SLOW

Elena dances, contemporary style, and teaches classes; Dovydas is a sign-language interpreter. They meet when he interprets one of her dance classes for deaf children, and the attraction is immediate. They spend time together, grow closer – then Dovydas tells her he is asexual. Elena, who has never had to hide her desire, at first hears only a rejection. What follows is the attempt of two people to build a relationship for which there is no model: how close can you be, when desire does not mean the same thing to both? “Slow” by Marija Kavtaradze, a Lithuanian film from 2023, asks what desire actually is – and lets the answer come out differently with every act.

The Lithuanian director Marija Kavtaradze shot on 16mm, with handheld camera and close-ups that take touch seriously as a language; Greta Grinevičiūtė and Kęstutis Cicėnas play the couple. Co-produced with Spain and Sweden. It premiered in Sundance in January 2023 in the World Cinema Dramatic Competition, where Kavtaradze won the directing award; Lithuania submitted the film for the Oscars. It was shown at Around the World in 14 Films in Berlin in 2023.

Shown at the 2023 edition of Around the World in 14 Films.

All films 2023 · Film Archive