Petrol (2022) Movie Script
(WIND WHISTLES, WAVES ROLL)
(FAINT HUMMING)
(HUMMED TUNE GROWS LOUDER)
- WOMAN: I'm glad we came up here.
- (LAUGHTER)
WOMAN 2: All flesh is grass.
We are what we abhor.
Devourers not only of
men but of ourselves.
In brief, we have devoured ourselves.
(LAUGHS)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
- Yeah? OK.
- MAN: I think it looked great.
(BIRDS SQUAWK)
Thank you so much.
- MAN: Such a good day.
- (INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER CONTINUES)
(CLATTERING)
- (DOOR OPENS)
- MAN: Hey.
- Sorry, you were...
- Hey.
- ..in the zone, hey?
- Yeah, kinda.
Working on the portrait thing?
Mmm. Yeah, I...
I filmed this old lady
that I work for.
Cool. Hey, have you seen that film,
Catch Me If You Can?
Yeah. Yeah, why?
Um...
Well, I was watching it
last night and I liked it,
but I didn't think
it was a GOOD film.
So I was just curious
as to what you thought.
Um...
I wasn't a big fan of the film.
But it's so weird, 'cause Leonardo di Caprio
was in my dream last night.
True? Well, it's your lucky night,
because...it's Titanic Trivia.
And we're all going to
go down and grab a drink,
if you want to join?
- I want to work on the thing.
- So fair.
- OK, well, good luck.
- OK.
- (DOOR CLOSES)
- You too.
I never said that!
(YOUNGER WOMAN) But I felt it.
- You didn't like it.
- You imagined that.
(OLDER WOMAN)
I didn't quite understand this project.
I'm not a film professional.
Eva, how can you get so upset?
Shouldn't they be guiding you somehow?
Yes, but...
You can't really teach
making films.
It's life.
It's... It's life. You...
You just have to live,
to feel things,
to understand things
in order to express anything.
What if I'm just a mediocrity
with nothing to say?
Please, don't dramatise.
You're learning...
The main thing
is to keep working, trying...
Yes, yes.
Simply being able to do what you love...
It's wonderful. It's so cool.
Enjoy the process.
Otherwise, why do it at all?
Maybe you should socialise a little
bit more with your classmates.
I like this house.
Would you like to live there?
Hmm...
Do you know that in France
you can buy a castle for peanuts?
Probably because no one wants
to live in a castle.
"All flesh is grass.
"We are what we abhor.
"Devourers not only of men
but of ourselves.
"In brief,
we have devoured ourselves.
"Those apparitions and ghosts
of departed persons
"are not the wandering souls of men,
"but the unquiet walks of devils.
"The blessed spirits
are not at rest in their graves,
"but wander, solicitous
of the affairs of the world."
Solicitous?
Solicitous.
Solicitous.
(INDISTINCT LAUGHTER AND CHATTER)
(LOUD TRAFFIC NOISE)
MAN: Huh?
I'm going around in circles.
Left at the bad sculpture?
Oh, I can see Mia.
Hey, babe.
Hi. (INDISTINCT)
- WOMAN: How are you?
- MAN: Good. How are you?
- WOMAN: You remember Mary?
- MAN: Yeah, Mary.
- WOMAN: She had that cat...
- MAN: Yeah. (LAUGHS)
(INDISTINCT)
- (RHYTHMIC MUSIC PLAYS)
- (INDISTINCT CHATTER)
WOMAN: So I've been trying,
like, baths, right?
You get, like, two litres of milk
and orange blossom water
and you just, like, soak in it.
And you just kind of like come out
soft as a baby and it's...
Oh, God, hey.
It's, like, really good for anxiety.
Hey, I'm so sorry.
I hope you don't mind.
You dropped this in the street.
Oh, my God.
That's lucky. Thank you.
Have we met before?
You look kind of familiar.
No, don't think so.
Do you want a drink?
MAN: $500 to simply piss on someone?
It's not THAT bad,
but it's also, like, not...
- You have to draw the line, right?
- Well, this is what I'm saying.
The stock market
is so much more profitable.
- I'm Mia.
- Mia?
- Yeah.
- I'm Eva.
Eva.
I like your shirt.
It's really beautiful.
Thank you. I'm glad you say that.
You don't think
I look like a turkey?
(LAUGHS) A turkey? No.
Maybe it's a little bit Oscar Wilde.
Oh, yeah. I like that.
I was having a shitty day,
so I dressed up.
- Oh, I'm sorry.
- No.
I mean, it is a full moon.
It's probably just my life.
I always blame a bad day
on the weather.
Yeah, blame it on the weather.
Do you want one?
I just have to get
the last train home.
Mm-hm. Yeah.
Where do you live?
Just on the other side of town,
with my parents.
- I can get you a cab, if you want.
- Oh, no, no, no, no.
Thanks. That's OK.
Eva was the name of my sister.
- Oh.
- Mmm. Yeah, she died.
- I'm so sorry.
- Oh, don't worry about it.
I was, like, 10.
She was eight years older than me.
I didn't even really know her.
Yeah, she was
travelling overseas and...
she got into a car accident.
(INSECTS CHIRRUP)
Sorry about the mess.
No, it's perfect.
This place is super cool.
Do you live here alone?
Yeah, for now.
This rich guy is
letting me stay here.
- Did you make these?
- Ah, yeah, mostly.
I'm trying more, like,
performance now.
Oh, these are so beautiful!
Never been in
an artist's home before.
Seems kind of vulgar to say that
about oneself, don't you think?
I guess it's not, like,
a profession, or something.
I just want to live - really live.
I think people forget
how important it is to just, like,
stare at a wall sometimes.
What do you mean "really live"?
(LAUGHS) Yeah. Yeah, how stupid.
I mean, what does that even mean?
Hey, look at the moon.
When I was little,
I prayed to go to the moon.
I, um...
I was more of a sun person, myself.
I was scared of the dark.
I was a scaredy-cat.
Hey, you can really hear the ocean.
(WAVES ROLL)
(HUMMED TUNE)
(BANG!)
What is it?
MIA: It doesn't matter.
There's a spare bed in here.
I'll get you a pillow.
Hey, um, I'm going to go.
I think the trains'll
be running again soon.
Bella Mikhalovna,
shouldn't you rest?
- You're running around again.
- No big deal, it's good for me.
I want you to eat a pirozhok,
eat something.
- Because you can't work and not eat.
- But I'm meant to cook.
They're saying that
you're eligible for cover.
So you'll get compensation.
You just need a certificate
from the doctor.
We can fill out this form next week.
Okay, we better look at your cup.
Okay, so...
I think that...
Someone from the other side
is thinking of you.
Yes, something like that.
And maybe it knows
something about you.
- Hey, are you listening?
- Yes.
The point is...
Information becomes material.
What information?
Our thoughts, memories...
The organisation of nature.
Everything is information.
Take for instance
Quantum Entanglement.
What?
You remember a person,
and they call you that same day...
A "spooky action at a distance".
As Einstein said.
You know that the other day I had
a dream about Leonardo DiCaprio.
- Yeah?
- I've never dreamt about him before.
And that same night,
a guy in my class
watched that dumb film,
Catch Me If You Can.
Yes!
Hooray!
It's still here.
Look...
50% off, already 50%.
- Mmm?
- Mum.
Mum, I won't wear it.
Listen, it's only $40
and it's 100% silk.
I just won't wear it.
What about this one?
Look, I found this.
Is there a sale?
These dogs.
(WIND WHISTLES, WAVES ROLL)
(INAUDIBLE)
(APPLAUSE)
Yeah, my...
My intention was to...
capture this woman's inner world.
Um...
Both the...frailty of her body
at this point in time,
but also, like, the...
..the freedom of her imagination.
