Soyka Review

Soyka is a 2020 short film written and directed by Anastasiya Sergienya.

Trying to find your home in a world far removed from the one you know is already a hard enough task on its own, add to that trying to also find a path as an artist in a city like New York and this journey becomes exponentially more herculean. This is the tale of Soyka, a beautifully brutalist recounting of life for a young woman named Anna from Belarus.

New York is a city so full of dreams but also one full of underground entrapments, there are whole films that struggle to show the same depth of one place that this film achieves in just 15 minutes. We are shown how some make it while others are pushed to the brink.

Anna is a character who is headstrong but at the total edge facing a possible eviction from her small apartment in New York. Taking on the hardships of this burden and not able to sell her artwork her hand is forced in various ways that are explored in this film.

There must be a special point of praise reserved for lead actress Lyanka Gryu who gives so much depth to Anna as a character. There feels like there is so much more to what she has been through. What first appears to be some naïve girl from Belarus is quickly shown to be much more adept than what appears at first. This is a testament of course to the smart writing implemented by Sergienya as well.

The other aspect of the film that was amazing was the cinematography by Valentina Caniglia who infuses naturalism against some truly beautiful neon-soaked scenes that brought to mind moments from the film Drive. The sound design by Anthony Misiano also deserves a special mention as throughout everything was balanced perfectly, creating a realistic and lived in atmosphere.

This is a lovingly made film, handled with much care from Sergienya and team. It deserves to be seen on the original merits of the story alone, but also maintains a visual splendor throughout. It all culminates in a dazzling final shot drifting higher above Anna as if the soul of the artist is rising above all the dark moments she has had to face in her journey. It is a poetic and beautiful piece that deserves to be recognized.

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Cheers!

Daniel Hess

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