She wanted stardom, got a baby and chaos instead. Russian cinema hits different.
A young girl dreaming to become an actress goes through hell with an orphan baby on her hands. The whole world seems to be against her. She meets the love of her life when there is no one to stand by her.
Acting
Elena Velikanova commits to suffering like it's an Olympic sport.
Production
Moscow's underbelly shot with unflinching early-digital rawness.
Director
Elena Nikolaeva
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Director Elena Nikolaeva largely worked in television; this rare theatrical feature bombed commercially but developed a cult following for its unapologetic melodrama.
The film captures peak 2000s Russian 'chernukha'—cinema obsessed with beautiful women destroyed by poverty and bad men, a post-Soviet anxiety staple.
RU