So I tried to use sounds
of the ocean for that, but...
- ..I don't know if it worked.
- No, it's good.
Um, I think you've got
a really, you know,
a really good eye for detail.
I would wonder, though, is this
more of...a portrait of yourself,
or of the subject?
Uh...
It's impressions, so it's...
It's about finding
somewhere between...
..between reality and interpretation.
Yeah. I mean, we've been talking
a fair bit in this class
about the ethics
of subjective portrayals
and I think
that's a really interesting thing
with documentary work.
Look, even though this
is a documentary module,
everything that you learn here
is going to be really helpful
for your final year projects.
EVA: Is that guy your boyfriend?
MIA: No.
What about you? Have you got anyone?
- EVA: No. (LAUGHS)
- MIA: Are you in love?
EVA: No.
I've never been with someone
that I was in love with.
Actually,
I fall in love all the time, but...
..it's never with, like,
a real person.
Guess it's kind of childish.
I don't think so.
Not necessarily.
You're a romantic.
Like all the not-boring people.
Maybe.
Are you?
Yeah, I think so.
I think it's the only thing
that truly changes someone,
falling in love with some freak.
We should make something together.
You could act in it.
Yeah, why not?
Hey, you could stay in that
spare room, if you wanted.
At least for a little while.
Really?
Yeah. There's all that space.
If it can help you.
And I could use the company.
- I can pay for it.
- No, don't worry about it.
OK.
Eva! Everything is going to get cold.
Sorry, coming!
Listen, listen.
"What snack shall we have next,
Afanasii Ivanovich?
"'Perhaps crusts with lard?
"'Or poppyseed buns,
"'or at least some pickled mushrooms?
"'I could have buns or mushrooms,'
replied Afanasii Ivanovich.
"And the table was suddenly set
"with buns and mushrooms.
"An hour before lunch
he snacked some more,
"drank a silver cup of vodka,
"followed by various dried fishies
"and the rest."
People lived well then!
And now?
Seriously?
What more do you need?
I'm joking.
- Eva.
- Coming, coming, coming.
I'm almost packed.
What's this?
Have a look.
Even your dad approved.
It's a magical coat.
I can't believe it.
Can you imagine, 50% off!
As they say,
"it was meant to be."
Oh!
What a beauty...
(BOTH LAUGH)
Thanks.
- Hi.
- MIA: Morning.
Totally slept in.
I'm going to be late for class.
Hey...
I was thinking tonight
that I could, um,
I could take you out
for, like, a martini or something.
I've got class.
You are living in the iron grip
of an institution.
You can resist.
Unshackle yourself from
the shackles of the patriarchy.
Whatever.
Well...
Work is slavery.
Progress is death and destruction,
so, um, what's left?
Doing nothing. (LAUGHS)
You look great.
You're very beautiful.
The thing with beauty is...
..being at ease with yourself, right?
When you're nervous, all the muscles
on your face tense up
and you look all wrong.
There's something relaxing
about being filmed, too.
I think it's not being in control.
I like being in control, but...
..maybe it's good
to lose control, too.
Gets you out of your thoughts.
What do you mean?
When I...
..remember things from the past,
I remember
what I thought.
But I wish I could remember...
..the weather...
..details of people's faces,
the way that the air tasted.
Just...
..more of the world,
less of myself.
Then I think
you'd see more of yourself.
It's weird to think
that you don't know yourself.
What am I saying?
(AUDIO REVERSES)
(INAUDIBLE)
(ON VIDEO) It's weird to think that
you don't know yourself.
What am I saying?
The blessed spirits
are not at rest in their graves,
but wander, solicitous
of the affairs of the world.
(GASPS)
Oh...
That is so embarrassing.
I'm sure it's fine.
What do you think of this one?
- Um...
- (LAUGHS)
I like it.
Why? Is it yours?
No. I'm a psychiatrist.
And...well, an appreciator, I guess.
You?
An appreciator.
Psychiatry must be interesting.
(CHUCKLES)
Not as interesting as it may seem.
You'd probably learn more
about the human mind from...
..reading Russian novels.
Did you just guess
that I was Russian?
No, I didn't.
- Were you born there?
- No.
So I don't speak it
as well as I'd like to.
I've been a few times.
- Really?
- Mm-hm.
I even managed to sneak in there
in the '80s, in my student years.
- Whoa!
- (LAUGHS)
What made you want to go there?
Um... Bit of a cliche,
but Dostoyevsky.
I loved him, as a young man.
Now, I probably gravitate
more towards Tolstoy.
Which man do you prefer?
Um...
- Oh, excuse me.
- (WOMAN SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)
(INHALATION)
(SLOW EXHALATION)
(SLOW BREATHING CONTINUES)
(INAUDIBLE)
(BREATHING CONTINUES)
Mia.
Hey.
I... I loved that.
Are you OK?
Mmm.
- Yeah?
- Yeah.
You should be so happy.
Yeah, I overheard these two women
say that, um, it was self-indulgent
or narcissistic or something.
Oh, they don't know
what they're talking about.
It was so good.
Hey.
- Hey, Bell.
- Sorry, I got held up.
I didn't expect to
see my fucking dad here.
Oh, weird. He's here?
Yeah, creeping about somewhere.
Hey, I'm Eva.
Hi. I'm Bell.
Nice to meet you.
- Would you like a drink?
- Um...
- Yes?
- I'm all good, actually.
- Oh, OK.
- I'll be back in a sec. Sorry.
(DISTANT SIREN WAILS)
BELL: Mia.
Have I done something?
MIA: I don't want to see you anymore.
BELL: Why?
You're full of shit.
EVA: Look at the moon.
When I was little,
I prayed to go to the moon.
(HINGES CREAK)
EVA: Mia? (KNOCKS ON DOOR)
I would really like that.
I haven't done it in ages.
- No-one ever rings me.
- (BOTH LAUGH)
- (INDISTINCT)
- Yeah, besides you.
(LAUGHTER)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
WOMAN: Oh, yeah.
So, like, so this, like,
bitter energy
was, like, boiling
in the house, over time.
And it's just like
this sharing thing,
it just becomes way too much.
Like, everyone's just
up in each other's grille.
The confusing thing is, like,
I love community,
but it's actually just really hard,
when it comes down to it.
I think there could be
a way to distribute the work...
Sharing can also be kind of vain,
don't you think?
Like, cooking dinner for someone,
or giving them a gift.
- WOMAN: Yeah.
- It can be a vain act.
I think people get pleasure from
being seen as a generous person.
But that's over-complicating it
a bit. I think people just act...
MIA: I think that people
don't really know themselves.
Yeah, I think it's true.
I think we can be so unpenetrable.
Impenetrable?
MAN: Well, I've decided to refashion
myself as a corporate fuckwit.
I'm going to start buying shares
and fucking do this shit.
- OK.
- Is that what you're going to do?
MAN: I don't know. We're all
sucking corporate dick anyway.
Might as well do it in style.
(LAUGHTER AND INDISTINCT CHATTER)
Thank you so much.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(SPLASH!)
(BREATHES HEAVILY)
Impenetrable.
(DEEPER, SLOWER VOICE) Impenetrable.
(EXHALES)
Are you, like, angry at me?
Sorry. I'm just, like...
..lonely.
(MUSIC PLAYS)
She's...She's, like, full of life.
And it's perfect.
It r... It really shows on screen.
And so the film will be
more like a...
..kind of like a series of moments,
like a series of tableaus
um...
..that create, like, a...
..a mood.
Like, create different emotions.
Like an experimental portrait?
- Yeah.
- Great.
And what's it going to be about?
Um...
I would, you know, just, ah,
remind you that,
you know, this is going to be
your final-year project.
And I think sometimes the best
projects at the end of the year
are ones that, you know,
are really clear about
what they're trying to say.
