ENG
directors note
I come from Buryatia, an Asian region of Russia shaped by colonization and cultural erasure. Growing up half-Asian, I experienced rejection and bullying both in Russia and abroad. This personal sense of alienation lies at the heart of The First Cigarette is for God.
The film tells the story of Chloe, a French exchange student who comes to Ulan-Ude to learn Russian. At first she feels welcomed, but soon becomes a stranger in her new world. Rejected by her peers, exploited by adults, and unable to find support, she eventually disappears.
To convey this, I use a subjective camera for most of the film — either from Chloe’s point of view or through the gaze directed at her — making the audience feel how she is exoticized and objectified. After her disappearance, the perspective shifts to an objective one, reflecting the cold detachment of society.
Regional cinema in Buryatia is pressured to portray the region in a “positive” light, denying real problems. My film challenges this narrative, reversing the gaze: here, it is the white outsider who becomes exotic.
For me, cinema is the only space where I can speak openly. This film may never be screened in Russia, but it exists to remind us that Russian culture is not only white — it is diverse, multi-ethnic, and in need of preservation before minority voices are lost.
The film tells the story of Chloe, a French exchange student who comes to Ulan-Ude to learn Russian. At first she feels welcomed, but soon becomes a stranger in her new world. Rejected by her peers, exploited by adults, and unable to find support, she eventually disappears.
To convey this, I use a subjective camera for most of the film — either from Chloe’s point of view or through the gaze directed at her — making the audience feel how she is exoticized and objectified. After her disappearance, the perspective shifts to an objective one, reflecting the cold detachment of society.
Regional cinema in Buryatia is pressured to portray the region in a “positive” light, denying real problems. My film challenges this narrative, reversing the gaze: here, it is the white outsider who becomes exotic.
For me, cinema is the only space where I can speak openly. This film may never be screened in Russia, but it exists to remind us that Russian culture is not only white — it is diverse, multi-ethnic, and in need of preservation before minority voices are lost.
The first cigaRette is for god
Chloe, a 16 years old French exchange student, arrives to Buryatia, an Asian region
of Russia. She stays with a family with twin girls who do sex cams to earn pocket money. Part of the house they live in is occupied by a funeral home; their family business. Chloe’s tutor at school is a scruffy man who is constantly staring at her body. For classmates and teachers, the girl becomes an exotic object. Chloe tries her best to fit in but her innocence
brings out the worst in people.
of Russia. She stays with a family with twin girls who do sex cams to earn pocket money. Part of the house they live in is occupied by a funeral home; their family business. Chloe’s tutor at school is a scruffy man who is constantly staring at her body. For classmates and teachers, the girl becomes an exotic object. Chloe tries her best to fit in but her innocence
brings out the worst in people.
directors note
Once, I experienced an unusual emotion I could not name. From it, a scene was born,
and then the film. I wanted to preserve this feeling as an artifact, sharing it beyond memory.
I found it in the moment when a daughter turns to her mother for an abortion.
The film follows a lost teenage girl seeking her place in the world and her significance in her mother’s life. The mother expresses care through control, while the daughter resists but also longs for closeness. The heroine asserts control over her body and choices,
yet ultimately returns to her mother, allowing shared responsibility. The abortion is her decision, carried out by another, binding their lives through a deep, shared experience.
In the end, they reach a dialogue: the daughter entrusts her wellbeing to her mother, then follows her to a rite of purification, where the mother returns control to her. The film closes with portraits of both, highlighting their individuality and mutual respect.
and then the film. I wanted to preserve this feeling as an artifact, sharing it beyond memory.
I found it in the moment when a daughter turns to her mother for an abortion.
The film follows a lost teenage girl seeking her place in the world and her significance in her mother’s life. The mother expresses care through control, while the daughter resists but also longs for closeness. The heroine asserts control over her body and choices,
yet ultimately returns to her mother, allowing shared responsibility. The abortion is her decision, carried out by another, binding their lives through a deep, shared experience.
In the end, they reach a dialogue: the daughter entrusts her wellbeing to her mother, then follows her to a rite of purification, where the mother returns control to her. The film closes with portraits of both, highlighting their individuality and mutual respect.
Toli
Anya is a young woman who seeks to discover something about her absent father figure,
but the strained relationship with her mother doesn’t allow for much leeway. When the mother brings home a strange male figure, their relationship only gets worse. Between raves and rituals typical of Buryatia, a republic that, despite being part of Russia, is marked by Siberian culture and traditions, Anya strives to rid herself of the anguish in her body.
but the strained relationship with her mother doesn’t allow for much leeway. When the mother brings home a strange male figure, their relationship only gets worse. Between raves and rituals typical of Buryatia, a republic that, despite being part of Russia, is marked by Siberian culture and traditions, Anya strives to rid herself of the anguish in her body.
diana Mashanova
director:
diana Mashanova
writer:
drama
genre:
directors note
Once, I experienced an unusual emotion I could not name. From it, a scene was born,
and then the film. I wanted to preserve this feeling as an artifact, sharing it beyond memory.
I found it in the moment when a daughter turns to her mother for an abortion.
The film follows a lost teenage girl seeking her place in the world and her significance in her mother’s life. The mother expresses care through control, while the daughter resists but also longs for closeness. The heroine asserts control over her body and choices,
yet ultimately returns to her mother, allowing shared responsibility. The abortion is her decision, carried out by another, binding their lives through a deep, shared experience.
In the end, they reach a dialogue: the daughter entrusts her wellbeing to her mother, then follows her to a rite of purification, where the mother returns control to her. The film closes with portraits of both, highlighting their individuality and mutual respect.
and then the film. I wanted to preserve this feeling as an artifact, sharing it beyond memory.
I found it in the moment when a daughter turns to her mother for an abortion.
The film follows a lost teenage girl seeking her place in the world and her significance in her mother’s life. The mother expresses care through control, while the daughter resists but also longs for closeness. The heroine asserts control over her body and choices,
yet ultimately returns to her mother, allowing shared responsibility. The abortion is her decision, carried out by another, binding their lives through a deep, shared experience.
In the end, they reach a dialogue: the daughter entrusts her wellbeing to her mother, then follows her to a rite of purification, where the mother returns control to her. The film closes with portraits of both, highlighting their individuality and mutual respect.
Toli
Anya is a young woman who seeks to discover something about her absent father figure,
but the strained relationship with her mother doesn’t allow for much leeway. When the mother brings home a strange male figure, their relationship only gets worse. Between raves and rituals typical of Buryatia, a republic that, despite being part of Russia, is marked by Siberian culture and traditions, Anya strives to rid herself of the anguish in her body.
but the strained relationship with her mother doesn’t allow for much leeway. When the mother brings home a strange male figure, their relationship only gets worse. Between raves and rituals typical of Buryatia, a republic that, despite being part of Russia, is marked by Siberian culture and traditions, Anya strives to rid herself of the anguish in her body.
Selections:
