Mr. Nobody Against Putin (2025)
Directors: David Borenstein, Pavel Talankin
Writer: David Borenstein
Stars: Pavel Talankin
Narrator: Pavel Talankin
Mr Nobody Against Putin was shot over a period of two years by Pavel “Pasha” Talankin, the videographer and events coordinator at Karabash Primary School. Talankin began seriously documenting his activities after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, when the government began requiring schools to hold regular “patriotic displays” and use a state-written curriculum to justify the invasion to students. At the same time, the government instituted a requirement to upload footage of these displays to a state-run portal to prove compliance, allowing Talankin cover to film meetings, lessons, and visitors to the school without attracting suspicion. He initially planned to resign in order to avoid supporting the Russian government, however, after getting in contact with the documentary’s producers he withdrew his resignation to keep gathering footage.
Talankin secretly fled Russia during the summer of 2024, aided by his producers and co-director David Borenstein who worked to get him asylum in Europe, following evidence of police surveillance at his home shown during the film.
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Mr. Nobody Against Putin (2025) | Transcript
P, it’s time to talk about your departure.
Before you cross the border, you must delete our secure messaging app.
Yeah.
You need to be very careful about how you take your footage past border control.
Just be calm.
You have a return ticket. They’ll think you are returning in 7 days.
Just believe in yourself.
I think what you’ve done is going to make a big impact.
[Sun up high, bright blue sky]
[that was the little boy’s picture]
[He drew it on a piece of paper]
[and wrote in the corner]
[may there always be sunshine]
[may there always be a sky]
Hello. This is me.
In this moment I have no idea the amount of trouble I’m about to cause for myself.
Good day, students.
Pasha, this is not the best time.
I am the event coordinator at Karabash Primary School #1.
First…
I am also the school videographer.
Together with a group of students, I shoot all major events in the school.
My place of employment is the biggest school in what is a very small town.
The population here is only 10,000.
The town is nestled deep in the Ural mountain region.
This is Russia’s industrial heartland.
Life here revolves around the copper smelting plant.
In fact, we are world famous because of this plant.
People come from everywhere to see the town that UNESCO once called the most toxic place on Earth.
The most polluted town in Ural, with an average life expectancy of 38 years.
It’s so like postapocalyptic here.
There’s random stinking gasses.
It’s the most depressing place I’ve ever been. The air… Oh, man, it stinks.
There’s a high rate of mortality from cancer, lung diseases and other diseases. Wow.
Welcome to Karabash.
That’s the way the world sees my hometown.
But the reality is that it’s not so bad here.
And as the event coordinator at the school, I can make sure the kids always have something to look forward to.
There is cake for everyone.
What I like about my job is being able to be there for my students.
Helping them open their minds.
Express themselves.
And just giving them the space to be kids.
[Even though it’s far from great!]
[But I try my best on my guitar…]
Although sometimes I mess everything up.
I hope the kids forgive me for not bringing an extra battery for their music video shoot.
As a graduate of this school myself, I’m fond of this place.
And I hope the people here like me too.
Do you want some cabbage soup?
No, thanks.
Your cabbage soup is not very good.
The best soup is from the “Sushi-Pizza” restaurant.
Get out of here!
You and your sushi-pizza.
But I also have my ways of winning people over.
Good morning.
I would like some flowers.
Hi, Miss Librarian!
A present? I knew it!
I brought you flowers.
Happy birthday, Mom.
This is my mom. I love her very much but I’ve never told her.
Let the flowers speak for me.
You are filming this?
Yes.
It was in February of 2022 when my job was to change drastically.
This is the news on the First Channel.
According to Vladimir Putin, Russia will conduct a special military operation.
With the consent of the Russian Federation Council and in accordance with the ratified agreement of February 22, 2022 regarding friendship and mutual aid with Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic I decided to conduct a special military operation.
NEW FEDERAL PATRIOTIC EDUCATION POLICY
Hello?
Are there special orders? I don’t understand what’s happening at all.
We need to get the kids to recite some patriotic songs and speeches.
You need to film it.
We also need to film the children reciting poems about our victory.
