The Children of Leningradsky

Oscar-nominated documentary following children found fighting for survival on the streets and railway stations of Moscow.

Made on a shoestring budget over a period of two years, this Oscar-nominated documentary short was born out of Hanna Polak’s wish to help the children she found fighting for survival on the streets and railway stations of Moscow. Introducing them as individuals and told entirely in their own words, with a wandering, observational camera, Polak confronts us with their desperate conditions and shocking life stories.

Brutality from care-givers and their own families makes life here somehow better, even though they confront the very real possibility of death on a daily basis. Sleeping on the floors of the busy railway station, sharing limited water with their dogs, becoming addicted to glue, this close up portrait of children on the margins has tough images that will linger for a long time.