Synopsis

The film follows my personal journey in search of two Moldovan women animators who pioneered the field in Moldova during the Soviet times. Inspired by Natalia Bodiul’s use of drawn-on film animation and Victoria Barbă’s animation studio for children “Floricica”, I seek to understand their creative worlds and the traces they left behind. By learning from their techniques, the film becomes a continuation of their artistic language and a way of weaving their gestures into my own practice. More than a tribute, my documentary reflects on women’s labor and the way animation offered space for self-expression and creativity during repressive times.

Biography

Mihaela Stefania (b. 2002) is a young filmmaker from Chisinau, Moldova, currently pursuing a Master in Documentary and Experimental Film at HSLU Lucerne. In 2024 she completed her bachelor studies in Art History – Arts, Media and Society at Leiden University. Her work merges research with poetic sensibility, and she is interested in engaging with archival materials in an affective way, exploring personal and collective memories through experimental forms of filmmaking.