26/04/2021 - Angel Angelov's documentary, in which he and another researcher sneak into the Cosmodrome Baikonur to watch the launch of the Soyuz rocket, premieres at Riga Artdocfest

The first feature-length documentary by Ukrainian author, director of photography (DoP) and director Angel Angelov, Breaking into Baikonur [+see also:
trailer
film profile], will have its international premiere at the upcoming, online edition of the Riga Artdocfest, which runs 28 April - 3 May. Cineuropa exclusively brings you the film's trailer.

The director and his protagonist, researcher Dmytro Gromov, embark on a dangerous expedition: they have to cross about 50 km of inhospitable desert in order to illegally enter the Russian territory within Kazakhstan to reach Cosmodrome Baikonur's protected hangars and observe the launch of the rocket. The men risk being taken to jail if found by the Russian military. Under such unfavourable circumstances, the protagonist discovers personality traits of his own which he was not aware of before: in vulnerability and fear, he is now inclined to quit his endeavor altogether.

The adrenaline of discovery finally overtakes the fear of getting caught. An investigation of the classified object turns into an exploration of the self. Through exploring the concealed space shuttles Buran and Burya, the rocket carrier Energiya-M, and by watching the launch of the Soyuz rocket from the Gagarin’s Start pad, the protagonist contests his own abilities and learns to find his own strengths.

Angelov and Gromov are credited as screenwriters, and the director-DoP also edited the film. It was produced by Mykita Strizhevsky for Insiders project, and Vitaly Sheremetyev and Olga Beskhmelnitsyna for Digital Religion (DGTL RLGN).