From ‘Flee,’ ‘The Act of Killing’ Producer, ’A House Made of Splinters’ Bows at Sundance with Chronicle of Neglect
variety.comJD Linville On the Eastern border of Ukraine in the Donbas region is the city of Lysychansk, only 90 kilometers from Lugansk, where along the bank of the Donets lies the Lysychansk Center for the Social and Psychological Rehabilitation of Children.This halfway house serves as a momentary intervention for neglected and at-risk children while the state decides where to place them.
It is there that director Simon Lereng Wimont, who was shortlisted for an Oscar with his last film “The Distant Barking of Dogs,” filmed his new documentary “A House Made of Splinters” which will world premiere at Sundance in the World Cinema Documentary Competition.Cinephil is handling world sales for the film.
Produced by Monica Hellström of Final Cut for Real – whose credits include “Flee,” currently challenging for documentary and international feature Oscars, as well as “The Act of Killing” and “The Look of Silence” – and Sami Jahnukainen of Donkey Hotel, it profiles three children living at the center and their wish to go home – a goal their compassionate social workers and caretakers labor tirelessly to accomplish, regardless of how “home” may end up defined.
The children are forced to grow up quickly at the center, learning the pain of a lineage of alcoholism and violence, and themselves serving as the only chance for its end.“A House Made of Splinters” is a stirring glimpse at the power of care in the world of a child, and its story serves as a flicker of hope where one is needed most.Variety spoke with Wilmont ahead of the film’s premiere at Sundance.How did you learn about the Lysychansk Center for the Social and Psychological Rehabilitation of Children?
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