VOLGA-VOLGA

The impetus for the creation of the "Volga-Volga'' video was an acquaintance with the inhabitants of naukograd, or the science city Dubna, in particular with Eugenе Shabalin a physical engineer and one of the active participants in the Dubna's samodeyatelnost' — amateur theatrical practice, typical for the technical intelligentsia of naukograds. "Volga-Volga" is the first part of the "Dubna series". The title of the work refers to the Soviet film of the same name — musical comedy "Volga-Volga" which was released in the midst of Great Terror and featured Soviet superstar Lyubov Orlova. The key episodes of the comedy were filmed at the site of the newly-built Moscow Сanal which was constructed by the hands of concentration camp prisoners. 
This video is a series of shots of the present-day Сanal, quoting the micro-plots and camera angles of the original film. "Volga-Volga" by Nikita Spiridonov focuses on the local historical and political contexts of Dubna city and Moscow Сanal. The prose of Eugenе Shabalin sounding off-screen addresses the history of the Moscow Canal and presents meditations on the dramatic fate of his hometown.