Are we completely fucked up?
It just came from above.
Damn.
How do we actually do this?
No idea.
OK.
Fuck! It hurts!
OK, see you.
Fuck!
Present the flag.
A new patriotic curriculum supporting the war will now be introduced in our school.
Lessons, songs, morning drills…
I was instructed to shoot all the events…
Place the flag.
…as proof that the school is complying with government orders.
During the first days, I darted from one classroom to the next recording scripted lesson after scripted lesson.
The workload was so huge, I had to ask for assistance in filming.
State policy in Ukraine is decided by radicals, nationalists, and… neo-Nazis. Everything that unites us have been brought under attack.
In February 2022, he took part in a special operation for demil…
Demilitarization.
For demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine as a part of…
Let’s repeat it.
Do I start from the beginning or?
No, only from these words, starting from “he took part in”…
In February 2022, he took part in a special operation for demilitar…
Just say “denazification”.
Some were struggling with the new words of the curriculum.
Others, like Abdulmanov here, delivered the lessons with the passion of a true believer.
The next point is the economy.
The economic component of hybrid warfare.
These are the sanctions against our country.
You already know that Europe, not Russia, is suffering the most from these sanctions now.
Without energy, that is, without our gas, oil and so on.
In France, to fill the tank with petrol, you need more than 150 euros.
So the French will soon be like musketeers, riding horses, and the rest of Europe too.
There are no local agricultural products in Europe or in most other countries.
That is, no wheat, oils, and so on.
Well, again, in France, OK, they’re used to eating oysters and frogs.
They will last for some time, but what about the others, like England?
England, you remember, is a tiny island.
They killed their own people during World War II.
In the USA, there are demonstrations supporting Russia.
As I said, we could destroy Ukraine in a couple of days.
Thank you.
Few of us were prepared for such an intervention in our freedom to teach.
The hours when I used to focus on the kids are now spent uploading these videos onto some mysterious government database.
This is my home.
It’s a 2bedroom in the city center.
Here, I have 427 books.
All carefully arranged in color order.
A pet parrot.
A dog named Nebraska.
And lots of memories…
As a young student, I knew I was different from the other boys even if I had no idea why.
Maybe this is why I was always alone.
I was also lonely at home.
When I was 9, my father drowned in a lake leaving my mother to raise me and my siblings on her own.
Here at the school, I can create my own family.
What I’ve tried to create in my office is simple.
Exactly the kind of place that I wish existed when I was a student.
This office here is a pillar of democracy in our entire nondemocratic world.
Students can always come in here.
Even if it’s closed, one can unlock it with almost any key.
Go ahead, film the flag.
No, it won’t fall out.
What Evgenia Vladimirovna will tell you, she is forced to say.
Were you forced?
Blink twice if you were forced.
We need to save Evgenia Vladimirovna.
Let me just adjust the balance.
All of us together must help each other and our army with understanding, support, and mindful attitude towards everything that happens.
Every day, there were new mandatory lessons.
It felt like us teachers were being forced to fight this war too.
How many of you already know about the Crimean spring? Yes, Alexander?
Crimea joined Russia.
So, Crimea joined Russia, then?
Crimea left Russia…
Oh, left Ukraine and joined Russia.
How smart you are, you all know.
Why did the Crimean people want to join Russia?
Because the Ukrainians didn’t give money for infrastructure, so they decided to join us.
Those who wear the floral crowns, please wave to the camera.
And a wide smile.
I’m exhausted from all the extra propaganda work.
Then I see a post from a Russian web content company.
“Casting call. Has your job been affected by the special military operation?”
I surprise myself by sending them an overly long email: “I’m writing to you because I think I would be a good candidate for your show.”
“I am a teacher forced to do the exact opposite of what a teacher should do.”
“Using my own resources as school videographer, I have already been documenting things here.”
“I await your reply.”
Happy birthday!
Happy birthday!
Happy birthday.
The students who pass through my office become family.
Like this group of graduates from last year.
But I’m worried for them.
One, two, three.
Karabash!
I don’t have time to study.
I am in danger of flunking, too.
If you flunk out, you might end up dead in Ukraine.
