Baikonur

The director, Veit Helmer, gradually transitions from his artistically original feature debut, Tuvalu (1999), to whimsical, playful, imaginative fairy-tales. Following Absurdistan (2008), he has created Baikonur which is labeled as a romance, comedy and even an adventure story. It tells a story of a French girl who fulfills her dream to see the universe as a tourist on a Russian spaceship, and of a Kazakh villager nicknamed Gagarin who makes a living by selling the parts of fallen spaceships. Their meeting intertwines a slew of cultural misunderstandings while integrating emotional affections. (Febiofest)