Press Release, 3.05.2024

Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

The Moscow office of Yabloko hosted the final screening of the film “The Eternal Road” (2017) by the Finnish director Antti-Jussi Annila, the screening was held within the framework of the Another Look film festival. Participants watched the feature film based on the real fate of Finns who emigrated to the USSR from America and were expelled from Finland after the victory of the “whites” in the civil war of 1918. The discussion of the film was attended by the Ambassador of Finland to Russia Antti Helanterä, the Chairman of Yabloko Nikolai Rybakov, experts in the field of history and cinematography from Finland, as well as members and supporters of the Yabloko party.

Photo: Ambassador of Finland to Russia Antti Helanterä / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

“The Eternal Road” is the story of Finnish worker Jussi Ketola, who found himself in the USSR in the 1930s. Unable to return to his native country, Jussi began a new life under the Stalinist regime: suppression of dissent, pressure from the NKVD (later renamed into the KGB), and the constant threat of being killed. But even in such circumstances, the protagonist kept his character. Meeting sadness and joy, friendship and betrayal along his life road, he found new love that filled his life with meaning. The film tells about very tragic events for both countries and about human tragedies.

Photo: Yabloko Chairman Nikolai Rybakov / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

“The Eternal Road” is the winner of the Jussi Finnish national film award in the category “The Best Film” in 2017.

Photo: The discussion / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

After the screening of the film, a discussion of the film took place. The experts created a historical context for the conversation, and the discussion participants shared the experiences of their countries in overcoming the trauma of the Stalinist past.