They’re making my sister in first grade learn war poems.
They make her learn those too.
I asked, “Why are you learning this?”
She says, “I was told to do it to support the army.”
Not like she knows what war is.
No, they don’t need to know what it is.
I got you a McDonald’s t-shirt!
Brand merch, my gift to Nikita.
[A slow dance to make you cry]
[Even though they all sound the same]
Mom, do you know what’s happening?
Like, what they have to learn in the 11th grade?
Heroes of the special military operation!
So what? There are boys at war.
Young boys.
It’s only natural for boys to go to war!
I don’t like that kind of nature.
You’re different.
Our country wants a lot of things.
There is no need to start a war for this.
I understand you perfectly.
One idiot decides to do this, and the whole world is now afraid.
Idiot.
It would have been better if he just sat at his desk and did nothing!
I am sorry, but people love war.
They want to shoot each other.
It’s always been like that. And our people were in all the battles. Always.
People love to shoot each other.
Turn on your brain sometimes.
It’s useful.
Take some sweets, son.
Beautiful.
Somewhere along the line, I get sick of having no one to talk to.
So I start talking to my own camera.
It’s a very unpleasant feeling.
It’s like you are in a room and all walls are closing in on you.
The air is running out.
And you are so aware that you cannot change anything.
That you remain trapped in this system.
I love my job, but I don’t want to be a pawn of the regime.
I’m resigning my position as event coordinator at Karabash Primary School.
Whatever repercussions come of this, so be it.
Even a guy like me should have some principles.
I walk into the administration and submit the resignation letter.
By June, I am done here.
Sometimes I get asked to film things outside of school.
And today I’m filming a prowar rally.
I feel like for now I must play along.
Come stand with us.
Right here.
WE DON’T ABANDON OUR PEOPLE
I feel like I’m an alien in my own town.
But of course, it’s not just here.
Around the country, the drums of war beat wildly.
If we need to turn Kyiv into ruins and put our flag on top of these ruins then this must be done.
The rally in Karabash is just part of a larger national information war.
This operation is about revenge.
We strike precisely for revenge.
This is a manifestation of our hate, a totally holy hate.
We shouldn’t kill them out of hate.
We must kill them out of love, love for our children.
[Ah, Mother Russia]
[Our nuclear missiles]
[are ready for battle]
[Trust us, grandmother,]
[with the red banner!]
No to the war! No to the war!
Of course there were the antiwar protestors in some larger cities.
Stop the war! No to the war!
Media personnel, step aside.
I wish I could be as brave as them.
But I’m not.
And this goes for everyone in this town.
Is there anyone against the war?
No, we do not know anyone.
Among our social circle, there are none of that kind.
They won’t even dare to be “against”.
After the rally, I see what the town has done with my footage.
It’s a multimedia exhibit at the town library.
I look into the eyes of the kids watching my creation.
I am these kids’ propagandist.
Luckily I brought my universal remote, so I could turn off the bullshit.
All of a sudden, I received the strangest message ever.
The Instagram post I randomly responded to has paid off.
And now…
“Dear Pasha, I am from Europe working in documentary films.”
“Your contact information was given to me by a friend in Russia.”
“I want to talk about your idea to film a story about how the war is affecting your school.”
When I sent that pitch, I knew no one in Russia could legally cover this story.
But now a foreigner enters the scene offering support.
I spend all night thinking about his offer to help show my material to the world.
Let’s do this.
My job already involves filming everything around the school.
It’s the perfect cover.
Why resign my position when it’s the perfect way to make a film here?
I go to the school administration and take back my resignation.
Now I’m not only a school videographer.
Now, I’m a film director.
And I’ll use my camera to film the abyss this school is sinking into.
But where to start?
Attention!
Present the flag.
The new mandatory anthem ceremony is overseen by Pavel Abdulmanov… representative of the ruling party in our institution.
Now that’s interesting.
Why history?
I think that the history of Russia is one of the most important social sciences.
I agree with the saying that people who have forgotten their history do not have a future.
Which famous historical figure do you most admire?
I think some of the Soviet officials from the Soviet era.
