Film by Belarusian Directors Mikita Lauretski and Siarhei Kalasouski Receives World Premiere at Doclisboa Festival
Reform.news Editorial Team · 19 October 2026, 15:12
https://reform.news/en/film-by-belarusian-directors-mikita-lauretski-and-siarhei-kalasouski-receives-world-premiere-at-doclisboa-festival/The film “Smarty” by Belarusian directors Mikita Lauretski (Nikita Lavretski) and Siarhei Kalasouski (Sergey Kolosovski) is competing in the international competition programme of Doclisboa, a prestigious Portuguese documentary film festival.
The film’s world premiere screenings as part of the competition are taking place at Cinema São Jorge in Lisbon. The premiere took place yesterday, October 18, and the second screening is scheduled for today, October 19.
What Is the Film About?
The 88-minute film, whose official country of production is Lithuania, has attracted the attention of festival organisers and critics with its unconventional approach to the mockumentary and autofiction genres.
According to the synopsis, the story centres on Mikita Lauretski, a Belarusian director living in exile (played on screen by Siarhei Kalasouski himself), who struggles with European borders and bureaucracy in an effort to reunite with his wife.
Remembering the home he was forced to leave, the protagonist wonders whether he has become trapped forever in an endless reliving of his past.
The filmmakers have playfully devised a new approach to the autobiographical format: Warsaw “plays” Vilnius in the film, while the present day is depicted through archival footage and visual materials shot before 2020. The festival organisers describe the film as “a Proustian experience of time regained”.
The Lauretski–Kalasouski Duo
Mikita Lauretskiand Siarhei Kalasouski are well-known figures in Belarus’s independent film community. They have crossed paths at workshops, festivals and film screenings since the first half of the 2010s, beginning with Bulbamovie, and regularly support each other’s initiatives.
For “Smarty”, they joined forces as co-authors and co-directors, proposing a playful metatheatrical concept: Lauretski establishes the context through the screenplay and editing, while Kalasoŭski portrays him on screen.
Yahor Yafimau served as cinematographer.
Mikita Lauretski is a Belarusian director and film critic and one of the most prolific filmmakers in independent cinema. His films include “Belarusian Psychopath”, “Mikita Lauretski”, “Children’s Film” and “Sasha’s Hell”, among others. In 2022, his film “A Date in Minsk” won the Grand Prix at Doclisboa, while in 2024 his 10-hour project “Ulysses” was presented at the Ji.hlava festival in the Czech Republic.
Siarhei Kalasouski is a Belarusian director and screenwriter and a graduate of the Warsaw Film School. His works include the fiction short film “Pugach” (2015), about the turbulent 1990s, and the documentary “The Best Director in the World”. His work explores intimate, reflective narratives and an ironic authorial tone. His credits also include work for Belsat.
Background
Doclisboa, the International Documentary Film Festival in Lisbon, is one of Europe’s most respected and influential film festivals. Founded in 2002, it is part of Doc Alliance, a network of seven leading European documentary film festivals.
Doclisboa focuses on new cinematic languages, seeking films that experiment with form, explore the boundaries between reality and fiction, and examine cinema as an artistic and sociopolitical act. This year’s festival runs from October 15 to 25.