(Post)Soviet Subjectivities: History(ies) through Soviet Film | Film Screening of "Buba" (1930)
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The richness of cultures and diversity of characters within Soviet cinema bring together films produced across the Soviet Union—from Ukraine to Central Asia—depicting the realities and experiences of millions of people. But how much can we truly grasp of the meanings embedded in these cinematic representations? Is it possible for an outside observer to fully understand the layers of significance within Soviet film?
We believe that it is—and that film, in particular, offers a powerful medium for engaging with these realities on their own terms and from within their own perspectives.
We begin the series with two films by the first female Georgian director, Nutsa Gogoberidze. Her works were censored immediately after production and remained unseen for decades. Gogoberidze herself was sentenced to ten years in the Gulag as a “family member of a traitor to the Motherland”. Although she eventually returned, she never spoke publicly about her film career again.
Only recently were these two films rediscovered in a Moscow film archive and brought back to Georgia, where they have been restored and reintroduced to audiences.
Our opening screening on June 23, 2026 features Buba (1930), Nutsa Gogoberidze’s five-part documentary named after one of the highest peaks in Racha, in northwestern Georgia. Set in and around the mountain village of Ghebi, the film brings together images of Racha’s landscapes, mineral waters, and rural life. The film portrays the encounter between old and new, tradition and transformation, but does so with a rare sensitivity to landscape and human presence.
Before the summer break, our second screening on July 7, 2026, will present Ujmuri (1934), Gogoberidze’s first and only feature film. Set in the Colchis lowlands of western Georgia, the film revolves around the Soviet project of draining the marshes and fighting malaria, while weaving this story together with a local legend about Ujmuri, a mysterious swamp spirit imagined as a giant toad or “green queen.” As Gogoberidze’s only surviving feature film, it stands today as a remarkable work in the history of early Georgian and Soviet cinema.
We warmly invite you to join us for this opening event and to explore these films together.
More information: https://www.zmo.de/veranstaltungen/vortragsreihen/postsoviet-subjectivities-historyies-through-soviet-film
We believe that it is—and that film, in particular, offers a powerful medium for engaging with these realities on their own terms and from within their own perspectives.
We begin the series with two films by the first female Georgian director, Nutsa Gogoberidze. Her works were censored immediately after production and remained unseen for decades. Gogoberidze herself was sentenced to ten years in the Gulag as a “family member of a traitor to the Motherland”. Although she eventually returned, she never spoke publicly about her film career again.
Only recently were these two films rediscovered in a Moscow film archive and brought back to Georgia, where they have been restored and reintroduced to audiences.
Our opening screening on June 23, 2026 features Buba (1930), Nutsa Gogoberidze’s five-part documentary named after one of the highest peaks in Racha, in northwestern Georgia. Set in and around the mountain village of Ghebi, the film brings together images of Racha’s landscapes, mineral waters, and rural life. The film portrays the encounter between old and new, tradition and transformation, but does so with a rare sensitivity to landscape and human presence.
Before the summer break, our second screening on July 7, 2026, will present Ujmuri (1934), Gogoberidze’s first and only feature film. Set in the Colchis lowlands of western Georgia, the film revolves around the Soviet project of draining the marshes and fighting malaria, while weaving this story together with a local legend about Ujmuri, a mysterious swamp spirit imagined as a giant toad or “green queen.” As Gogoberidze’s only surviving feature film, it stands today as a remarkable work in the history of early Georgian and Soviet cinema.
We warmly invite you to join us for this opening event and to explore these films together.
More information: https://www.zmo.de/veranstaltungen/vortragsreihen/postsoviet-subjectivities-historyies-through-soviet-film
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Where is it happening?
Kirchweg 33, 14129 Berlin, Germany, Kirchweg 33, 14129 Berlin, Deutschland, Berlin, Germany
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
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Host or PublisherLeibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient
