Five Belarusian films that explain life in authoritarian Belarus

Thirty years have passed since Aliaksandr Lukashenka came to power in Belarus and established his authoritarian regime. Surprisingly, this period of the country's history has not been sufficiently reflected by cultural figures: writers, musicians, artists, and filmmakers. Their contribution is crucial, and some of the work already allows us to do so.

Euroradio has selected five documentaries that allow us to better understand contemporary Belarus and the reasons why it has remained mostly the same over the last thirty years. 

An Ordinary President (1996)

Directed by Yury Khashchavatsky

One of the first directors to sense the threat of authoritarianism looming over the country was Yury Khashchavatsky. Two years into Lukashenka's first term, he made a biting, sarcastic, and frighteningly prophetic TV documentary about him, An Ordinary President.

The homage to Mikhail Rom's famous Soviet film Ordinary Fascism or Triumph Over Violence in the title is not without reason. Khashchavatsky deliberately draws parallels between Lukashenka's regime and the Third Reich, underscoring the gravity of their common nature of total control.

The monologue of the still-living former interior minister Yury Zakharanka, who discusses the young president's harsh methods of rule, provides understanding. At the same time, Lukashenka admits that Germany's position under Adolf Hitler corresponds to his understanding of a strong presidential republic.

Khashchavatsky returned to the subject of Belarusian politics several times in his subsequent films, The Square and Ordinary Elections, but they did not resonate with people as much as An Ordinary President.

Courage (2021)

Directed by Aliaksey Paluyan

For the young generation of Belarusians, 2020 was an unexpected discovery of what a genuinely unfree country we live in. But Belarusians have attempted to overthrow the regime before: in 1996, 2006, and 2010.

In his debut feature film Courage, director Aliaksey Paluyan combines all these events of endless resistance to the repressive power into one continuous chain, which, as it turned out, predetermined the formation of the most active and socially conscious part of society.

While the film primarily focuses on the events of 2020, it also underscores the importance of preserving the memory of past resistance. The 'Belarusian Free Theater' and its theatrical art serve as a crucial element in this, ensuring that the rallies of previous generations and their victims are not forgotten.
 

Around Belarus on Bicycles with Engines (2017)

Directed by Barys Nikalaichyk

Unlike the other films in this list, Around Belarus was never intended to be a critical political statement. Created jointly by blogger and writer Roma Svechnikau and journalist Barys Nikalaychyk, the travel series for the publication 34mag tells the story of two young people traveling through the Belarusian provinces.

The authors skillfully reflect on the country's real and unvarnished life in Around Belarus, where the political dimension emerges naturally without additional pressure, engaging the audience in a unique way.

Made into a feature-length film, Around Belarus won the main prize in the national competition "Listapad" and caused dissatisfaction among the Ministry of Culture officials. As a result, they decided to tighten control over the films shown on the screens of the country's leading film festival.

Pure Art (2019)

Directed by Maksim Shved

Can art openly reveal the conditions in which a country and its society live? It can, especially street art.

Documentary filmmaker Maksim Shved has found an elegant way to tell about the internal unfreedom of Belarus, dedicating his film "Pure Art" to so-called "street art" - the practice of public utilities to sketch inscriptions and drawings on the walls of cities with rectangles and squares of different colors.

At the same time, the director observes how the artist Zakhar Kudzin creates his suprematist drawings on the streets of Minsk, interacting directly with the citizens.

The result is a film about art and a glimpse into the late 2010s - the time of the still herbivorous Belarusian regime, which allowed people to do things that are hard to imagine today.

As a result, Pure Art stands out as the first Belarusian independent documentary to secure a chance for a limited Minsk screening at the end of 2019, a testament to its unique perspective and powerful storytelling.

You can see the film here. 

Motherland (2023)

Directed by Aliaksandr Mikhalkovich and Hanna Badziaka

It is still impossible to fully comprehend the hell that Belarusian society has fallen into after 2020. The process of understanding the collective trauma and the damage caused is still awaiting Belarusians in the future. Still, it is already possible to consider how this humanitarian and cultural catastrophe happened.

This is the subject of Motherland, a documentary essay by journalist Hanna Badziaka and photographer and documentary filmmaker Aliajsandr Mikhalkovich. It is dedicated to the phenomenon of violence as a tool of the authorities to control Belarusian society.

Beginning with the story of the court case of the conscript Aliaksandr Korzhych, who died in the army, and the Belarusian ravers who were drafted into the military, the authors move from instances of harassment to large-scale events: the crackdown on the 2020 rallies and the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The authors trace the evolution of the country's slide back to basic instincts, as if in stages, when the authorities, seeking to control society, were ready to make any sacrifice.

And the death of people is not perceived as a tragedy but only as an inevitable cost of success.