This essay film is built of VHS material shot by my parents that was digitized on my most recent trip home to Kyiv before the war. Since then, due to martial law, I am not able to travel home freely. My parents, on the other hand, did not have the opportunity to travel outside of the Soviet Union until their 20s. Following the collapse of the USSR, they took advantage of newly opened borders to explore the wider world. Hindsight takes the viewer on a journey from Ukraine’s post communist heartland, through Vietnam, Cambodia, India, and westward to the post revolutionary Republic of Cuba.

 

In the process, Hindsight explores rugged hill tribes, stateless floating villages and even the monastic traditions of Thailand through the lens of Ukrainian emigrants.

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Hindsight delves into the elusive nature of roots and cultural values – what they meant then and what they mean now. Set against the backdrop of Kyiv, my birthplace, the film prompts contemplation on identity, belonging, and the intangible threads that bind humanity across generations and geographical boundaries.