teneta (nets)
In the since - occupied, destroyed, now liberated but dangerously mined - village of Oleksandrivka, Kherson Oblast, there isn't much for young people to do. Teenagers work, drink, and fight to pass the time. Ruslan Harlamov, an 18 year old boy who works for the fishermen, spends all day beating seaweed off of their nets. Stuck in this cycle, he seems to enjoy his simple life, but in private, he dreams of something more.
The world that I captured in Teneta is gone. The village Oleksandrivka was occupied and destroyed by the Russians, and they executed a woman we filmed that summer. This documentary remembers a peaceful life of what was.
Born out of the documentary residency Kinobereh at the cultural center YOUKH.