Lavrentiy Beria.
Lavrentiy Beria, leader of Stalin’s secret police.
Father of the Gulag system.
He was so enthusiastic about the beating of political prisoners that he would often join in the torture himself during his purges.
Maybe Abakumov.
Viktor Abakumov, Stalin’s spy hunter.
Famous for killing countless enemy spies, almost none of which were actually spies.
Definitely Pavel Sudoplatov.
Pavel Sudoplatov. Notable for eliminating Stalin’s enemies in creative ways such as an ice pick straight through Leon Trotsky’s head.
And a bomb disguised as a box of chocolates delivered to a prominent Ukrainian independence fighter.
Why are these guys your heroes?
I think they had interesting jobs.
How will your students remember you?
As a fun person, I hope.
It’s so crucial to eliminate dissenting views so there is no political split in our country.
You love your motherland out of obligation.
Like how you love your mother.
You love her just because she’s your mother.
You love your motherland just because it is your motherland.
If you were born in this country and don’t believe we’re doing the right thing then leave. Go to the country that you think is better.
If you live in our country and don’t love it, then you’re a parasite. Leave.
I can understand Abdulmanov from one side… because he is brainwashed.
He is so certain that he is correct.
But I worry about… the kids sitting in front of him.
They haven’t yet learned how they should live their lives.
They can’t make these decisions yet.
I might love Russia much more than the regime supporters do.
I love when you can open your balcony door wide open to get all the fresh air in.
I love when it gets so cold, it’s almost 45 degrees, and you can only run from one place to another with a completely red face and a white ice moustache.
I love autumn.
I love everything.
I love the people.
Love for your country is not about putting up a flag.
It is not about singing the anthem either.
It’s not about exploitation and propaganda.
Love for your country means saying, “We have a problem.”
What are you filming?
A film.
For what?
BBC.
Ah, well film then.
It’s not just my current students who face new challenges.
Many of my former students are at the age for military service.
This is a longstanding tradition but now it has much darker implications.
This is Vanya. Even after his graduation, he still often comes to my office.
I just came in and these little guys who used to run and trip over my knees now they are taller than me, in their graduation costumes. I am in shock.
Why does time fly so fast?
Vanya now works at the liquor store as he figures out his next step.
Maybe I’ll move to Chelyabinsk. I am not sure what to do with my life yet.
Do you have connections there?
No, who the fuck needs me?
You’d better not join the army out of desperation.
I wanted to.
Did you? Still or not anymore?
I wanted to sign a contract.
It is necessary to support the proposal of the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff to hold a partial military mobilization in Russia.
The decree on partial mobilization has been signed.
Just like that, everything was about to change again.
Keep it even in the back.
Across the country, regular men were called up for duty.
Now almost all men will live under the constant threat of being sent to war.
Perhaps it was inevitable that the realities of war would find their way into my little office.
I had the same attitude as my mother in the beginning.
I could care less about the war, as long as it doesn’t bother me personally.
This is Masha. A constant presence in my office over the past years.
I want to go to medical school.
You still need to get in.
What if you don’t get in?
Well, damn then.
Masha! When did you stop believing in Santa Claus?
I still believe in Santa Claus.
What did you ask him for?
Happiness.
My brother is chilling in a base in some city in Russia waiting to be sent back to Ukraine.
He went to Ukraine for 10 days and was sent back to the base.
Some men stay there for 23 weeks.
He was drafted?
Yes.
He has a duty.
What is his salary?
He just got about 1200 euro for a month.
They have really scary guns.
Are they broken?
No, his are all good.
He carries four grenades on one side.
And four grenades on the other.
As rough as it was to see Masha’s brother go off to war it wasn’t any easier to see my own students get drafted.
What was your first thought when you were drafted into the army?
That this farewell party would be expensive for me.
Do you really want to join the army?
I was conscripted. They sent for me.
Which troops would you most like to join?
Putin’s.
I’d like to serve in the Kremlin.
Should you shave?
Are you going to shave me?
I think Vanya needs a shave.
Let’s shave little Vanya.
Leave enough room for everyone.
Yes, he has a lot of hair.
