The family portrait
Two sisters Nastya and Natasha live separately from their mother. The relationship between the sisters is tense. In one next tense evening, Nastya receives a message that becomes the last drop of tension, after which the internal protective reactions of the psyche to what is happening cannot be stopped.
Director Statement
«The family portrait» is a psychological drama that tells a story of a family. The colors used are metaphors for traits which can be developed under pressure from our relatives or people who has influence on us. Sometimes those colors can be so mismatched and rough that you start to wonder how to avoid the heavy hand of their “artist”.

This movie observes a psychological attempt to escape from reality, when a person can no longer confront it. It shows a significant impact that psychological abuse might have on a persons everyday life, despite them being physically free.

The main goal of this film is to amplify the importance of conversations about verbal violence and psychological abuse, which, unlike physical violence, are often overlooked or underrated. Metaphors and surreal visual language in «The family portrait» illustrate mental state in contact with psychological violence.
Festivals Awards

Winner

«4th Dimension Independent Film Festival» (Bali, Indonesia),

«Swedish International Film Festival» (Sweden),

«Port Blair International Film Festival» (Port Blair, India);


Finalist
«Oregon Short Film Festival» (Portland, USA),
«RED MOVIE AWARDS» (Reims, France),

«WorldFest-Houston International Film Festival» (Houston, USA);


Semi-Finalist

«FilmHaus» (Berlin, Germany),

«Istanbul Movie Awards» (Istanbul, Turkey),

«Student Los Angeles Film Awards» (California, USA),

«Florence Indie Film Festival» (Venice, Italy),

«Austin International Art Festival» (Texas, USA),

«International Cosmopolitan Film Festival of Tokyo»,

«Atlanta Movie Awards»,

«Nashville Independent Filmmakers Festival»,

«New Jersey International Short Festival»,

«Cinesis Independent FilmFest»,

«Dallas Shorts»;


Quarter-Finalist

«Edinburgh Film Awards» (Edinburgh, UK);


Nominee

«Denver Movie Awards» (Denver, US),

«#23MAGMAIFF Showcase Sessions» (Madrid, Spain),

«Santa Barbara International Movie Awards» (California, USA),

«Lonely Wolf #23LWIFF» (London, UK),

«Beyond the Curve International Film Festival» (Paris, France),

«Indobali international film festival» (Bali, Indonesia),

«PlanetCinema»;


Special mention

«Student World Impact Film Festival» (USA),

«Brighton Rocks International Film Festival» (Brighton, UK),

«Hastings Rocks International Film Festival» (UK),

«Short Shot Fest» (Moscow, Russia);


Official Selection

«Purple Sky International Film Festival» (Hamburg, Germany),

«The Hollywood First-Time Filmmaker Showcase» (Hollywood, USA),

«Mumbai 11th Indian Cine Film Festival-23» (Mumbai, India),

«Paris Awards Film Festival» (Paris, France),

«The Jane Austen International Film Festival» (Bath, UK),

«Paris Lift-Off Film Festival» (Paris, France),

«12th Kolkata Shorts International Film Festival-23» (Delhi, India),

«The Indie Gathering International Film Festival» (Ohio, USA),

«One Shot Film Festival» (Yerevan, Armenia),

«NewFilmmakers NY» (New York, USA),

«13th Dada Saheb Phalke Film Festival-23» (India),

«7th Indian World Film Festival-23» (Hyderabad, India),

«Monthly Indie Shorts» (India),

«First-Time Filmmaker Online Sessions» (UK),

«Sessions By Lift-Off Global Network» (UK).

News

Interview with Julia Shlenskaya, director of ‘The family portrait’ at Swedish International Film Festival

«The family portrait» was made in 2021.
Made on
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