1787 – Kachalka (2020 short documentary)

timespace coordinates: 2020. Kachalka gym in Kiev, Ukraine

a gym built of Soviet-era scraps is a creative community hub

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“Its name derives from the Ukrainian for ‘to pump’, and it’s built from scrap metal, so it would be easy to think of the Kachalka gym in Kiev as a Muscle Beach Venice (way, way) east of Los Angeles – a place for hardbodies only, novices need not apply. But in fact, whether you’re looking to get as buff as a World’s Strongest Man competitor, land a few blows at a punch-bag built from car tyres, or simply pose awhile on the machines, the outdoor, free-to-all gym has room for you. It even comes with its own on-site volunteer instructors and sports masseurs.” read more and watch here.

from Irish filmmaker Gar O’Rourke   /   imdb

1775

Dauði Baldrs (1997)

Dauði Baldrs (youtube) (Old Norse for “Baldr’s Death” or “The Death of Baldr”) is the fifth album by the Norwegian solo act Burzum. Unlike Burzum’s previous work, which was mostly black metal, this is a dark ambient album. It was recorded using a synthesizer and a normal tape recorder by Varg Vikernes while he was in prison, as he was not allowed to have any other instruments or recording equipment. The album has been described by many as “dungeon synth“.

The album is about the legacy of Baldr, the second son of Odin in Norse mythology. Most likely a concept album, as the whole album leads up to Ragnarök, the battle at the end of the world in Norse mythology.

“Illa tiðandi” is easily the most minimalist track, with only two sections being repeated over the 10:29 duration, which are both simple piano melodies, eventually accompanied by a choral chant. It is an alternative version of the song “Decrepitude I” (wiki)

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Thulêan Mysteries (2020)

Thulêan Mysteries (youtube) is the twelfth and final studio album by Norwegian musical project Burzum.

Recorded as a soundtrack to Vikernes’ role-playing game MYFAROG, the album follows the post-prison era medieval/dark ambient musical style. Vikernes said of the album:

“Since my true passion has never been music, but actually tabletop role-playing games, I figured I should make this an album intended for that use; as background music for my own MYFAROG (Mythic Fantasy Role-playing Game).”

The album’s artwork is by Norwegian artist Theodor Kittelsen called “Nøkken” (wiki)

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1774 – Gray Dawn (2018 video game)

timespace coordinates: Christmas Eve, 1920 London / 1910’s Romania

Gray Dawn is a first-person horror game from Romanian independent game studio Interactive Stone.

Embark on a terrifying adventure of a priest accused of murdering an altar boy. Gray Dawn is a psychological thriller infused with religious elements and combines story-driven quests with an artistic experience.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS (MINIMUM): – OS: Windows 64-bit, Processor: Intel Core i5-2400/AMD FX-8320, Memory: 8 GB RAM, Graphics: GeForce GTX 770 / Radeon R9 280X, Storage: 6 GB available space

steam   /   gray-dawn.com

1767 – Vita & Virginia (2018)

timespace coordinates: 1920’s London

Vita & Virginia is a 2018 biographical romantic drama film directed by Chanya Button, adapted from the 1992 play Vita & Virginia by Eileen Atkins. The film stars Gemma Arterton and Elizabeth Debicki,

Vita & Virginia tells the story of the love affair between Vita Sackville-West and Virginia Woolf. (wiki)

imdb   /   160 – Orlando (1992)

1756 – Outside the Wire (2021)

timespace coordinates: 2036 civil war in Ukraine

Outside the Wire is a 2021 American-Hungarian science fiction film directed by Mikael Håfström. It stars Anthony Mackie (who also serves as a producer on the film) as an android officer who works with a drone pilot (Damson Idris) to stop a global catastrophe. Emily Beecham, Michael Kelly, and Pilou Asbæk also star. The film was released by Netflix on January 15, 2021. (wiki)

imdb

1752

timespace coordinates: ~1975 Văcărești, Bucharest,  Romania

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The second part is one of the few video recordings of the Văcărești Monastery, built by Nicholas Mavrocordatos in 1716 and demolished in 1984 during the regime of Nicolae Ceaușescu to make room for a Palace of Justice that was never built. It was the largest 18th-century monastery in Southeastern Europe and it had a church in the style of Curtea de Argeș Cathedral. It was also designed to be used as a fortress, and was seized in May 1771 by the Imperial Russian army, under commander Nikolai Vasilyeich Repnin, in the context of the Russo-Turkish War and Pârvu Cantacuzino‘s rebellion. Part of the buildings of the monastery were used as a prison. Inmates that were incarcerated at Văcărești Prison include Richard Wurmbrand, Tudor Arghezi, Ioan Slavici, as well as Corneliu Zelea Codreanu and other members of the Iron Guard. (wiki)

1725 – His House (2020)

timespace coordinates: 2010’s  South Sudan > outskirts of London

His House is a 2020 horror thriller film written and directed by Remi Weekes from a story by Felicity Evans and Toby Venables. It stars Wunmi Mosaku, Sope Dirisu and Matt Smith. The film tells the story of a refugee couple from South Sudan, struggling to adjust to their new life in an English town that has an evil lurking beneath the surface. (wiki)

imdb   /   rottentomatoes

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“The main source of information on witchcraft of the Dinka people comes from British anthropologist Godfrey Lienhardt, who devoted his studies to the Dinka religion. His article written in 1951 for the International African Institute, “Some Notions of Witchcraft Among the Dinka”, sheds light on the apeth and helps to enrich the folkloric vocabulary of His House. According to Lienhardt, night witches work their supernatural misfortunes in the darkness, an element incorporated in the film when Bol turns on the lights to make the ghosts go away. They can also make their presence known through footprints and place curses on their victims through the staring “evil eye,” a concept that says as much about Bol and Rial’s suspiciously xenophobic neighbors as it does their haunting.

Night witches are the most malicious wielders of magic since their main intentions are always to harm others without receiving anything as a trade-off. Thieves like the one in Rial’s story may be creating hardship for those they steal from, but their deeds are motivated by the goal of gaining benefits for themselves. The apeth, on the other hand, lives only to “eat,” a distinction made to describe the fact that the witch consumes the good fortune of its victims, leaving nothing but misery in its wake. Lienhardt talks about this idea in the context of the community or family unit, a thematic connection to His House.” (read more: His House: Dinka Mythology Explained by andrew housman / His House: The Ending, Monster & Final Scene Explained by hannah shaw-williams)