08/08/2024
The universal theme of family was the subject of A Bit of A Stranger, screened Tuesday night at Lunar Cinema. This is the story of Svitlana Lishchynska’s life, an exploration of her relationships with her mother, her daughter and granddaughter, and how these relationships both shaped and defined her life.
The film was at turns poignant and painful, as any deep exploration into the nature and effects of the mother – daughter relationship will be naturally. The family began in Mariupol, Ukraine, which is now ground zero in the Russian/Ukraine war.
The war caused Svitlana’s daughter Sasha and granddaughter Stefi to move to England for refuge. This move starts a new chapter, and new emotional journey for the family.
Svitlana explores her relationship with her own mother, and contemplates on how she herself has performed as a mother to Sasha. Svitlana has been a busy career minded woman in her life, she left her daughter with her grandmother and now must face questions from her.
To ask any older child “How did I do as a mother?” is a powerful and dangerous question, and we may not always like what we hear in response. So it is with any deep question, which this film expounds for us in the many conversations between these 3 women.
Sasha is the most pro-Russian of the three women, maybe because she has felt distant and far from Svitlana, and missed so much of that quality time with her mother when she was a child. This possibly is where the title comes from, she feels like a bit of a stranger with her own mother.
Svitlana’s mother was forced to leave the family home in Mariupol, soon after the war starts, and let it all burn down. This caused one audience member to call her ‘a true gangster, a badass’ for her mental and emotional toughness to walk away from her home and leave it all behind, at least physically.
Making the film helped repair the mother/daughter bond, said Svitlana. “I’m glad I made this film, and I’m very grateful to this film because it changed the relationships in my family. My daughter said the film helped her to understand me, and she is not so offended now with me.”
This was a touching and powerful statement, just like her film.
During the audience Q&A she was asked about the Russian invasion. She said “Surprisingly, there are a lot of Ukrainians in Mariupol who are pro Russia. I have never understood this, maybe somebody can explain it to me someday.”
She was also asked about her daughter’s move to London, and how if she viewed England as an imperial power just like Russia. She said “No, I don’t have any negative feelings about England, or the Crown. England accepted and protects my daughter and granddaughter, so I feel very grateful for England actually.”
The themes and subject of this movie are very deep, very thought provoking. The setting at Lunar Cinema was ideal, and DokuFest extends a grateful thank you to Svitlana for sharing her life story with us and being present to talk with our audiences.
By: Scott Hoy
Photo: Suer Celina