It is a cliche,
but to break away from conventions,
you do have to have
a really good grasp of them.
(WHISPERS INDISTINCTLY)
(SIGHS)
(WHISPERS INDISTINCTLY)
It really helped Sasha's daughter
with stress and sleep.
I don't know, Mum.
I think I'm fine, really.
I couldn't sleep last night either.
I dreamed that
I was being chased by Putin.
I kept running and hiding
and he was following,
he wanted to seduce me.
He took off his pants
but they were stuffed with newspapers.
(BOTH LAUGH)
And how's Mia?
Um, yeah, I haven't
seen her in a few days.
MOTHER: Mmm.
- Mum, I better go now.
- Okay, bye.
Bye bye.
(DOOR BANGS, HINGES SQUEAK)
"E sleeps all the time.
"She is like a plant.
"She is strong because she is simple.
"I am a blood-sucker
and feed on her admiration.
"Friendship is vanity.
"To move into the realm
of the natural law,
"where I know something
other than myself.
"A plant moves towards the sun."
(KNOCKING)
- Hey.
- Hey, what's up?
- What are you doing here?
- What are you doing here?
- Is Mia home?
- Um, no.
I was just borrowing a book.
- Right.
- Mmm.
- You live here now?
- Yeah.
Just for a little while, at least.
Cool.
Do you want a drink?
Ah, sure.
I haven't seen Mia in a few days.
Do you know where she could be?
No idea.
Maybe working at her studio.
Oh. I didn't know she had a studio.
Yeah, it's one of those studio spaces
above the flower shop
on Nicholson Street.
Do you know who owns this house?
No.
- So are you studying?
- Yeah.
You know, I want to
make a film, actually.
- You study film, right?
- Mmm.
I had this idea for a film.
It would be taking a look at
our twisted relationship
with property in this country.
Like, 'cause a house
is supposed to be a shelter,
but in reality, it's this commodity.
Like, conspicuous consumption,
et cetera, et cetera.
I don't know, maybe I'm too lazy.
I read this George Orwell essay
that said that
the real motivation
for writing...whatever
is to get back at
your childhood bullies.
(CHUCKLES) Well, I was a bully,
so maybe I don't have any ambition.
Sorry?
You know, I'm a white guy.
Who gives a fuck?
Oh, I think it's
more complicated than that.
- You reckon?
- Yep.
Why should the oppressor
be generating more shit?
I don't think you're THE oppressor.
You sure about that?
You like Marvin Gaye?
You know he was killed
by his father, Marvin Gaye Senior?
- Really?
- Yeah.
- That's crazy.
- Yeah, it's cooked.
- What is it?
- Bit of fluff.
Hey, it was nice talking to you.
Oh, yeah, you too.
Um, do you want to
get a coffee sometime?
Yeah. OK, yeah, cool.
- Cool. I'll see you later.
- OK.
MIA: I had a dream about Eva.
She was...sitting in her room.
I was under the bed.
So I...
..started to sing,
to get her attention.
But she didn't turn around.
She used to call me a little bug.
She was the...
..beautiful one.
I know my mum thought that.
She never second-guessed herself.
Focus on my fingers.
Follow my fingers.
I want to grow...
..to be...inside of things...
..and everywhere
at the same time.
Deeper and deeper.
Let your feet grow deep,
like the roots of an old tree.
Your limbs become
the slithering vines
of a thick canopy.
Your voice becomes versatile,
like that of the lyrebird,
the voice of another
echoing in empty space.
(WIND WHISTLES, RUSTLING)
EVA: Hey, wait for me.
Wait up.
Mia! Hey.
When did you get in?
I dozed off, didn't hear you.
What are you doing?
Photosynthesis.
Really?
I'm sorry I've been absent.
What have you been up to?
Just...
- ..working on something.
- What is it?
Isn't it amazing?
The Green Rose.
It was discovered in China
in the 1800s.
Developed from a kind of mutation
where leaves grow instead of petals.
Yeah, it's...it's quite weird.
- I can't really talk about it yet.
- What are you doing now?
Um, I've just got some things to do.
Oh, hey, I had some ideas for the film
that I wanted to talk to you about.
Yeah, maybe later, OK?
(DOOR OPENS, HINGES SQUEAK)
I was just going to the bathroom.
MAN: So do you know what you'll do
for the, uh, final year thing, or...?
EVA: Um...
I'm still sort of figuring it out.
- Yeah.
- Do you know what you're going to do?
Yeah, yep.
I'm going to do, um, a slasher.
A lone abattoir cleaner
seeks revenge.
- Yeah.
- Revenge for what?
You'll have to see the film
to find out. Um...
Sounds good.
Who's shooting yours?
I think I'm going to shoot it myself.
Like a low-key kinda thing? Yeah.
I'm into that.
Going to just chuck this little LED
on. What do you guys reckon?
MAN: A lot of people are going
kinda crazy with budgets.
It's, like, a student film.
Taking all the fun out of it
and, like, I don't know -
Not really...
..not really having a laugh.
And if you're
not really having a laugh and...
Are you OK?
Yeah.
- Yeah, just a bit dizzy.
- True. Here.
Thanks.
Hey...
Do you think that
ghosts are a thing?
Yeah, I believe it.
Did you, like, see one?
It's meant to get really hot
this arvo.
Yeah, these heatwaves freak me out.
Yeah.
Alright, we'll just start with half.
It's not going to be hectic,
I promise.
You know, it'll...
It'll take you out of yourself
a little bit, which is good.
You need this kind of stuff
for, like, material.
Have you known Mia for very long?
Not really.
She's kind of hard to get to know.
Yeah, she's a fucking lunatic.
No, she's not.
I don't really want to
talk about her.
- Sorry.
- It's fine.
- (EVA AND BELL LAUGH)
- (PIGEONS COO)
(BOTH LAUGH)
(MOVIE WITH FOREIGN LANGUAGES
PLAYS)
(WATER RUNS)
When we returned everything changed.
They had built God knows what,
these supermarkets,
these strange houses.
I couldn't recognise anything
and I became sad.
Then I never wanted
to return to St Petersburg.
I don't really care about nostalgia.
Are you in love?
- What?
- Nothing.
I'll post the documents today.
Good, thanks.
Mmm...
Water...
A woman...
She's leaning down...
- What does it mean?
- Rusalka.
She can pull you under water,
lure you in...
And tickle you to death.
Are you joking?
No.
See it for yourself.
MIA: My feet sink into the ground.
And my voice echoes in the void.
Not limbs, but petals and leaves.
(THUNDER RUMBLES)
Here, at the edge of life,
death doesn't touch me.
Here at the edge of life,
death doesn't touch me.
Mia?
Mia.
Can I get you something?
Can I get you a glass of water?
Thanks for doing this.
No, I'm curious.
WOMAN: Horses have the ability to
present mirrors to our inner selves.
They are attuned to human behaviour,
having grown to understand us
through so many centuries
of being in our service.
What we are hoping to achieve
by the end of the session
is a step or two towards acceptance.
Hey, I'm going to film, if that's OK.
That's fine, darling.
Take three deep breaths for me.
(EXHALES)
Sometimes we arrive here in conflict,
fighting with ourselves.
Her actions reflect
what is going on inside you.
She's walking away now,
but don't feel rejected.
She wants to tell you something
about you, as you are right now.
Now try to establish
a connection again for me.
MIA: Hi. Hello.
(HORSE SNORTS SOFTLY)
(NEIGHS)
- OK, Stefanie, OK.
- (NEIGHS)
(WHISPERS) OK, my darling.
Hey, OK.
There is a deep current
of energy here.
Perhaps something from the past.
Perhaps grief -
a spirit that won't lie to rest.
Can we take a break?
Mia, that woman
seemed to know something.
