Andrei Gelasimov

A French theater agrees to stage the latest work by Filippov the most prestigious and lucrative opportunity of his infamous career but first he must sever ties with his longtime collaborator and childhood friend. So the internationally acclaimed Russian director makes a reluctant trip back to his hometown to deliver the news. His journey to the Far North, where the temperature remains dangerous all winter, unexpectedly blurs the distinctions between reality and art for this virtuoso, who prides himself on his ability to create shocking scenes and outrageous situations. And after the city s power grid goes off-line, the brutal cold just might get the better of him. The colder it gets, the more wickedly funny Filippov s boozy exploits, which unravel into an unexpected chain of events including run-ins with old lovers, meeting a woman who might be his daughter, encounters with the devil, and the unlikely affection of a dog that, like Filippov, is in desperate need of warmth. "

Into the Thickening Fog

Marian Schwartz

Kostoya returns from the Chechen War with a face so maimed it looks like a piece of meat. He confines himself to his lonely apartment, with no company save the vodka in his refrigerator. The woman next door checks on him regularly to see that he's still alive, and when she discovers the power his disfigured face has over her misbehaving son, he takes to using Kostoya as a disciplinary influence. His comfortable cocoon is further disrupted after his armmy buddies enlist his help to locate a missing comrade.

Thirst

Could have been the blown business deal with the Italians. Could have been the unauthorized office party, which ended with the cops and an arrest. No matter what finally got him fired, Mikhail never expected to find himself at Red Star Industries' office again. So Mikhail is surprised to be called in by old boss Pavel Petrovich, who offers him easy money to teach his son, Sergei, how to 'be a man', and to spy on him. Of course, Sergei's not the Internet-obsessed recluse his father believes.

The Lying Year

With icons like Chubby Checker and Yuri Gagarin, the Moscow that Svyatoslav Semyonovich inhabits at the onset of the Cold War brims with the flashy visual textures of capitalism. A Jewish teenager on the hunt for black-market tight pants and rock records, Svyatoslav somehow fails to develop his undying love for Lyuba into a happy ending. He finds work in a mental institution, runs off to Kiev with one of the patients, marries a few times, has a son, becomes a professor, and halfheartedly runs interference for the KGB. Always taking great pleasure in the experiences of others, including his patients and lovers, Svyatoslav flounders through his own life but never loses sight of Lyuba, his biblical Rachel, his great love. A professor and close reader of both Russian and American literature, Svyatoslav tries to interpret his eccentric life as if it were a text to be read, only to learn that life happens off the page.

Rachel

With an invasion looming at Russia's borders, Petka wages a war against boredom by secretly raising a wolf, stowing away in a shipment bound for the combat zone, and antagonizing the troops moving through the village.

Andrei Gelasimov

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