Hot Docs

Chelyabinsk, Russia, once the site of a top secret Cold War atomic bomb factory, is now the most radioactively polluted city in the world. Its residents live with the consequences of catastrophic leaks and dumped toxic waste as cancers, auto-immune diseases, and undrinkable water flow freely. But the city most foul sprouts a most unlikely growth—the vibrant, inspiring Chelyabinsk Contemporary Dance Theatre. As cameras follow two young members, Vova and Masha, through rehearsals for a near gravity-defying piece, filmmaker Boris Bertram skillfully threads their struggle to create against the stifling realities of their surroundings. At once an environmental exposé of the world’s worst radioactive disaster and an artful portrait of regenesis, Tankograd is one of the year’s most unique urban essays. - Myrocia Watamaniuk

Media Coverage

NOW Magazine (4-star Review)