Hanna Polak — Director (3)

Movie

辛贾尔的天使 (2022)
Angels of Sinjar Douban
other title: Angels of Sinjar
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Hanna Polak takes her camera to Sinjar in northern Iraq, deep in the territory where the Islamic State attempted to wipe out the Yazidi people. She gives voice to Hanifa, who is trying to free her sisters, or to Saeed, Nadia Murad's brother. Both have decided to stay to try to free their loved ones and seek justice. Through their testimonies, we witness all the horror of a forgotten genocide, the ordeal of a people who are denied all their rights, as well as their strength and courage. This movie contains violent and graphic images that may be harmful and traumatising to some. Viewer discretion is advised.

Movie

The Children of Leningradsky (2005)
The Children of Leningradsky Douban
other title: 列宁格勒的孩子 / Dzieci z Leningradzkiego
Genre:Short / Documentary Plot Outline: Since the fall of the Iron Curtain an estimated four million children have found themselves living on the streets in the former countries of the Soviet Union. In the streets of Moscow alone there are over 30,000 surviving in this manner at the present time. The makers of the documentary film concentrated on a community of homeless children living hand to mouth in the Moscow train station Leningradsky. Eight-year-old Sasha, eleven-year-old Kristina, thirteen-year-old Misha and ten-year-old Andrej all dream of living in a communal home. They spend winter nights trying to stay warm by huddling together on hot water pipes and most of their days are spent begging. Andrej has found himself here because of disagreements with his family. Kristina was driven into this way of life by the hatred of her stepmother and twelve-year-old Roma by the regular beatings he received from his constantly drunk father. "When it is worst, we try to make money for food by prostitution," admits thirteen-year-old Artur. The pair of Polish filmmakers in this raw and very effective documentary even succeeded in filming an incident where the police patrol beat one of the street children and smear an entire tube of glue into his hair and onto his face. It is precisely this sniffing of the glue fumes that gives these children the possibility to at least for a little while escape the unforgiving world around them. It is a life of fleeting possibilities and danger. Plot Keywords:Drugs / Tragic / Drug Addict / Plight / Child Prostitution Runtime:35 min

Movie

Something Better to Come (2015)
Something Better to Come WikiData IMDb TMDB Douban
other title: 明天更美好 / Человек живет для лучшего(俄罗斯) …
Right outside of Moscow – home to the highest number of billionaires pr. capita – you’ll find the largest junkyard in the world: The Svalka. It’s a hard place run by the Russian mafia. And it's where Yula lives with her mother, her friends and many other people. Life is tough in the Svalka, but it’s also a place where beauty and humanity can arise from the most unlikely conditions. It is from this place that Yula dreams of escaping and changing her life, even if it seems impossible. Oscar-nominated director Hanna Polak followed Yula for 14 years, bringing us along on Yula's journey to achieve this dream.