Something's not right.
Not just now. Like, all the time.
You stay up,
and you wait.
Do you wait for her?
You're a spy.
I was worried. I...
- I was worried about you.
- Leave me alone.
(KNOCKING)
I've got borsch.
Let me heat you up a bowl.
(GROANS LENGTHILY)
(BOTH GROWL)
(BOTH LAUGH)
Your dad and I had a chat.
We'll send you
a little bit of money.
To help with your film.
I don't know what to do.
What are you talking about?
Mia doesn't want to do it anymore.
So what?
Find someone else.
I can't.
I don't know what to do.
You have to do something.
Okay girls.
Put your fingers on the saucer.
And think of your questions.
Okay.
A question about a man,
what else?
Where is a man for me?
I'd love to hold someone,
to think of someone.
I don't know why I'm thinking of this now.
I've been single awhile.
(GASPS) Oh.
M...
M-o-l...
Molchi.
Be quiet?
- You be quiet!
- Is that to me?
He's grumpy.
Come on, Eva.
Okay.
I...
M...
Imya.
Name...
(DOOR OPENS)
- Hello. Hi.
- Hello.
Um...
My friend Mia comes here,
and I'm trying to find her,
and I haven't
been able to find her.
At first I thought she just
didn't want to talk to me.
But it's been like...
..like, several weeks, and...
..everyone is just acting like
it's totally fine
and I just...I think
that's quite strange.
Do you know where she is?
No, I don't know where she's gone.
She hasn't said anything?
Sorry, I can't talk about Mia.
That's client confidentiality.
Why did she come here?
Often, people come here
looking for something.
Something other than themselves.
That's been my lifelong
area of research.
Listen, Mia's just a bit impulsive
like that sometimes.
It's not on you.
Don't worry about it.
Come on, don't you want to schmooze
with some rich cunts?
What are you implying?
I'm just joking.
It'll be
an anthropological experience.
You know, good for material.
I'm really trying
with my dad at the moment,
and he's trying as well and...
Did I tell you that Eva's family
is from St Petersburg?
Oh, no. Beautiful.
Oh, we loved it there.
And what do you do, Eva?
I study film.
- You study film?
- Yes, film.
Oh, gosh, how interesting.
What do you do?
Uh, I used to teach,
but I'm mainly doing
volunteering work these days.
- Lillian also paints.
- Oh, cool.
Just as a hobby.
Yeah, I also actually
wanted to go into the arts.
I wanted to write, but, ah...
Dad passed away when I was young
and I saw it as my duty
to make a living.
EVA: Your work is creative.
To a certain extent, yeah.
Still, I envy young people.
Yes, I think young people these days
do have more opportunities,
in that sense.
You know, more information.
I grew up in the country
and, you know, when I was young,
I didn't really know
what was out there.
Mmm.
Yeah.
I don't know
about that, Lillian.
- What do you mean?
- Well...
As if you even choose that much,
in the end.
You know, it's like that...
that classic capitalist thing that
people say to make you
feel like you can do anything,
when, really, you just can't.
Maybe you just
didn't have any talent.
FATHER: That's quite possible.
- I might use the bathroom.
- LILLIAN: Sure.
It's just down the hall,
on the left.
Oh, sorry.
I was looking for the bathroom.
- No, no, no, it's fine.
- I got distracted.
That's fine.
I didn't mean to surprise you.
Feel free to take a look around.
Robert and I collect a bit.
You know, over the years.
I have to confess that I enjoy it
on a mostly instinctual level.
Right.
I just love the textures and shapes.
- Mmm.
- Oh, this one.
This one's really fun.
It's, uh...
It's meant to be about memory.
Makes me think of
the tunnels of the mind or something.
I just find it relaxing
to be here, really.
Even just to think how
all these people made these things.
Very moving, really.
(WIND WHISTLES, RUSTLING))
Oh, darling, are you alright?
Shall we step outside
and get some air?
(TUNE IS HUMMED)
MIA: This rich guy's
letting me stay here.
Mia.
Listen.
I've been thinking about you.
What's wrong?
What did I do?
I know something about you.
You're afraid.
You're afraid,
and you've put yourself in a cage,
and you've hidden from everyone.
You don't really live.
Not really.
It's all an act.
It's all a big, phony act with you.
What?
What'd I say?
Can you hear yourself?
You're a lunatic.
You've gotten yourself
confused, darling.
Let me tell you about you.
All you care about is being liked.
You think you believe in equality,
but you weigh people up on a scale
of being either better
or worse than you.
How could you be free like that?
Trying to please everyone?
You're the one in a cage.
You're a coward.
Mia?
Mia, I didn't mean that.
I...
I actually...
I didn't mean any of that.
I don't know why I said that.
Mia.
Mia, please.
Please? Please.
Please, I'm so sorry.
I'm sorry.
I'm so sorry.
Please forgive me, Mia.
Please don't...
Please don't leave me.
MIA: Don't touch me.
(PHONE CHIMES)
Do you know where Mia is?
She's a strange girl, isn't she?
Do you know where she is?
Why did you want to talk to me?
It's hard. It's, ah....
It's very hard
to say anything clearly.
I helped her.
It's hard to explain. Um...
I was dazzled.
She has this energy - this, ah...
..desire, I think,
at least it seemed to me
like a mirage.
- Wait.
- I don't really understand.
I have...
..noticed this contradictory
phenomenon in idealistic people.
An inverted desire for life
is a desire for death itself.
Do you understand?
(ELECTRO MUSIC PLAYS)
Mia?
Sorry.
- Hey.
- Oh, hey.
- Eva. Mia's friend.
- Hey.
- Yeah.
- Have you seen her?
Um, yeah, actually, I think
I saw her just before.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER AND LAUGHTER)
MIA: (SINGS) # I dreamed
# I climbed upon a cliff
# My sister's hand in mine
# A girl came down a mountainside
# With bluebells in her hand. #
(CONTINUES TYPING)
"My gentle coconut."
(TYPES)
Thank you.
WOMAN: Thank you for staying with us.
Have a nice day.
Hi, can I help you?
Hi. Um... Yes.
Uh, I have a friend
who's staying here, I think,
and I was wondering
if you could tell me if she was.
Mmm, what is her name?
- Her name's Mia.
- Mia.
I have a photo of her.
Not sure if you recognise her.
She might have been staying here
the last few weeks.
That's her there.
MIA: I've been staying here
while I work and do my research.
EVA: Your research?
MIA: I've been able to look,
like, really look at things.
Ferns. Flowers.
I come here every day.
They know when you're close.
And they know when you leave.
This is the green rose.
Looking at her, you learn that
what's important is movement...
..to stay in motion.
People are obsessed with death.
But a flower opens up her heart
to the sun.
That's how we can be.
That's how...
That's how I want to be.
(SING-SONG VOICE) Eva.
(WHISPER) Eva.
(WHISPER) Eva.
MIA: Eva.
I lost you for a second.
You look like you've seen a ghost.
I think I have.
And what did it want?
Nothing.
Nothing at all.
(LAUGHS)
(PIANO LOUNGE MUSIC PLAYS SOFTLY)
- To you.
- To you.
Here.
Have this.
- Really?
- Yeah.
Yeah, have it.
(LAUGHS)
Thank you.
You know, I feel happy.
I actually feel happy.
- You feel happy?
- Yeah.
Do you?
Maybe.
Maybe I feel happy.
- Let's drink to that.
- OK.
(GENTLE SONG PLAYS)
# I dreamed I climbed upon a cliff
# My sister's hand in mine
# A girl ran down the mountainside
# With bluebells in her hand
# I asked the valley
# For her name
# But wakened not yet knowing
# If the name she bore
were my sister's name
# Or if it were my own. #
(SONG FADES)
(LEAVES RUSTLE)
(FAINT HUMMING)
(HUMMED TUNE GROWS LOUDER)
- WOMAN: I'm glad we came up here.
- (LAUGHTER)
WOMAN 2: All flesh is grass.
We are what we abhor.
Devourers not only of
men but of ourselves.
In brief, we have devoured ourselves.
(LAUGHS)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
- Yeah? OK.
- MAN: I think it looked great.
(BIRDS SQUAWK)
Thank you so much.
- MAN: Such a good day.
- (INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER CONTINUES)
(CLATTERING)
- (DOOR OPENS)
- MAN: Hey.
- Sorry, you were...
- Hey.
- ..in the zone, hey?
- Yeah, kinda.
Working on the portrait thing?
Mmm. Yeah, I...
I filmed this old lady
that I work for.
Cool. Hey, have you seen that film,
Catch Me If You Can?
Yeah. Yeah, why?
Um...
Well, I was watching it
last night and I liked it,
but I didn't think
it was a GOOD film.
So I was just curious
as to what you thought.
Um...
I wasn't a big fan of the film.
But it's so weird, 'cause Leonardo di Caprio
was in my dream last night.
True? Well, it's your lucky night,
because...it's Titanic Trivia.
And we're all going to
go down and grab a drink,
if you want to join?
- I want to work on the thing.
- So fair.
- OK, well, good luck.
- OK.
- (DOOR CLOSES)
- You too.
I never said that!
(YOUNGER WOMAN) But I felt it.
- You didn't like it.
- You imagined that.
(OLDER WOMAN)
I didn't quite understand this project.
I'm not a film professional.
Eva, how can you get so upset?
Shouldn't they be guiding you somehow?
Yes, but...
You can't really teach
making films.
It's life.
It's... It's life. You...
You just have to live,
to feel things,
to understand things
in order to express anything.
What if I'm just a mediocrity
with nothing to say?
Please, don't dramatise.
You're learning...
The main thing
is to keep working, trying...
Yes, yes.
Simply being able to do what you love...
It's wonderful. It's so cool.
Enjoy the process.
Otherwise, why do it at all?
Maybe you should socialise a little
bit more with your classmates.
I like this house.
Would you like to live there?
Hmm...
Do you know that in France
you can buy a castle for peanuts?
Probably because no one wants
to live in a castle.
"All flesh is grass.
"We are what we abhor.
"Devourers not only of men
but of ourselves.
"In brief,
we have devoured ourselves.
"Those apparitions and ghosts
of departed persons
"are not the wandering souls of men,
"but the unquiet walks of devils.
"The blessed spirits
are not at rest in their graves,
"but wander, solicitous
of the affairs of the world."
Solicitous?
Solicitous.
Solicitous.
(INDISTINCT LAUGHTER AND CHATTER)
(LOUD TRAFFIC NOISE)
MAN: Huh?
I'm going around in circles.
Left at the bad sculpture?
Oh, I can see Mia.
Hey, babe.
Hi. (INDISTINCT)
- WOMAN: How are you?
- MAN: Good. How are you?
- WOMAN: You remember Mary?
- MAN: Yeah, Mary.
- WOMAN: She had that cat...
- MAN: Yeah. (LAUGHS)
(INDISTINCT)
- (RHYTHMIC MUSIC PLAYS)
- (INDISTINCT CHATTER)
WOMAN: So I've been trying,
like, baths, right?
You get, like, two litres of milk
and orange blossom water
and you just, like, soak in it.
And you just kind of like come out
soft as a baby and it's...
Oh, God, hey.
It's, like, really good for anxiety.
Hey, I'm so sorry.
I hope you don't mind.
You dropped this in the street.
Oh, my God.
That's lucky. Thank you.
Have we met before?
You look kind of familiar.
No, don't think so.
Do you want a drink?
MAN: $500 to simply piss on someone?
It's not THAT bad,
but it's also, like, not...
- You have to draw the line, right?
- Well, this is what I'm saying.
The stock market
is so much more profitable.
- I'm Mia.
- Mia?
- Yeah.
- I'm Eva.
Eva.
I like your shirt.
It's really beautiful.
Thank you. I'm glad you say that.
You don't think
I look like a turkey?
(LAUGHS) A turkey? No.
Maybe it's a little bit Oscar Wilde.
Oh, yeah. I like that.
I was having a shitty day,
so I dressed up.
- Oh, I'm sorry.
- No.
I mean, it is a full moon.
It's probably just my life.
I always blame a bad day
on the weather.
Yeah, blame it on the weather.
Do you want one?
I just have to get
the last train home.
Mm-hm. Yeah.
Where do you live?
Just on the other side of town,
with my parents.
- I can get you a cab, if you want.
- Oh, no, no, no, no.
Thanks. That's OK.
Eva was the name of my sister.
- Oh.
- Mmm. Yeah, she died.
- I'm so sorry.
- Oh, don't worry about it.
I was, like, 10.
She was eight years older than me.
I didn't even really know her.
Yeah, she was
travelling overseas and...
she got into a car accident.
(INSECTS CHIRRUP)
Sorry about the mess.
No, it's perfect.
This place is super cool.
Do you live here alone?
Yeah, for now.
This rich guy is
letting me stay here.
- Did you make these?
- Ah, yeah, mostly.
I'm trying more, like,
performance now.
Oh, these are so beautiful!
Never been in
an artist's home before.
Seems kind of vulgar to say that
about oneself, don't you think?
I guess it's not, like,
a profession, or something.
I just want to live - really live.
I think people forget
how important it is to just, like,
stare at a wall sometimes.
What do you mean "really live"?
(LAUGHS) Yeah. Yeah, how stupid.
I mean, what does that even mean?
Hey, look at the moon.
When I was little,
I prayed to go to the moon.
I, um...
I was more of a sun person, myself.
I was scared of the dark.
I was a scaredy-cat.
Hey, you can really hear the ocean.
(WAVES ROLL)
(HUMMED TUNE)
(BANG!)
What is it?
MIA: It doesn't matter.
There's a spare bed in here.
I'll get you a pillow.
Hey, um, I'm going to go.
I think the trains'll
be running again soon.
Bella Mikhalovna,
shouldn't you rest?
- You're running around again.
- No big deal, it's good for me.
I want you to eat a pirozhok,
eat something.
- Because you can't work and not eat.
- But I'm meant to cook.
They're saying that
you're eligible for cover.
So you'll get compensation.
You just need a certificate
from the doctor.
We can fill out this form next week.
Okay, we better look at your cup.
Okay, so...
I think that...
Someone from the other side
is thinking of you.
Yes, something like that.
And maybe it knows
something about you.
- Hey, are you listening?
- Yes.
The point is...
Information becomes material.
What information?
Our thoughts, memories...
The organisation of nature.
Everything is information.
Take for instance
Quantum Entanglement.
What?
You remember a person,
and they call you that same day...
A "spooky action at a distance".
As Einstein said.
You know that the other day I had
a dream about Leonardo DiCaprio.
- Yeah?
- I've never dreamt about him before.
And that same night,
a guy in my class
watched that dumb film,
Catch Me If You Can.
Yes!
Hooray!
It's still here.
Look...
50% off, already 50%.
- Mmm?
- Mum.
Mum, I won't wear it.
Listen, it's only $40
and it's 100% silk.
I just won't wear it.
What about this one?
Look, I found this.
Is there a sale?
These dogs.
(WIND WHISTLES, WAVES ROLL)
(INAUDIBLE)
(APPLAUSE)
Yeah, my...
My intention was to...
capture this woman's inner world.
Um...
Both the...frailty of her body
at this point in time,
but also, like, the...
..the freedom of her imagination.
So I tried to use sounds
of the ocean for that, but...
- ..I don't know if it worked.
