Independent Distribution have announced the UK release of PUSSY RIOT: A PUNK PRAYER, in cinemas on 5th July. Directed and produced by Oscar-nominated producer and documentary maker Mike Lerner (Afghan Star, Hell and Back Again) and Director-Producer Maxim Pozdorovkin (Capital), PUSSY RIOT: A PUNK PRAYER features the three band members who were put on trial in Russia, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich for performing a satirical rock song in Russia’s most hallowed Moscow cathedral (watch below). It was a story that brought to the attention the oppressive Russian regime that sought to silence free speech and the power of the message of Pussy Riot’s music.
Filmed over the course of six months, this film tells the incredible story of three young women: Nadia, Masha and Katia; members of the feminist art collective Pussy Riot who performed a 40 second “punk prayer” inside Russia’s main cathedral. This performance led to their arrest on charges of religious hatred and culminated in a trial that has reverberated around the world and transformed the face of Russian society forever.
With unparalleled access and exclusive footage, Lerner and Pozdorovkin’s Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer looks at the real people behind their now famous colourful balaclavas.
Following the bizarre and intricate twists of the trial, we observe three young women fight back against a justice system that seems impervious to logic. From their family and friends we learn what transformed these women from political activists into modern day icons. As Nadia, Masha, and Katia defend their convictions from a cage inside the courtroom, those Pussy Riot members still at liberty plan new guerilla performances and cultivate a protest movement across the globe.
Moving from farce to tragedy and back again, the film explores how political and religious forces contrived to make an example out of three young artists who dared to challenge the accepted norms of society. With Nadia, Masha, and Katia, Russia’s ruling powers got more than they bargained for. Are you a ready for a Pussy Riot?
PUSSY RIOT: A PUNK PRAYER is featuring as the opening night film at Sheffield Doc Fest, is also featuring at the East End Film Festival in London and Open City Doc Fest and received its world première at the Sundance Film Festival.
http://www.pussyriotthedocumentary.com/
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