No Regrets

The film captures suspension performances in a Kharkiv nightclub, a subculture involving body suspension through piercings. Participants, often teenagers interested in heavy music and body art, use this practice as a protest against societal norms and a form of youth radicalism. Unlike political activism, it symbolizes a desire to escape social ties through pain. Five years later, Ukraine’s war shifted pain’s symbolism from escape to a new normality, as many young people joined military and volunteer efforts.

• Mykola RidnyiDirector