SECTIONS // OFFICIAL COMPETITION FEATURE LENGTH

The Babushkas of Chernobyl

Holly Morris, Anne Bogart
72' / 2015 / Ukraine, United States of America
Web: http://thebabushkasofchernobyl.com/
Ukrainian, Russian, English
English and spanish subtitled

Audience vote 8.9

In the radioactive Dead Zone surrounding Chernobyl's Reactor No. 4, a defiant community of women scratches out an existence on some of the most toxic land on Earth. They share this hauntingly beautiful but lethal landscape with an assortment of visitors - scientists, soldiers, and even 'stalkers' - young thrill-seekers who sneak in to pursue post-apocalyptic video game-inspired fantasies. Why the women chose to return after the disaster - defying the authorities and endangering their health - is a remarkable tale about the pull of home, the healing power of shaping one's destiny, and the subjective nature of risk.

Main Festivals & Awards

Los Angeles Film Festival - Special Jury Honor Award for Directing 2015 / Woodstock Film Festival - Special Jury Award for Documentary 2015 / Woodstock Film Festival - Best Editing / Santa Fe Independent Film Festival - Best Documentary 2015 / Salem Film Festival - Special Jury Award 2016 / Salem Film Festival - Audience Award for Best Film 2016 / Sun Valley Film Festival - One In A Million Award 2016 / Denver Film Festival - Audience Award For Best Documentary 2016

Director's Biography

Holly Morris a writer, director and producer whose work often explores the lives of risk-taking contemporary women around the globe. In addition to The Babushkas of Chernobyl, her other documentaries about unlikely icons include Behind Closed Chad-ors (Iran), Holy Cow (India), Mana Wahines (New Zealand) and Paradox Found (Cuba) - all broadcast on PBS and broadcast in more than 20 countries around the world as part of the Adventure Divas series. Her award-winning & widely syndicated essay The Babushkas of Chernobyl, on which the film is based, is also the subject of her popular TED Talk.  She is the author of Adventure Divas: Searching the Globe for a New Kind of Heroine (Random House), which was named a New York Times Notable book about exploration. Her recent print journalism, about the subculture of illegal 'Stalkers' inside the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone appeared in Slate.  Morris is also a longtime presenter for the PBS ravel series Globe Trekker, and is based in Brooklyn, New York.

Anne Bogart is a Los Angeles based television producer. For the past 12 years she has produced/directed numerous episodes for the PBS series Globe Trekker. For 15 years she worked in Paris and London as a staff writer for Women’s Wear Daily, a freelance writer for numerous American magazines including Elle, Harper’s Bazaar, and The Los Angeles Times. She also worked as a development executive for French Broadcaster TF1, covering international TV markets and Film festivals as a buyer and consultant, and as a producer/director on documentary and magazine series for French and UK broadcasters. When she returned to the US 8 years ago, she worked as a development and licensing exec for ro*co Films in San Francisco before moving to Los Angeles.