Freedom Squared

A young space medicine scientist who goes to Vostok Station (Antarctica), the coldest point on the planet, to observe how the lack of sunlight affects eyesight. The last plane departs and polar explorers are in absolute isolation. Days drag on, weeks look the same. Nikolai repeats one and the same operation. A voice message from his fiancée. She can't wait any longer. Several polar explorers refuse to take part in the experiment. From this moment we see him alone at the station. Lack of communication sharpens his imagination. Are we ready for long space flights spiritually, and not physically?

 Director’s statement

For two weeks he’s been meditating in a cave. In complete isolation. That Buddhist monk whom we met in a small Siberian dastan. I asked him: were you scared alone in the dark? He replied: There was only one terrible meeting. It was a meeting with myself.

Our film is about the meeting of oneself in conditions of prolonged isolation. According to the UN research, in 2020, due to the pandemic, 2.6 billion people were isolated. It’s almost a third of the global population. The isolation caused the escalation of suicides, cases of domestic violence and family conflicts. Obviously, loneliness in isolation has become a serious challenge for humanity.

But why in this case space flights, which are associated with even greater isolation - a kind of a daydream of freedom for humanity? Is a human-being ready to conquer space not only technically, but also spiritually? Maybe the way to deep space lies through inner space? Definitely, it’s the right time to think about it.