(WASHINGTON -- October 27, 2016) “She Was Called Tatiana,” a short documentary film produced by RFE/RL’s Russian Service, has been shortlisted for the 2016 Association for International Broadcasting (AIB) Awards in the Specialist Programme category.
The film profiles Russian singer and actress Miriam Sekhon, who was born in the final years of the Soviet Union and who now fronts the band Tatiana, which performs songs by Russian singers from the 1930s. She recalls her Soviet childhood with warmth and nostalgia, but says she doesn’t romanticize the Soviet Union, even if she’s drawn to the music of its early years. She explains her decision to stay in Russia despite its social and economic problems, saying “Putin is not responsible for the mess in your back yard…Who cares whose fault it is? The important thing is that you have a chance to make the world a better place.”
“She Was Called Tatiana” is one instalment in a weekly documentary series called “Signs of Life,” which focuses on the lives of ordinary people and how they are affected by the prevailing politics and cultural norms in Russia.
“To emigrate or not to emigrate is one of the most discussed questions today among Russian young intelligentsia,” said “Signs of Life” Executive Producer Valentin Baryshnikov. “Miriam Sekhon has created a positive environment around herself and has decided to stay in Russia despite disagreeing with what’s happening under Putin’s Russia.”
The winners will be announced at a gala in London on November 2.