- No, it's good.
Um, I think you've got
a really, you know,
a really good eye for detail.
I would wonder, though, is this
more of...a portrait of yourself,
or of the subject?
Uh...
It's impressions, so it's...
It's about finding
somewhere between...
..between reality and interpretation.
Yeah. I mean, we've been talking
a fair bit in this class
about the ethics
of subjective portrayals
and I think
that's a really interesting thing
with documentary work.
Look, even though this
is a documentary module,
everything that you learn here
is going to be really helpful
for your final year projects.
EVA: Is that guy your boyfriend?
MIA: No.
What about you? Have you got anyone?
- EVA: No. (LAUGHS)
- MIA: Are you in love?
EVA: No.
I've never been with someone
that I was in love with.
Actually,
I fall in love all the time, but...
..it's never with, like,
a real person.
Guess it's kind of childish.
I don't think so.
Not necessarily.
You're a romantic.
Like all the not-boring people.
Maybe.
Are you?
Yeah, I think so.
I think it's the only thing
that truly changes someone,
falling in love with some freak.
We should make something together.
You could act in it.
Yeah, why not?
Hey, you could stay in that
spare room, if you wanted.
At least for a little while.
Really?
Yeah. There's all that space.
If it can help you.
And I could use the company.
- I can pay for it.
- No, don't worry about it.
OK.
Eva! Everything is going to get cold.
Sorry, coming!
Listen, listen.
"What snack shall we have next,
Afanasii Ivanovich?
"'Perhaps crusts with lard?
"'Or poppyseed buns,
"'or at least some pickled mushrooms?
"'I could have buns or mushrooms,'
replied Afanasii Ivanovich.
"And the table was suddenly set
"with buns and mushrooms.
"An hour before lunch
he snacked some more,
"drank a silver cup of vodka,
"followed by various dried fishies
"and the rest."
People lived well then!
And now?
Seriously?
What more do you need?
I'm joking.
- Eva.
- Coming, coming, coming.
I'm almost packed.
What's this?
Have a look.
Even your dad approved.
It's a magical coat.
I can't believe it.
Can you imagine, 50% off!
As they say,
"it was meant to be."
Oh!
What a beauty...
(BOTH LAUGH)
Thanks.
- Hi.
- MIA: Morning.
Totally slept in.
I'm going to be late for class.
Hey...
I was thinking tonight
that I could, um,
I could take you out
for, like, a martini or something.
I've got class.
You are living in the iron grip
of an institution.
You can resist.
Unshackle yourself from
the shackles of the patriarchy.
Whatever.
Well...
Work is slavery.
Progress is death and destruction,
so, um, what's left?
Doing nothing. (LAUGHS)
You look great.
You're very beautiful.
The thing with beauty is...
..being at ease with yourself, right?
When you're nervous, all the muscles
on your face tense up
and you look all wrong.
There's something relaxing
about being filmed, too.
I think it's not being in control.
I like being in control, but...
..maybe it's good
to lose control, too.
Gets you out of your thoughts.
What do you mean?
When I...
..remember things from the past,
I remember
what I thought.
But I wish I could remember...
..the weather...
..details of people's faces,
the way that the air tasted.
Just...
..more of the world,
less of myself.
Then I think
you'd see more of yourself.
It's weird to think
that you don't know yourself.
What am I saying?
(AUDIO REVERSES)
(INAUDIBLE)
(ON VIDEO) It's weird to think that
you don't know yourself.
What am I saying?
The blessed spirits
are not at rest in their graves,
but wander, solicitous
of the affairs of the world.
(GASPS)
Oh...
That is so embarrassing.
I'm sure it's fine.
What do you think of this one?
- Um...
- (LAUGHS)
I like it.
Why? Is it yours?
No. I'm a psychiatrist.
And...well, an appreciator, I guess.
You?
An appreciator.
Psychiatry must be interesting.
(CHUCKLES)
Not as interesting as it may seem.
You'd probably learn more
about the human mind from...
..reading Russian novels.
Did you just guess
that I was Russian?
No, I didn't.
- Were you born there?
- No.
So I don't speak it
as well as I'd like to.
I've been a few times.
- Really?
- Mm-hm.
I even managed to sneak in there
in the '80s, in my student years.
- Whoa!
- (LAUGHS)
What made you want to go there?
Um... Bit of a cliche,
but Dostoyevsky.
I loved him, as a young man.
Now, I probably gravitate
more towards Tolstoy.
Which man do you prefer?
Um...
- Oh, excuse me.
- (WOMAN SPEAKS INDISTINCTLY)
(INHALATION)
(SLOW EXHALATION)
(SLOW BREATHING CONTINUES)
(INAUDIBLE)
(BREATHING CONTINUES)
Mia.
Hey.
I... I loved that.
Are you OK?
Mmm.
- Yeah?
- Yeah.
You should be so happy.
Yeah, I overheard these two women
say that, um, it was self-indulgent
or narcissistic or something.
Oh, they don't know
what they're talking about.
It was so good.
Hey.
- Hey, Bell.
- Sorry, I got held up.
I didn't expect to
see my fucking dad here.
Oh, weird. He's here?
Yeah, creeping about somewhere.
Hey, I'm Eva.
Hi. I'm Bell.
Nice to meet you.
- Would you like a drink?
- Um...
- Yes?
- I'm all good, actually.
- Oh, OK.
- I'll be back in a sec. Sorry.
(DISTANT SIREN WAILS)
BELL: Mia.
Have I done something?
MIA: I don't want to see you anymore.
BELL: Why?
You're full of shit.
EVA: Look at the moon.
When I was little,
I prayed to go to the moon.
(HINGES CREAK)
EVA: Mia? (KNOCKS ON DOOR)
I would really like that.
I haven't done it in ages.
- No-one ever rings me.
- (BOTH LAUGH)
- (INDISTINCT)
- Yeah, besides you.
(LAUGHTER)
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
WOMAN: Oh, yeah.
So, like, so this, like,
bitter energy
was, like, boiling
in the house, over time.
And it's just like
this sharing thing,
it just becomes way too much.
Like, everyone's just
up in each other's grille.
The confusing thing is, like,
I love community,
but it's actually just really hard,
when it comes down to it.
I think there could be
a way to distribute the work...
Sharing can also be kind of vain,
don't you think?
Like, cooking dinner for someone,
or giving them a gift.
- WOMAN: Yeah.
- It can be a vain act.
I think people get pleasure from
being seen as a generous person.
But that's over-complicating it
a bit. I think people just act...
MIA: I think that people
don't really know themselves.
Yeah, I think it's true.
I think we can be so unpenetrable.
Impenetrable?
MAN: Well, I've decided to refashion
myself as a corporate fuckwit.
I'm going to start buying shares
and fucking do this shit.
- OK.
- Is that what you're going to do?
MAN: I don't know. We're all
sucking corporate dick anyway.
Might as well do it in style.
(LAUGHTER AND INDISTINCT CHATTER)
Thank you so much.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(SPLASH!)
(BREATHES HEAVILY)
Impenetrable.
(DEEPER, SLOWER VOICE) Impenetrable.
(EXHALES)
Are you, like, angry at me?
Sorry. I'm just, like...
..lonely.
(MUSIC PLAYS)
She's...She's, like, full of life.
And it's perfect.
It r... It really shows on screen.
And so the film will be
more like a...
..kind of like a series of moments,
like a series of tableaus
um...
..that create, like, a...
..a mood.
Like, create different emotions.
Like an experimental portrait?
- Yeah.
- Great.
And what's it going to be about?
Um...
I would, you know, just, ah,
remind you that,
you know, this is going to be
your final-year project.
And I think sometimes the best
projects at the end of the year
are ones that, you know,
are really clear about
what they're trying to say.
