A young artist gets into a scuffle with bikers after dabbling in graffiti on the subway. This altercation costs him a trip to Italy, and he is sent to rural Russia instead. However, his journey takes an unexpected turn.
Cinematography
Bleak rural landscapes that somehow look beautiful
Acting
Novikov's sullen charisma carries every frame
Direction
Apasyan finds warmth in the coldest places
Director
Igor Apasyan
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Shot during Russia's brief post-Soviet cinematic renaissance, it captures the specific disillusionment of urban youth promised Western futures that never arrived.
Novikov was an actual graffiti artist with no prior acting experience; Apasyan found him tagging a Moscow underpass. Those are his real hands in every spray-paint scene.
RU
