Andrey Ershov

On December 15, 2024, the collision and sinking of two fuel oil tankers in the Kerch Strait caused one of the most devastating environmental disasters in the history of the Black Sea. Six months later, the tankers lying on the seabed are still leaking fuel oil, and of the thousands of volunteers who initially took part in the cleanup, only a few dozen remain along a 30-kilometer stretch of beach. The film was shot on the Taman Peninsula in early summer 2025, against the backdrop of a formally lifted, yet in reality already underway, beach season. In the face of scarce resources, the departure of their own leaders, and the daily release of fuel oil, the volunteers talk about themselves, rescue animals, combat the ignorance of those around them, and try to find the motivation to continue their fight against a disaster that at times seems endless.

On March 1, Alexei Navalny's funeral took place in Moscow, with thousands gathering to bid farewell to the politician. The day before, Moscow police erected metal fence corridors in the Maryino district and deployed hundreds of security forces and paddy wagons. The funeral service, held at the Church of the 'Assuage My Sorrows' icon, lasted less than 20 minutes. Only family members were permitted to approach the coffin. After the body was lowered into the ground, police allowed the public to say their final goodbyes to the opposition leader. Lines leading to the church and Borisovskoye Cemetery stretched for several hundred meters, and participants in the farewell procession walked through Maryino, chanting slogans such as 'Freedom for political prisoners,' 'No to war,' and 'Navalny is a hero of Russia.' Mediazona accompanied the crowd along the entire route.