It is a cliche,
but to break away from conventions,
you do have to have
a really good grasp of them.
(WHISPERS INDISTINCTLY)
(SIGHS)
(WHISPERS INDISTINCTLY)
It really helped Sasha's daughter
with stress and sleep.
I don't know, Mum.
I think I'm fine, really.
I couldn't sleep last night either.
I dreamed that
I was being chased by Putin.
I kept running and hiding
and he was following,
he wanted to seduce me.
He took off his pants
but they were stuffed with newspapers.
(BOTH LAUGH)
And how's Mia?
Um, yeah, I haven't
seen her in a few days.
MOTHER: Mmm.
- Mum, I better go now.
- Okay, bye.
Bye bye.
(DOOR BANGS, HINGES SQUEAK)
"E sleeps all the time.
"She is like a plant.
"She is strong because she is simple.
"I am a blood-sucker
and feed on her admiration.
"Friendship is vanity.
"To move into the realm
of the natural law,
"where I know something
other than myself.
"A plant moves towards the sun."
(KNOCKING)
- Hey.
- Hey, what's up?
- What are you doing here?
- What are you doing here?
- Is Mia home?
- Um, no.
I was just borrowing a book.
- Right.
- Mmm.
- You live here now?
- Yeah.
Just for a little while, at least.
Cool.
Do you want a drink?
Ah, sure.
I haven't seen Mia in a few days.
Do you know where she could be?
No idea.
Maybe working at her studio.
Oh. I didn't know she had a studio.
Yeah, it's one of those studio spaces
above the flower shop
on Nicholson Street.
Do you know who owns this house?
No.
- So are you studying?
- Yeah.
You know, I want to
make a film, actually.
- You study film, right?
- Mmm.
I had this idea for a film.
It would be taking a look at
our twisted relationship
with property in this country.
Like, 'cause a house
is supposed to be a shelter,
but in reality, it's this commodity.
Like, conspicuous consumption,
et cetera, et cetera.
I don't know, maybe I'm too lazy.
I read this George Orwell essay
that said that
the real motivation
for writing...whatever
is to get back at
your childhood bullies.
(CHUCKLES) Well, I was a bully,
so maybe I don't have any ambition.
Sorry?
You know, I'm a white guy.
Who gives a fuck?
Oh, I think it's
more complicated than that.
- You reckon?
- Yep.
Why should the oppressor
be generating more shit?
I don't think you're THE oppressor.
You sure about that?
You like Marvin Gaye?
You know he was killed
by his father, Marvin Gaye Senior?
- Really?
- Yeah.
- That's crazy.
- Yeah, it's cooked.
- What is it?
- Bit of fluff.
Hey, it was nice talking to you.
Oh, yeah, you too.
Um, do you want to
get a coffee sometime?
Yeah. OK, yeah, cool.
- Cool. I'll see you later.
- OK.
MIA: I had a dream about Eva.
She was...sitting in her room.
I was under the bed.
So I...
..started to sing,
to get her attention.
But she didn't turn around.
She used to call me a little bug.
She was the...
..beautiful one.
I know my mum thought that.
She never second-guessed herself.
Focus on my fingers.
Follow my fingers.
I want to grow...
..to be...inside of things...
..and everywhere
at the same time.
Deeper and deeper.
Let your feet grow deep,
like the roots of an old tree.
Your limbs become
the slithering vines
of a thick canopy.
Your voice becomes versatile,
like that of the lyrebird,
the voice of another
echoing in empty space.
(WIND WHISTLES, RUSTLING)
EVA: Hey, wait for me.
Wait up.
Mia! Hey.
When did you get in?
I dozed off, didn't hear you.
What are you doing?
Photosynthesis.
Really?
I'm sorry I've been absent.
What have you been up to?
Just...
- ..working on something.
- What is it?
Isn't it amazing?
The Green Rose.
It was discovered in China
in the 1800s.
Developed from a kind of mutation
where leaves grow instead of petals.
Yeah, it's...it's quite weird.
- I can't really talk about it yet.
- What are you doing now?
Um, I've just got some things to do.
Oh, hey, I had some ideas for the film
that I wanted to talk to you about.
Yeah, maybe later, OK?
(DOOR OPENS, HINGES SQUEAK)
I was just going to the bathroom.
MAN: So do you know what you'll do
for the, uh, final year thing, or...?
EVA: Um...
I'm still sort of figuring it out.
- Yeah.
- Do you know what you're going to do?
Yeah, yep.
I'm going to do, um, a slasher.
A lone abattoir cleaner
seeks revenge.
- Yeah.
- Revenge for what?
You'll have to see the film
to find out. Um...
Sounds good.
Who's shooting yours?
I think I'm going to shoot it myself.
Like a low-key kinda thing? Yeah.
I'm into that.
Going to just chuck this little LED
on. What do you guys reckon?
MAN: A lot of people are going
kinda crazy with budgets.
It's, like, a student film.
Taking all the fun out of it
and, like, I don't know -
Not really...
..not really having a laugh.
And if you're
not really having a laugh and...
Are you OK?
Yeah.
- Yeah, just a bit dizzy.
- True. Here.
Thanks.
Hey...
Do you think that
ghosts are a thing?
Yeah, I believe it.
Did you, like, see one?
It's meant to get really hot
this arvo.
Yeah, these heatwaves freak me out.
Yeah.
Alright, we'll just start with half.
It's not going to be hectic,
I promise.
You know, it'll...
It'll take you out of yourself
a little bit, which is good.
You need this kind of stuff
for, like, material.
Have you known Mia for very long?
Not really.
She's kind of hard to get to know.
Yeah, she's a fucking lunatic.
No, she's not.
I don't really want to
talk about her.
- Sorry.
- It's fine.
- (EVA AND BELL LAUGH)
- (PIGEONS COO)
(BOTH LAUGH)
(MOVIE WITH FOREIGN LANGUAGES
PLAYS)
(WATER RUNS)
When we returned everything changed.
They had built God knows what,
these supermarkets,
these strange houses.
I couldn't recognise anything
and I became sad.
Then I never wanted
to return to St Petersburg.
I don't really care about nostalgia.
Are you in love?
- What?
- Nothing.
I'll post the documents today.
Good, thanks.
Mmm...
Water...
A woman...
She's leaning down...
- What does it mean?
- Rusalka.
She can pull you under water,
lure you in...
And tickle you to death.
Are you joking?
No.
See it for yourself.
MIA: My feet sink into the ground.
And my voice echoes in the void.
Not limbs, but petals and leaves.
(THUNDER RUMBLES)
Here, at the edge of life,
death doesn't touch me.
Here at the edge of life,
death doesn't touch me.
Mia?
Mia.
Can I get you something?
Can I get you a glass of water?
Thanks for doing this.
No, I'm curious.
WOMAN: Horses have the ability to
present mirrors to our inner selves.
They are attuned to human behaviour,
having grown to understand us
through so many centuries
of being in our service.
What we are hoping to achieve
by the end of the session
is a step or two towards acceptance.
Hey, I'm going to film, if that's OK.
That's fine, darling.
Take three deep breaths for me.
(EXHALES)
Sometimes we arrive here in conflict,
fighting with ourselves.
Her actions reflect
what is going on inside you.
She's walking away now,
but don't feel rejected.
She wants to tell you something
about you, as you are right now.
Now try to establish
a connection again for me.
MIA: Hi. Hello.
(HORSE SNORTS SOFTLY)
(NEIGHS)
- OK, Stefanie, OK.
- (NEIGHS)
(WHISPERS) OK, my darling.
Hey, OK.
There is a deep current
of energy here.
Perhaps something from the past.
Perhaps grief -
a spirit that won't lie to rest.
Can we take a break?
Mia, that woman
seemed to know something.
Something's not right.
Not just now. Like, all the time.
