Noble Virgins

The Russian dream of creating perfect citizens for a perfect society has now returned. The Maryinskije Institute teaches young Russian girls to be virgins – noble maidens who are trained to marry soldiers and support a new nationalist Russia. Award-winning filmmaker Jurek Sladkowski provides an exclusive look at this fascinating world, where leaders of the Russian Army and the Russian Orthodox Church try to teach the girls strict models of womanhood, religious belief and patriotism. The girls emerge from the film with startling individuality, full of life and high spirits, trying to figure out their own identities within this powerful educational structure.

Details

Country of Production
Finland

Year of Production
2002

Format
Digi Beta Pal, Beta SP Pal

Length
52 min

Director
Jerzy Sladkowski

Production
Magic Path Entertainment in co-production with J.S. Filmproduction, ma.ja.de. filmproduktion, TVP, SVT, YLE, ZDF in association with ARTE

Original Language
Russian

Subtitles
English

Festivals / Awards

Jeonju IFF 2003
Cracow FF 2003
Finnish State Cinema Board Award 2003
Prix Europa 2003
Belgrade Doc & Short FF 2004