The jury of the DOK Leipzig film festival recognized the documentary film "Vocabulary" about a Russian rural teacher as the best in Germany. The film tells the story of an educator who condemned the invasion of Ukraine.
The film about Russia received the main prize - the "Golden Dove" - in the category of "Best German Documentary Film." The monetary amount of the award is 10,000 euros.
The director of the film is Yulia Lokshina from Hamburg. She moved to Germany from Russia in 1999.
The Film was Noted for "Great Precision and Mastery"
The heroine of her film is Maria Kalinicheva, who worked as a teacher in the village of Arbagar in the Zabaikalsky Krai. The district school has very few students, so there are 3-4 students in each class. One of the children recorded an anti-war speech by the teacher, which she delivered after the start of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This was followed by a denunciation, a visit from FSB officers, and the subsequent departure of the woman to Germany.
"With great precision and mastery, Yulia Lokshina translates the experience of the struggle for truth into a powerful cinematic language, creating a space that calls on us to resolutely confront the fear of surveillance," noted the jury of DOK Leipzig during the award presentation.
A total of 252 documentary films from 55 countries participated in DOK Leipzig 2025.