You stay up,
and you wait.
Do you wait for her?
You're a spy.
I was worried. I...
- I was worried about you.
- Leave me alone.
(KNOCKING)
I've got borsch.
Let me heat you up a bowl.
(GROANS LENGTHILY)
(BOTH GROWL)
(BOTH LAUGH)
Your dad and I had a chat.
We'll send you
a little bit of money.
To help with your film.
I don't know what to do.
What are you talking about?
Mia doesn't want to do it anymore.
So what?
Find someone else.
I can't.
I don't know what to do.
You have to do something.
Okay girls.
Put your fingers on the saucer.
And think of your questions.
Okay.
A question about a man,
what else?
Where is a man for me?
I'd love to hold someone,
to think of someone.
I don't know why I'm thinking of this now.
I've been single awhile.
(GASPS) Oh.
M...
M-o-l...
Molchi.
Be quiet?
- You be quiet!
- Is that to me?
He's grumpy.
Come on, Eva.
Okay.
I...
M...
Imya.
Name...
(DOOR OPENS)
- Hello. Hi.
- Hello.
Um...
My friend Mia comes here,
and I'm trying to find her,
and I haven't
been able to find her.
At first I thought she just
didn't want to talk to me.
But it's been like...
..like, several weeks, and...
..everyone is just acting like
it's totally fine
and I just...I think
that's quite strange.
Do you know where she is?
No, I don't know where she's gone.
She hasn't said anything?
Sorry, I can't talk about Mia.
That's client confidentiality.
Why did she come here?
Often, people come here
looking for something.
Something other than themselves.
That's been my lifelong
area of research.
Listen, Mia's just a bit impulsive
like that sometimes.
It's not on you.
Don't worry about it.
Come on, don't you want to schmooze
with some rich cunts?
What are you implying?
I'm just joking.
It'll be
an anthropological experience.
You know, good for material.
I'm really trying
with my dad at the moment,
and he's trying as well and...
Did I tell you that Eva's family
is from St Petersburg?
Oh, no. Beautiful.
Oh, we loved it there.
And what do you do, Eva?
I study film.
- You study film?
- Yes, film.
Oh, gosh, how interesting.
What do you do?
Uh, I used to teach,
but I'm mainly doing
volunteering work these days.
- Lillian also paints.
- Oh, cool.
Just as a hobby.
Yeah, I also actually
wanted to go into the arts.
I wanted to write, but, ah...
Dad passed away when I was young
and I saw it as my duty
to make a living.
EVA: Your work is creative.
To a certain extent, yeah.
Still, I envy young people.
Yes, I think young people these days
do have more opportunities,
in that sense.
You know, more information.
I grew up in the country
and, you know, when I was young,
I didn't really know
what was out there.
Mmm.
Yeah.
I don't know
about that, Lillian.
- What do you mean?
- Well...
As if you even choose that much,
in the end.
You know, it's like that...
that classic capitalist thing that
people say to make you
feel like you can do anything,
when, really, you just can't.
Maybe you just
didn't have any talent.
FATHER: That's quite possible.
- I might use the bathroom.
- LILLIAN: Sure.
It's just down the hall,
on the left.
Oh, sorry.
I was looking for the bathroom.
- No, no, no, it's fine.
- I got distracted.
That's fine.
I didn't mean to surprise you.
Feel free to take a look around.
Robert and I collect a bit.
You know, over the years.
I have to confess that I enjoy it
on a mostly instinctual level.
Right.
I just love the textures and shapes.
- Mmm.
- Oh, this one.
This one's really fun.
It's, uh...
It's meant to be about memory.
Makes me think of
the tunnels of the mind or something.
I just find it relaxing
to be here, really.
Even just to think how
all these people made these things.
Very moving, really.
(WIND WHISTLES, RUSTLING))
Oh, darling, are you alright?
Shall we step outside
and get some air?
(TUNE IS HUMMED)
MIA: This rich guy's
letting me stay here.
Mia.
Listen.
I've been thinking about you.
What's wrong?
What did I do?
I know something about you.
You're afraid.
You're afraid,
and you've put yourself in a cage,
and you've hidden from everyone.
You don't really live.
Not really.
It's all an act.
It's all a big, phony act with you.
What?
What'd I say?
Can you hear yourself?
You're a lunatic.
You've gotten yourself
confused, darling.
Let me tell you about you.
All you care about is being liked.
You think you believe in equality,
but you weigh people up on a scale
of being either better
or worse than you.
How could you be free like that?
Trying to please everyone?
You're the one in a cage.
You're a coward.
Mia?
Mia, I didn't mean that.
I...
I actually...
I didn't mean any of that.
I don't know why I said that.
Mia.
Mia, please.
Please? Please.
Please, I'm so sorry.
I'm sorry.
I'm so sorry.
Please forgive me, Mia.
Please don't...
Please don't leave me.
MIA: Don't touch me.
(PHONE CHIMES)
Do you know where Mia is?
She's a strange girl, isn't she?
Do you know where she is?
Why did you want to talk to me?
It's hard. It's, ah....
It's very hard
to say anything clearly.
I helped her.
It's hard to explain. Um...
I was dazzled.
She has this energy - this, ah...
..desire, I think,
at least it seemed to me
like a mirage.
- Wait.
- I don't really understand.
I have...
..noticed this contradictory
phenomenon in idealistic people.
An inverted desire for life
is a desire for death itself.
Do you understand?
(ELECTRO MUSIC PLAYS)
Mia?
Sorry.
- Hey.
- Oh, hey.
- Eva. Mia's friend.
- Hey.
- Yeah.
- Have you seen her?
Um, yeah, actually, I think
I saw her just before.
(INDISTINCT CHATTER AND LAUGHTER)
MIA: (SINGS) # I dreamed
# I climbed upon a cliff
# My sister's hand in mine
# A girl came down a mountainside
# With bluebells in her hand. #
(CONTINUES TYPING)
"My gentle coconut."
(TYPES)
Thank you.
WOMAN: Thank you for staying with us.
Have a nice day.
Hi, can I help you?
Hi. Um... Yes.
Uh, I have a friend
who's staying here, I think,
and I was wondering
if you could tell me if she was.
Mmm, what is her name?
- Her name's Mia.
- Mia.
I have a photo of her.
Not sure if you recognise her.
She might have been staying here
the last few weeks.
That's her there.
MIA: I've been staying here
while I work and do my research.
EVA: Your research?
MIA: I've been able to look,
like, really look at things.
Ferns. Flowers.
I come here every day.
They know when you're close.
And they know when you leave.
This is the green rose.
Looking at her, you learn that
what's important is movement...
..to stay in motion.
People are obsessed with death.
But a flower opens up her heart
to the sun.
That's how we can be.
That's how...
That's how I want to be.
(SING-SONG VOICE) Eva.
(WHISPER) Eva.
(WHISPER) Eva.
MIA: Eva.
I lost you for a second.
You look like you've seen a ghost.
I think I have.
And what did it want?
Nothing.
Nothing at all.
(LAUGHS)
(PIANO LOUNGE MUSIC PLAYS SOFTLY)
- To you.
- To you.
Here.
Have this.
- Really?
- Yeah.
Yeah, have it.
(LAUGHS)
Thank you.
You know, I feel happy.
I actually feel happy.
- You feel happy?
- Yeah.
Do you?
Maybe.
Maybe I feel happy.
- Let's drink to that.
- OK.
(GENTLE SONG PLAYS)
# I dreamed I climbed upon a cliff
# My sister's hand in mine
# A girl ran down the mountainside
# With bluebells in her hand
# I asked the valley
# For her name
# But wakened not yet knowing
# If the name she bore
were my sister's name
# Or if it were my own. #
(SONG FADES)
(LEAVES RUSTLE)