Yes, he still has it.
On the second round.
Do you know what this hairstyle is called? Landing strip. For pilots.
It’s run out of power.
Put it on the charger.
Say “Ivan”. One, two, three.
Ivan!
Say “army”. One, two, three.
Army!
Pasha, put down the camera and come.
Let me do a little too.
You decided to sign up on your own?
They sent for me.
Why didn’t you call me?
It happened so fast, I didn’t understand what was going on.
Ah, we need to charge it more.
OK, so let it charge.
In my office I’ve witnessed these friendships bloom.
But it’s all so fragile.
What a son you have raised.
Dammit, I’m crying.
Vanya!
Fuck, I’m crying.
Goddammit, Vanya.
I know, Vanya, you are my friend, you are my friend, you are my brother.
You understand? Not by blood, but by soul. Understand?
If you were a stupid, bad guy, I would have cut you off. I love you for real.
I see the real you.
For real.
You’re leaving for a year…
It’s fucked up.
I haven’t slept since Vanya’s going away party.
Maybe I’m too anxious to ever sleep again.
To see my students so directly get drawn into this war gave me an uncontrollable urge to lash out.
And so, when setting up the sound system for the daily anthem ceremony, I acted.
The US national anthem as performed by Lady Gaga.
What could be more treasonous?
Pasha, stop it immediately.
Why?
Do you want to go to prison?
You have lots of enemies at the school.
So what?
President Vladimir Putin signed a law on life imprisonment for government treason.
We must suppress activities of foreign secret services and identify traitors, spies and saboteurs.
In April 2023, the state released updated laws concerning “treason”.
25 years in prison.
That’s the verdict for journalist and activist Vladimir Kara-Murza.
He was found guilty of treason, discrediting the army, and leading an “undesirable organization.”
There is something called “traitor of the motherland”.
Just imagine this.
You are a citizen of your country and then there is a person who betrays your country.
He is just a scumbag.
Obviously, I am constantly walking around the town with the camera.
At first it felt safe and even interesting.
It was like a game.
But then…
It became harder as the political atmosphere was heating up.
People start taking notice if the camera is present.
They get pretty worried.
Start whispering.
It seems like… in a second, trust was lost.
Please be seated.
True or false: an effective way of fighting modern warfare is to use foreign agents.
True.
The enemy is trying to recruit people from local communities to spread propaganda and confusion.
That’s the truth.
We must support each other.
They will attempt to defeat us from the inside by dividing us.
So it’s important that we unite and support each other.
These kind of lessons would be unimaginable when I was a student here.
In those days an open environment made it possible for someone like me to be free in this school.
But since last year, there is no more freedom to be found here.
And starting from today, it’s official.
Dear teachers, students, and visitors!
We’re here to witness an event of historical magnitude.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has supported the idea of the creation of an all-Russian movement for children.
For the first time in Russian history, a president will personally chair the board of the children’s movement.
I greet all the participants of the first meeting of the children’s movement.
Here in Moscow, we meet bright and creative kids from all over the country.
This includes kids from our new regions.
Putin announced this new organization on the 100year anniversary of the Soviet Pioneers.
In the high Soviet era, the pioneers prepared youth to fight the future battles of communism.
Putin is bringing back this all-encompassing propaganda organization.
But not for communism.
No, this movement is loyal only to him and his aims.
Patriot!
Our motto!
We only move forward, since we’re the Patriot team!
We’re brave and agile, and ready to do anything to win.
Go sit down over there. Move the chairs there, and sit down in pairs.
Did I put my hat on the right way?
Yes.
Putin’s new youth movement mandates new types of propaganda lessons.
Now, there are not just prepared lines for the teachers.
Now, even the students are reading from scripts.
Kids, please hide your scripts under the tables.
Tell me another of the most heroic Soviet cities.
Kyiv!
Which one?
Kyiv.
It’s correct.
Someone wants to tell me a little bit about it? Yura, please.
Kyiv is one of our first cities fighting the enemy during the Great Patriotic War.
On June 6, 1941, facing perilous attack from German fascist troops our military headquarters was established in Kyiv.
