Paradise | Alexander Abaturov | FRA, CHE | 88'

In the summer of 2021, an exceptional heatwave and drought led to giant fires that ravaged 19 million hectares of land in northeastern Siberia. In this region at the heart of the taiga lies the village of Shologon soon to be blanketed by a thick cloud of smoke. Spread by the wind, the black ashes carry alarming news: the forest is on fire and the flames are fast approaching. The government having left them to fend for themselves, the inhabitants must rally to fight The Dragon.
This is winner of the Best Cinematography award at IDFA is a visually stunning voyage through a land and people abandoned by its autocratic government, and a vision of what’s to come that will surely raise a few eyebrows, particularly in countries such as Portugal, so exposed to the threat of wild fires partially caused by global warming.