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Logline

In 1952, a prominent Soviet scientist was arrested and pressured to sign a confession to save his family. Later, the Soviet regime executed him for telling the truth by openly criticizing the director of the science academy who adamantly promoted pseudo-science.

Synopsis

ACT I
The story begins in 2020, California. Elena, a world-renowned agronomist and geneticist, speaks at the awards ceremony. She introduces her father’s deeds in the Soviet Union from her childhood memories – the beginning of her quest for scientific truth.

ACT II
1952, Moscow. Elena celebrates her seven-year-old birthday, but her father doesn’t come home. The secret police arrest him for openly criticizing the director of the science academy. He refuses to sign the confession until the secret police threaten his family. He sacrifices himself to save his family, yet inspiring Elena’s relentless pursuit of scientific truth.

ACT III
Back to 2020, California. Seventy-five-year-old Elena receives the National Science Medal, the nation’s highest honor. In the end, the goodness of humanity perseveres. Her students are all around the world. In her scientific research and her pursuit of truth, she reunites with her father as if they were never apart.

Meet the Filmmakers

W. Y. Geng – Writer/Director/Producer
www.wyfilms.blog

Rebecca Chu – Producer
Rebecca Chu is a writer and filmmaker from Irvine, California. Rebecca’s immigrant father instilled in her a love of American cinema, bringing her on movie dates to the neighborhood theater. There, she was exposed to rich stories through moving images that her still-developing psyche could not fully comprehend, yet the emotional responses elicited were tangibly unforgettable.

Rebecca initially built her career in finance and commercial strategy at Fortune 100 companies such as Apple and Disney. Upon becoming a mother, Rebecca turned her focus toward building a more equitable world for the next generation. She engineered a career transition into creative producing, launching independent film company SHADOWLIGHT MEDIA VENTURES, through which she develops and produces original content that aims to elevate diverse, underrepresented voices.

Rebecca’s short film Rojak garnered accolades at the Singapore Bicentennial Heritage showcase, including nods for Best Film and Best Direction. In addition, her original screenplay Wonton Paradise was selected by industry professionals to be filmed at the Universal Studios backlot in Hollywood.

Rebecca is a globe-trotter with artistic interests that span international sensibilities. She holds an MFA from the Peter Stark Producing Program at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, where she was the winner of the 2022 Robert S. Ferguson Marketing Award for best feature film marketing plan. In addition, she holds an MBA from Stanford’s Graduate School of Business.

Emil Chang – Cinematographer
www.emilschang.com

Marsel Kalmagambetov – Production Designer
Marsel Kalmagambetov born in small city Sol-Iletsk, Orenburg region, USSR. Place of residence: Los Angeles USA. Studied at the art gymnasium in city Ufa (Russia) until 2005 year. From 2005-2010 years studied at the Russian State Institute of Performing Arts (Saint-Petersburg) as a production designer (set designer) in the workshop of the honored artist Vyacheslav Okunev. At the moment, he has staged more than ten performances in theaters in St. Petersburg, Khabarovsk, Ufa, Orenburg, and Moscow. As a production designer made six films Black Water, Walk Vasya, Have Fun, Vasya! Date in Bali, Inadequate People 2, The Superdeep, The Major. In 2011, he was a curator and participant at the Prague Quadrennial in the section Scenography School in the Czech Republic. In 2012, he participated in the Shanghai exhibition Show of Light and Sound in the section Young Stage Designers in China. Constantly in creative alliance with film and theater directors, creative agencies. Since 2012, a member of the Union of Artists of the Russian Federation and the Union of Theater Workers. Located in Los Angeles since 2022. Creates the concept of films, performances, Art objects (sketches, storyboards, layouts in different scales, 3D models, original presentation forms, technical development of all artistic solutions, implementation of concepts on stage and on the set).

Anya Khusnatdinova – Editor
Anya Khusnatdinova is a Russian-born film editor currently based in Las Vegas. She started her journey at VGIK, in Moscow, where she learned Soviet montage techniques.

She is a graduate of Emerson College in Boston with a B.A. in Visual and Media Arts. In 2020 she completed MFA in Editing at AFI Conservatory. She has a background in both digital and manual film processing and editing.

In Las Vegas Anya edits for different live shows and artists.

Ryan Vaughan – Sound Supervisor
Ryan Vaughan is passionate about three things: sound, The Beatles, and David Fincher movies.

Originally from Williamsburg, Virginia, he began writing and recording original music in a makeshift studio he built in his room. It was during those late hours recording that he fell in love with creating his own sounds.

Ryan earned his MFA from USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, where he was the first student to mix multiple projects in Dolby Atmos and 7.1 Surround Sound. His Dolby Atmos work spans multiple genres, from action-comedy to musicals to period drama films. Ryan has edited and mixed projects that have premiered at the Tribeca, Austin, and Cannes film festivals. Additionally, he currently works as a sound editor at Transported Audio where his work can be heard on Amazon, Hulu, HGTV and Netflix. He also teaches sound at USC School of Cinematic Arts.

Contact

For inquiries, please contact [email protected].