring the volume's editors, Anastasia Kostina (Columbia University) and Masha Shpolberg (Bard College), in conversation with scholar and film critic Anna Nieman and Justin Wilmes (East Carolina University). The panel is followed by a reception before the film screening.

Putin’s Witnesses (2018), a film by renowned documentary director Vitaly Mansky, provides a critical look back at Vladimir Putin’s rise to power in 1999/2000: the unexpected resignation of Russia’s president Boris Yeltsin, the appointment of Putin as interim president, and Putin’s aggressive presidential campaign which led to his election in March 2000. The film is based on the unique documentary footage shot by Mansky in 1999 and 2000, which provides personal testimonies from those involved in "Operation Successor,” including Putin himself.

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Vitaly Mansky conducted by Justin Wilmes, Associate Professor of Russian Studies at East Carolina University.

Sold out. More information here.

March 10
School of Seduction (2019) by Alina Rudnitskaya investigates the intricacies of gender dynamics in present-day Russia. The film follows three young women, Diana, Lisa, and Vika, who meet at the so-called “seduction classes” conducted by a problematic male psychologist, Vladimir Rakovsky, who teaches women how to get “a high-value man.” Rudnitskaya follows the three heroines for seven years, documenting how they navigate the world of unhealthy gender stereotypes, social pressures, and moral dilemmas in a bid to achieve personal happiness.

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with Tatiana Efremova, Assistant Professor of Russian Literature (George Washington University), and Anastasia Kostina (Columbia University).

Register here.

April 7
The Term (2014) documents the late stages of the largest civil uprising in the history of modern Russia, which unfolded in 2011-2012. Following the protests that took place after Putin’s re-election in March of 2012, the team of filmmakers put together by Aleksandr Rastorguev, Pavel Kostomarov, and journalist Aleksei Pivovarov, provides a multi-faceted and dynamic, yet intimate portrayal of the Russian political opposition during this unprecedented moment of social upheaval.

The screening will be followed by a Q&A with director Pavel Kostomarov conducted by film critic Anna Nieman.

Register here.

Organizer

Anastasia Kostina is a scholar of documentary media, women’s film history, and Soviet and Russian cinema. She holds a PhD from Yale University in Film & Media Studies and Slavic Languages & Literatures. Her current book project, Engendering Soviet Documentary: Esfir Shub Between Theory and Practice, explores the relationship between politics, aesthetics and gender during the nascent stage of documentary cinema. The work aims to highlight the career of Esfir Shub, the first female documentarian of the Soviet Union. Anastasia is a co-editor of a collected volume titled The New Russian Documentary: Reclaiming Reality in the Age of Authoritarianism, which introduces readers to the key figures, institutions, and practices of contemporary Russophone documentary cinema. In addition, her writings on film and media have been featured in such publications as Feminist Media Histories, Film Quarterly, Senses of Cinema, KinoKultura, and Apparatus.