Belarus 2007
There is a consensus that it’s too soon to debate the color of any future revolution in Belarus. While the authoritarian regime is often blamed for the country’s stagnation, others argue that a root problem is Belarusians’ historically weak sense of national identity.
Decades of trauma (WWII devastation, Chernobyl) and Sovietization severed connections to Belarus’ fledgling folk past. Situated between Russia and the encroaching West, many people express uncertainty about who they are and which direction they should face.
Today, independent nationalist voices such as artists are often repressed. The opposition movement is small and has trouble gaining traction in the general population.
This new series is part of a longer documentary project (2000-2007), looking at the everyday life of a people, famous for their stoicism, living in a kind of bubble. As they struggle to define themselves in the post-Soviet era, fast rivers of change swirl and flow around them, just over the horizon.
For more information please visit: Bill Crandall
