200 Steps Underground

Synopsis

Escape from the ghetto. Miracle of rescue in Novogrudok. 

To dig a tunnel 250 meters long, using the most primitive tools, to provide it with ventilation and lighting… under the noses of vigilant guards.  How was this possible?  

The film is based on documentary testimonies of those who took part in the events.  Those who escaped certain death. Part of the filming took place directly on the site of the Novogrudok ghettos.  The buildings of the ‘labor camp’ set up by the occupiers have been preserved. Now there is the Museum of Jewish Resistance.   

Professional actors, reconstructors, residents of Novogrudok took part in the shooting. Step by step the film crew traveled the path of the ghetto prisoners. From the idea of building a tunnel to its realization. 80 years ago in September 1943 all the prisoners of the ghetto. In order to dig a 70 x 70 cm long, 250 m long manhole in the ground, more than 120 cubic meters of sand had to be extracted and scattered discreetly on the ghetto territory! And this was not the only difficulty the prisoners faced. Several times they were on the verge of death. How they managed to overcome it all. Perhaps the clue lies in the fact that they were Novogrudok’s best laborers of different professions. Out of 6000 Jews of the town, they were selected to sew uniforms for the Wehrmacht, sharpen boots and make woodwork in a special labor ghetto. But even such valuable for the German army craftsmen in the end-end waited unchangeable death.  

About the Director

ANDREY KUDINENKO graduated from the Belarusian Academy of Arts in 1998, then completed postgraduate studies. During his studies he received a scholarship of the special fund of the President of the Republic of Belarus to support talented young people with creative achievements. Andrei Kudinenko is one of the last students of Viktor Turov, the legend of Belarus film. After graduating from the Academy, he shot short films and advertisements. In 2002 Kudinenko shot his feature debut ‘The Battle of the Five Hosts’. The film ‘Occupation. Mysteries’ (2004) received the Jury Prize at the Rotterdam Festival. in 2010 the first Belarusian mystical horror film “Masakra” was presented, filmed at Belarus film. At the end of 2013 the shooting of the psychedelic thriller ‘Hard Reboot’ was finished 

Since 2014 curator of the multimedia project ‘CHRONOTOP’ – laboratory of film anthropology (Film Festival ‘Kinoshock’ 2015 – Grand Prix in the programme ‘Omnibus’ – the best film album of the CIS countries for 2015, second prize ‘Sensacyjna lato filmow’ (Poland). 

Artistic Statement

The film “200 Steps Underground” was created in the style of a documentary drama.  

It is always difficult for a director who is working on a historical theme to make a choice in which style of artistic images to realize a real story… 

If we make it as a feature film, we must avoid and sometimes move away from accurate information from accurate documents in favor of an artistic image. 

If we make a purely documentary film, it will be it is always very difficult to lack artistic images and artistic solutions and to find the golden mean, therefore.  The style of documentary drama was chosen for this story, where is the drama it is built on the basis of real historical events facts of real characters and with the reconstruction of individual scenes that are in principle possible to reconstruct convincingly so that it is true. 

 The main task is to convey the truth of the story. 

The story that we told in this film “200 steps underground” it shocks with its incredible intrigue and ultimately gives people who are in a hopeless situation hope for a happy ending. 

-Andrey Kudinenko, Director