From the Film Maker

The simplicity of this rare and provokingly direct depiction of a dead body forces the viewer into a peculiar state of curious yet guilty observation. The contemplative and matter-of-fact nature of the image of the corpse stuck in my head and over time mingled with my constant preoccupation with the borders between reality and imagination. All the whys and hows started shaping slowly around that simple and still observation of someone lying dead. Connecting this vision to the sensitive imagination of a child was a natural step further. In a child’s mind, where every feeling and thought is magnified and often exaggerated, the borders separating the real and the dream/play world are even less perceptible. To a small child the idea of death is often so vague and distant that he could step across those borders and end up as the centre of a dark revengeful fantasy, where he himself is the protagonist.

Slava Doytcheva

A piece inspired by A Dead Soldier, 17th century