The 72day defense of the Ukrainian capital thus began lasting until September 19, 1941.
This city received its first award…
Look at the teacher, not me.
This city received its first award…
What do Putin’s lessons seek to teach us?
It’s obvious on Victory Day, the holiest day of the year for the Russian state.
Marching together, we hold pictures of relatives who perished in World War II.
We begin the ceremony of laying a garland in recognition of the heroism of Soviet soldiers.
A wreath is placed on behalf of the copper mining conglomerate Karabashmed.
The message to the kids isn’t subtle.
“Maybe one day you can be a dead soldier too.”
Our people, just like in the years of the Great Patriotic War, must unite in order to defeat the enemy.
I’m very happy to see so many children and young people here at the parade.
I encourage you, patriots.
You, young people, will have to carry the banner of absolute victory over evil.
[Come on, let’s live,]
[let’s live]
[Sharing the minutes]
[of joy and happiness together]
[And valuing every hour,]
[every moment that we have]
[Oh, our life, oh, our life]
[is like a song]
Ah, I get it now.
Hi, Masha.
How have you been?
Are you OK?
Wait, I am filming you taking the picture.
Your brother.
Are you going to show it to your mom?
Yes, they put it in the classroom.
Do you feel happy that the teachers put the photo of your brother on the wall?
Well, I am not happy he is at war.
Understandable.
As part of the state-mandated propaganda students here are often given graded assignments to write letters to soldiers.
But sometimes these tasks can be redirected towards our own ends.
They can be a good way to vent suppressed feelings.
Masha, did you show your mother the letter you wrote to a soldier?
She said it was a sad letter.
What letter is this?
To a soldier.
She said I was good at describing things.
Did you write to a random soldier or to your brother?
I wrote to a soldier about my brother.
“Dear soldier, I hope you are well, dressed, healthy and full.”
“I understand this is not easy neither for you nor for your family and friends.”
“But just do anything to come back home.
It’s not easy for me either, honestly.”
“My brother is on the battlefield now, and we’re all very worried for him.”
“On February 3, 2023, he told us he was OK.”
“He said he was not hungry nor was he missing us.”
That he was missing us, I mean.
“I am writing this to tell you please do not forget to call people who are worried about you.”
Forward march, go!
When did we start marching in the hallways?
Is Severus Snape our new headmaster?
[White snow, gray ice!]
[On the cracked earth!]
[Covered by a patchwork quilt!]
[There is a city in the bend of the road!]
[And clouds are floating above the sky!]
[Quenching the heavenly light!]
Proceed to the next step.
Yes, sir.
Don’t turn with your shoulder.
You are walking too fast.
At ease.
Marching steps. And march.
14 students from 6th grade are receiving failing grades.
And 34 students from 7th grade.
133 grades are missing.
I think the teachers are inflating the grades.
Pavel Abdulmanov, academic performance in your class has dropped 7%.
Back to the problem of kids failing.
This is a very serious issue.
This is not only happening in our school.
There are a lot of questions.
We need to find out why this is happening and what can be done about it.
Maybe the reason they are failing is all the bullshit.
You have to prepare all the patriotic lessons, all the special courses.
The new youth organizations that they shove down your throat.
It’s true. How are we supposed to do this all at once?
“Go Russia, hurray for nuclear weapons,” that’s all we have here now.
What if we could just take out all the extra activities and just focus on educating kids.
Why can’t we just try it?
How in the world can we do that?
I would get fired!
I’d also get fired as principal.
It has to come from above.
It’s like walking a tight rope.
When you feel like you are nothing but a propagandist and you feel like it’s going to consume all of you you need to even it out and act out.
My stomach is aching.
I might be a self-destructive person.
But I can’t look at one more prowar Z symbol on these windows.
So I take them down and put up X’s instead.
A symbol online in support of Ukrainian refugees.
No, Pasha, don’t do this.
We are all adults here, after all.
Everyone is having a hard time.
That’s correct, everyone is having a hard time.
Pasha, you have to listen to other people too.
That’s it, thank you, it’s great that we heard each other out.
Karabash is a small city, where everybody knows each other.
