THursday, March 20 / 8:30 pm / Ottawa Art Gallery

Program: Short Film (TBA), Toxic

Feature presentation \

In an unnamed industrial town, there’s not much for the local teens to do but get up to no good. Marija, forced to live with her grandmother, is made fun of by the other girls for her limp, but when she catches Kristina wearing her stolen custom jeans, she takes matters into her own hands. Respecting each other’s scrappiness, the girls become friends and Kristina brings Marija into her world. Like many local girls, Kristina dreams of being a model and leaving Lithuania. Marija joins her in the local modelling school, where she is favoured for her height and thin body despite her limp. With no structure at home, the girls make their own rules out in the town where they engage with older boys, drugs, alcohol, and mild criminal activity. While Marija remains detached, along for the ride, Kristina is more determined, going as far as to swallow a tapeworm egg to help her lose weight–not that she’s eating anything anyway. Toxic feels at times like a hazy trip, where anything could be real and what’s real could be a dream or a nightmare. A haunting debut from Saule Bliuvaite, Toxic explores the horror of being a teenage girl who dreams of more.

- Tish Black

Short film \

To be announced

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2024 / - minutes / -
Director: -
Language: -

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