The teacher and animator of the “Belarusfilm” studio, Volha Rybina, was sentenced to three years in prison for donating to initiatives deemed extremist. A 90-year-old mother is waiting for Volha on freedom. Here’s what a friend of hers says about her:
“Volha graduated from the art academy and studied animation. Then such a course was held once every four years. The artificial ones were rare. And until then, there were no courses on animated films in Belarus at all. For example, artists who were deeply rooted in their format or architects who couldn’t convey the scale of their thoughts even in 3D went into animation. These are usually poetic creatures. At the beginning of 2008, I met Volha again at icon painting courses, where she was the most talented.
She is a very modest person with a diligent attitude to everything she does. I’m talking about Volha as a creator, not as a prisoner. In 2020, when we learned about violence against people, a lot of people donated for medicines, and simply because they have mercy for the suffering. In the spring, they reached Volha. Seven ‘cosmonauts’ with weapons ‘flew’ to the lonely woman and her 90-year-old mother.”