Word starts spreading about my open opposition to the regime and in Russia, you never know what kind of danger you might face.
I go to the town award ceremony feeling anxious but also a bit hopeful.
Here, an award is given to the local teacher who is most loved by students.
The prize is a new deluxe apartment, right here in Karabash.
Good afternoon.
Hello, dear guests.
The award is for someone kind, someone understanding.
Someone who creates a space for students where they feel comfortable.
We are starting the ceremony for “favorite teacher” award.
The winner is Pavel Shaihovich Abdulmanov!
The history and social science teacher from Karabash Primary School.
Students and parents value him for his kindness, his way of explaining things, his creative approach to teaching, and for his understanding of students.
“Abdulmanov teaches us how to be smart.”
I’m overwhelmed with emotions, even if you don’t see it on my face.
Sometimes I feel like I’m the guy everyone wants to tear apart.
But it turns out they really love me.
As a teacher I feel more and more useless.
It’s now time for the mercenaries to teach.
Don’t film too much here.
Wagner mercenaries, to be precise.
Wagner.
This mine is called a petal.
It’s being thrown out from airplanes.
If it’s a field or open space, you would never see it.
It’s very hard to see it in bushes or anywhere else.
If you see this mine, walk around it.
If you ever see it anywhere, never come close to it or touch it.
There is liquid inside that blows up instantly.
It will take your whole leg off in a second.
The most important thing, if you end up in a crossfire is never clasp your helmet!
It will break your neck if you get shot in the head.
Move a little bit closer together.
OK, thank you.
Our schedules are packed with military related events.
Marching practice, shooting drills, grenade throwing competitions.
The 2nd place for “Grenade Throwing, Age Category 1516 Years” is awarded to Bidal Gabitov.
The 1st place award goes to Seymon Chuykin.
We’ve never had a demand for teachers as we do now.
Teachers play pivotal roles when countries are at turning points.
Commanders don’t win wars.
Teachers win wars.
You can see these models of small arms used during the Great Patriotic War.
And here’s our last exhibit, the Degtyaryov machine gun.
It has the same cartridge as the Mosin and the SVT. It holds 75 bullets.
Is everything good in school?
No, there’s nothing good there.
Good day!
Happy birthday!
Help me with the flowers.
And a present for you as well.
Good.
Maybe I will stop by your place tonight.
Forget it.
Today’s training will help students develop the morale required for military service.
Pasha, my brother Kostya called crying yesterday about huge losses over there.
Actually crying?
He recorded a voice message on WhatsApp.
He told the whole family that he is alive and OK.
But also he talked about huge losses and his voice started trembling by the end…
Can’t he leave?
He wants to really bad.
Is there any way he can officially leave this war?
I don’t think so, it’s not like they give vacation time.
Is he on contract or mobilized?
Mobilized.
He can’t say “demobilize” me?
It doesn’t work that way, no one is going to let him go.
It’s horrifying, I am scared.
The war has become Europe’s bloodiest since WW2.
By the summer of 2024, Putin’s strategy was to throw soldiers at the Ukrainian frontlines.
Russia slowly made territorial gains, a few square kilometers here and there, costing 1000 soldiers’ lives every day.
Yet there is no shortage of conscripts from Karabash.
The kids have been taught well by their teachers.
It feels like yesterday I filmed Nikita getting a McDonald’s shirt for his birthday.
Nikita! What can I say, you’re starting a new chapter in your life.
You are becoming more manly.
I am wishing you endurance, happiness and health, that’s the most important.
If you ever have any problems, your friends will always have your back.
Pull the trigger, take position, the correct one, then shoot 4 times.
“I will see you when you get back.”
“See you in a year.”
But some guys will never come home.
Artyom was my friend from my own graduation class.
He’s one of many who lost their lives, and whose deaths were covered up by the state.
The death numbers of this war are highly sensitive information for the regime.
Filming Russian soldiers’ funerals is too risky.
But I think it’s important so I recorded the sound.
Attention please.
On the 30th of April, Russian Citizen Artyom Volkov died.
During the liberation of Artyomovsk of the Donetsk People’s Republic.
