The poster for Friday’s screening of Mother Vera at City Screen Picturehouse
IN a hidden Orthodox monastery in Belarus, Mother Vera weaves the inner world of an unorthodox young nun with the community that saved her life. After 20 years as a monastic, Vera faces deep inner conflict. Now, she must confront her past and trust her instincts to find the liberation she desires.
Friday’s screening of Cécile Embleton and Alys Tomlinson’s 91-minute film, winner of the Grierson Documentary Award for Best Documentary at its UK debut at the 68th BFI London Film Festival in 2024, will be accompanied by a question-and-answer session with Tomlinson, conducted by Aesthetica writer and curator Rachel Pronger.
“Shot in breathtaking black and white, Mother Vera is a visually arresting and deeply meditative portrait of a woman confronting the shadows of her past,” says Alys. “The film originally came out of a photograph, so it’s an interesting story that tackles themes around community, spirituality and addiction.”
Mother Vera was released by SheMakes Productions to British and Irish cinemas on August 29. “We are a totally independently made and distributed film, so are reliant on word of mouth to attract audiences,” says Alys.
Introducing her film, she says: “Vera has spent 20 years in a convent on the outskirts of Minsk, living among men undergoing addiction rehabilitation. When a conversation with her mother stirs long-buried memories, Vera is compelled to revisit her own past and the tragic events that led her to this secluded life. What unfolds is a quiet, powerful story of resilience, healing and spiritual transformation.”
The film poster for Mother Vera
Combining haunting cinematography with contemplative pace, Mother Vera invites audiences into a world rarely seen on screen — one of silence, struggle, and redemption. View the trailer at https://vimeo.com/797081818?fl=pl&fe=sh.
Tickets can be booked at picturehouses.com/cinema/city-screen-picturehouse.
Mother Vera synopsis
AFTER two decades in a Belarusian Orthodox monastery, Vera reflects on her unexpected path to nunhood, rooted in a history of addiction. Facing her lingering guilt, she finds herself at a crossroads between her monastic sanctuary and an uncertain future.
With a poignant gaze, Vera’s quiet journey of self-examination offers an intimate glimpse into the complexities of faith, recovery and personal transformation within cloistered walls.
A scene from Cécile Embleton and Alys Tomlinson’s documentary feature Mother Vera
The directors
Cécile Embleton
British-French documentary director. Her directorial debut The Watchmaker’ screened at Hot Docs, Dok Leipzig and SXSW (South By South West).
Mother Vera is her first feature documentary. The project is supported by the Sundance Institute and won second prize at the Hotdocs Forum 2021 and first prize at Locarno First Look 2023.
Alys Tomlinson
British photographer, working with black-and-white analogue film. Work featured in more than 20 international exhibitions. Named Sony World Photographer of the Year in 2018. Long-term project Ex-Voto was published by GOST Books in 2019. Mother Vera is her directorial debut.
SheMakes Productions: back story
SheMakes was founded by producer Laura Shacham in 2018. Focusing on artist moving image and documentary film (and the intersection of the two), the company works primarily on projects led and imagined by women: short and long form documentary film for theatrical release, broadcast, online and artist film for international art institutions.
Work includes Mother Vera (supported by Sundance, HotDocs, Locarno, winner of BFI LFF Grierson Award for Best Documentary 2024) and I Will Keep My Soul (commissioned by The Rivers Institute for Contemporary Art + Thought, New Orleans) by Turner Prize-winning artist Helen Cammock.