Artyom!
Artyom!
My sweet boy!
No, no, no.
Zhenya, hold mom.
Why didn’t you let me come close to him?
My little Artyom!
I know the situation here is incomparable to what’s happening in Ukraine.
But there are more and more people suffering here because of the war.
And there is nowhere in school where the trauma doesn’t reach.
The kindest boy, Igor, who lost his father.
Kristina from school security who lost her boyfriend.
And so many brothers in harm’s way.
Masha’s brother Kostya was deployed to Ukraine during the mobilization.
He recently defected from the army only to be captured and brought back to Ukraine.
A few weeks later, his family got a call that he was dead.
Do you miss him?
Of course, everybody does.
We never ended up having a good talk about her brother.
In some ways that’s what hurt me the most.
Masha was always seeking a place to be free.
To unload her feelings without fear or prejudice.
But I have to admit it feels like something has changed.
More and more, students have started to fear my classroom.
They don’t wish to be seen with the guy who hangs the democracy flags.
And so they don’t come.
But perhaps the students are smart to avoid me.
One day a police car appears outside my window.
In a small town like Karabash, this is suspicious.
I hide my hard drives and passwords in case something happens.
Here… is where they’re hidden.
I want people in Russia and my hometown to see the material I recorded.
For all that was said and done in this film, surely I will get beaten or put in jail.
If we were a free country with the freedom to say what needs to be said…
…I wouldn’t need to leave Russia.
It’s…
This departure…
It’s…
It’s…
How is your brother Vanya doing?
He is OK.
Does he call you? Is he still there?
Yes. He has become a captain.
Oh, a captain!
Yes.
I go to the library for a sort of farewell.
Let me film you repairing the books.
They’re all torn.
Tell me what you’re doing.
Affixing the cover.
Who in the world knows that you fix these books?
Do you tell the kids about it?
I’m bringing a plant… to your house.
If it dies, OK.
But if it lives I’ll be really happy.
OK?
OK.
What do you think?
What can I think?
I think she senses that I am leaving but not that it will be forever.
It’s impossible to say the words to someone you love so much.
I love… almost everything about this place.
I love the gray soviet buildings.
I love the maze of pipes coming from the copper plant.
Pipes, pipes, pipes…
I love the stains on the sides of the buildings.
I love thunder and storms.
P, it’s time to talk about your departure.
Before you cross the border, you must delete our secure messaging app.
Be careful about how you take your footage past border control. Just be calm.
You have a return ticket. They’ll think you are returning in 7 days.
I think what you’ve done is going to make a big impact.
One last task before I leave.
This year for our graduation ceremony, a young tree is to be dug up and planted at school.
A symbol of new beginnings.
Today, I am the event coordinator at Karabash Primary School and it’s my responsibility to organize the graduation ceremony.
The diplomas were printed.
The speeches were written.
I did these tasks to the best of my abilities.
Make your destiny with your own hands.
Go against the wind. Don’t stand still.
There is no simple way.
Dear friends!
Dear graduates, parents, and teachers!
In a very short while your children, your students, your brothers and sisters, your closest people, your family will hear their school bell for the last time.
And this will signify the beginning of real adult life for them.
I’d like to take this opportunity, my dear friends, to say how great it is to be able to actually call you my dear friends.
Wherever your life takes you, I wish you solid ground under your feet.
Yes, there’ll be turns.
Yes, there’ll be ups and downs.
Yes, there’ll be crossroads and turning points, you’ll have to choose.
Sometimes to do the right thing…
And sometimes to express your love, you must sacrifice everything.
But I know that your choice will come from your heart.
I love you very much.
Thank you so much for working with me throughout these years.
I love you very much.
The time for the last bell has come.
We were all united by a deep recognition of what we were leaving behind.
And utter blindness towards what the next steps actually mean.
It can’t be here, why am I even searching?
Thank you for giving us your warmth and support.
You supported us during the hard times and were always here for us.
This is my passport.
Holy shit!
We all held each other once more, dancing in the most toxic town on earth.
And you could almost smell the clean Ural mountain air through the poisonous fumes.
